Rainbow-Rising-Review

  Released in 1976, "Rising" is the second studio album released by Rainbow. Considered one of the best metal albums of all time, and a blueprint for "power metal", Rising is a very influential album. But, is it as good as people say it is?

   "Tarot Woman" is first. A very cool Minimoog synthesizer solo provides the introduction. Drummer "Cozy" Powell then kicks in with a monster drum beat. The dearly departed Cozy was an absolute revelation behind the kit, easily one of the best rock drummers of his era. Very Deep Purple-sounding, the song stands out from Purple by the massive presence of Ronnie Dio on vocals. Dio's vocals are superb, and it's hard to imagine a better fit for Richie Blackmore's rollicking classical-metal riffs. The lyrics are a nice change from the somewhat vapid lyrics of Ian Gillan and even David Coverdale, very poetic and heartfelt. Next is "Run with the Wolf". Blackmore explores familiar blues-metal riffage, but again Dio's vocals prove that this is not your mother's rock band. This song, more than any other by Rainbow, shows the sound that Dio would adopt for his solo career. A heavy amount of organ fattens the sound, but I could live with or without keyboards on this song. With sounds as big as Blackmore and Dio, "beefing up" of sounds in hardly needed.

   "Starstruck" provides the basic foundation for Iron Maiden.  A classical/Celtic-esque intro shows Blackmore exploring the more ancient forms of music, blending them seamlessly in 1970s hard rock.  The chorus is very catchy and makes you sing-along. However, the song is somewhat swollen and long for me. Rainbow frequently made songs that were too long in my opinion, by the 3-minute mark, the song starts to lose some of its appeal. "Do You Close Your Eyes" is one of my favorite Rainbow songs. Despite a somewhat pop-like chorus, the verses are very masculine and lean, heavy with sexual intent. Not as bad as some say, the choruses do take away something from the song. The lyrics just seem out of place with Dio's schtick at that point, more romantic than cautionary. "Stargazer" is a metal/hard-rock staple. Covered by countless bands, this song is the stuff of legend. Cozy's drums are phenomenal, Dio soars vocally, and Blackmore smokes. Backed up by an orchestra, I hate to use this cliche word, but the song is truly epic-sounding. Stargazer does overstay its welcome somewhat at over eight-minutes long, but with musicianship this good, who really cares.

   Last up is "A Light in the Black". Later Dio bassist "Jimmy Bain" really shows off his chops here. Amazing bass playing. Approaching new limits of his technicality, Blackmore really comes into his own here. A very versatile and influential guitarist, I believe that this album was the highlight of his playing, at least in the rock context. The keyboard solos are also quite enjoyable, and American keyboardist "Tony Carey" does his best Jon Lord imitation, albeit with a more synthesized flavor, before heading into a classical keyboard solo that blows away almost anything done by Lord by 1976. Blackmore's solo comes next, and is positively electric atop a machine-like beat from Cozy. Amazing stuff.

   Rising is an amazing album. Is it the best hard-rock/metal album of all time, certainly not, But is it f-ing amazing, it certainly is. Rainbow in 1976 had all the aces, and were at the top of their game.

Rating-9/10
  
      

   

Kiss-Kiss-Review

    Released in 1973. Kiss' self-titled debut album is often overlooked compared to later albums. Why? Let's find out....

    First up is live staple, "Strutter". An ode to a vamp of a woman, the song is heavily influenced by the sound of the "New York Dolls". A great song, but the production and sound of it on this album really suffers. That is really the problem with most songs on this album, the versions on Kiss "Alive" are so much better sounding. Next is the very bluesy "Nothin' to Lose". Not a huge fan of this song, and especially not of this terrible sounding and very slow version. One of the few Kiss I actually like the studio track better is "Firehouse". Paul Stanley sounds great on this studio track, and he delivers a great vocal. Nonetheless, the song itself does sound terrible, I just like the rawness of the studio track, less bombastic sounding. "Cold Gin" definitely is a Kiss classic. Ironically an ode to something that he does not do, Gene "I like money" Simmons delivers one of his best vocals, very aggressive and guttural. However, the muddy sound and slower tempo really kill the song for me. Stick with the live version.

   "Let Me Know" is another "Gene Blues" song. Very limited musically, it sounds like a poor rehash of Strutter. The band was obviously struggling to fill out the album, and this song is the definition of filler. The song barely survives today in the hearts and minds of even the most hardcore Kiss fans, it barely registers. "Kissing Time" was not originally included on early releases of the album. It was recorded to promote a contest for this album, and really has no reason to be included on this album. It is really corny and lame. One of my least favorite songs recorded by Kiss. "Deuce" is a killer song,
and often opens Kiss concerts even today. I like both versions of the song, but I would again give the edge to the live version from Kiss "Alive". But I like the crunchy amateur-sounding guitars on this album, it has a certain innocent charm. "Love Theme from Kiss" is an instrumental. Very short, it does show that Gene was certainly a capable bassist, not just a reality TV star behind clown makeup. The song is very jammy, and feels somewhat useless and repetitive. ZZzzzZ

     "100,000 Years" suffers the most out of any tracks contained on this album as well as Alive. It lacks the energy and ferocity of the version from Alive. It's like a deflated tire, it just doesn't drive. A great song, but a terrible sounding version.  "Black Diamond" is the band's magnum opus in my humble opinion. A tale of an African-American prostitute, Peter Criss delivers a stunning vocal, with his whiskey-tinged voiced. But this version suffers the same fate as most other songs, it cannot compare with the version from "Alive". Not bad, but better live. Also, the outro is even more useless than the live track.

    "Kiss" is not essential for anyone other than hardcore Kiss fans. The sound is awful, the songs are played at a very slow speed, production is almost non-existent, and only a few songs really can almost match their live counterparts, even then, not really. All of the best songs on this album can be found elsewhere, Kiss Alive is 100,000 years better.

Rating-5/10

   
   

Led Zeppelin-III-Review

   Released in 1970, what is there to say about "III" that has not been said already. A bizarre album in the band's catalogue, it nonetheless endears and is my personal favorite "Zep" album. Let me tell you why I like it so much.

     The album starts off with the thundering metal anthem, "Immigrant Song". Stepped in Norse legends and myths, the song shows Zeppelin heading towards more fantasy-based lyrics. But who really cares about the lyrics when the riff is so damn heavy. Robert Plant shrieks like a madman, and drummer John "Bonzo" Bonham hits the drums like the thundering hammer of Thor himself. Astounding sound. Next is "Friends". An acoustic song, it shows guitarist Jimmy Page beginning to experiment with alternate guitar tunings. This one is tuned to a "C" chord. Obviously the song is quite unconventional sounding, but I enjoy the song, especially the ominous strings supporting the sparse guitar. No drums are present on the song, and I think that this was a good call. It adds an element of isolation to the song, musically speaking. "Celebration Day" is one of the band's most famous early songs. Backed by one of the early uses of a Moog Synthesizer, slide guitar slithers over a funky bass-line. Apparently the song was written about Robert Plant's impressions of New York City, and the lyrics obviously reflect this. Great song.

      The most traditional song is the album is "Since I've Been Loving You". A blues number, the song sounds like it could have easily fit on the band's first album. Page's guitar mastery really becomes apparent here, and anyone doubting his musical merit should really give this song a listen. Bluesy, desperate, and powerful, this sensual lament is easily one of the band's best songs. Fantastic. "Out on the Tiles" is another great song. Featuring one of Page's signature "blues-funk" riffs, the song really cooks. Bonzo's beat is fantastically solid yet intricate. Led Zeppelin is really the only band where the drums are really "in the front" for me, I really listen attentively to everything Bonzo is doing. "Gallow's Pole" is based on the traditional folk song "The Maid Freed from the Gallows". Especially noted for Bassist/Multi-Instrumentalist John Paul Jones' use of a mandolin, the song really shores up the idea of "III" as a very folky, yet heavy album. A Zep classic, the song also contains banjo, adding even greater complexity to the folk instrumentation of the song. While certainly a heavy electric band, Zeppelin could also produce very raw folk/blues songs, and I believe that they equally excelled at both styles. "Tangerine" is my favorite Zeppelin song of all time. Page's 12-string guitar is contemplative and delicate, and Plant's vocals have a longing and fragility rarely heard, fragile yet confident and masculine, astounding stuff. Bonzo has a somewhat difficult time being quiet, but succeeds in keeping the drums down. My only real complaint is that the song is somewhat short, over before it begins.

    "That's the Way" continues the folk vibe of the album. The highlight of the song is the pedal steel played by Page, it is hauntingly beautiful. I also like the use of a dulcimer, making the song sound almost country-like. This song again has no drums, but I feel that a pounding drum beat would have detracted from the song's quiet beauty. Amazing. "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp" is one of the strangest songs on the album. Another open tuning song, it is very "country-folk". Robert Plant sounds right out of the Mississippi Delta,  and delivers a great vocal. The hand claps are very fun, and add a bar band element to the song. "Hats off to (Roy) Harper" is another odd duck of a song, and really the only song I do not care for on the album. Not terrible, but it feels somewhat rushed together, like a quick warm up before getting into a day's recording. Plant sounds great, but the song is very sparse, with only acoustic guitars and voice. Raw, but not for me.

    "III" is an absolute masterpiece. Often less celebrated than "I", "II" and the mighty "IV", I believe that "III" is by far the best Led Zeppelin album. Complex instrumentation, exploration of new instruments and tunings, and great tunes make it a stunning collection of songs. Essential.

Rating-10/10

   

Winger II In The Heart Of The Young-Review

      Liking Winger is like liking finding comedian Joe Rogan funny, nobody really believes that you are serious. I do like Winger in all honesty, and I feel that they are easily one of the best hair metal bands of the 1980s and 1990s. II is their best album in my opinion, so let's take a look at a lost classic.

     Released at a time when hair metal was waning (1990), the album was a moderate success but did not reach the heights that I feel that it deserved. First track is fairly boiler plate hair metal. "Can't Get Enuff" is of course about.....sex. Singer Kip Winger sings of his addiction to his female object of affection, a very horny song. Very standard sounding, not a bad song, but somewhat cliche. Next is "Loosen Up" , a party anthem. Basically a tribute to sex and booze, a very sleazy song. The riff is fairly complex (for a hair metal song, c'mon folks). Despite the dunderheaded lyrics, I like the song quite a lot. Guitarist Reb Beach's solos are blistering hot, very good drumming comes in as well. A little too long in the tooth, but a near classic. Next comes one of my favorite songs of the 1990s. "Miles Away" was a moderate hit on radio. A power ballad, the song is incredibly catchy and powerful sounding. The keyboards and drums sound horribly dated, but it only adds to the nostalgia factor. Try not to like "Miles Away", it's a song that Bon Jovi could only imagine writing. If the song had been released 3 years earlier, Winger would have broken much bigger than they did. Shame, but great song.

   "Easy Come, Easy Go" is a perfect example of late-period hair metal. Keyboard horns back up a crunchy guitar riff. A pop chorus comes in, showing that Kip Winger was certainly capable of rocking while at the same time winning the hearts of young ladies with sappy ballads. Next up is another highlight off the album. "Rainbow in the Rose" is a highly ambitious song. Containing countless chord changes and complex arrangements, the song is very progressive. Cheap-sounding keyboards somewhat distract, but the music and vocals are very good. I especially like Kip's bass playing on this song, showing that he is very underrated. "In the Day We'll Never See"begins with some guitar trickery. Then the song kicks in, with very nice lead guitars and a memorable riff. Kip's vocals shine on this song, leaps and bounds above many other glam/hair metal vocalists. The chorus is kind of repetitive, but the song has staying power. "Under One Condition" is another ballad. Honestly, I did not really like this one. It's far too slow, and feels like a rehash of "Rainbow in the Rose". Skip this one.

   "Little Dirty Blonde" is the classic song about a sexy evil vixen. I feel like a song such as this is slightly below Kip's talents. The lyrics are pretty cliche and lame, and even the solo fails to impress. Not bad, but pretty average. "Baptized by Fire" again shows us the virtuosity of Kip Winger. The classical-like intro is interesting, and then a heavy riff comes in. The only part of the song I really don't like is when Kip decides to rap a la Red Hot Chilli Peppers/Faith No More. Kip just sounds ridiculous, and I would prefer that this section did not exist. Not a bad song, but a little repetitive with its constant repeating of the chorus. "You Are the Saint, I am the Sinner" comes next. A very heavy song, its a much better tale of the "evil woman" legend of heavy metal. The solo section is a bit too ambitious in its chord changes, and it distracts the listen. That's the problem with Winger, often they would write a basic song and throw in multiple chord changes. This can be good, but it can also make the listener feel lost, not having a musical base to grab on to. The title track closes out the album. "In the Heart of the Young" is a gorgeous song. Rich synthesizers, and Prog-rock like drums create a very emotive sound. The lyrics are actually quite deep as well, singing of the possibilities of youth in terms of creating their own future. A great song.

   "In the Heart of the Young" is a very good album. Winger deserves to be recognized as an important part of rock music, and I pledge to make this happen. If you like hair metal and progressive music, give Winger a chance.

Rating-8/10
   

Boris-Attention Please-Review

    Japanese rockers "Boris" released this very strange album in 2011. Radically different from most of their "noise metal" albums and conceptual pieces, this is as close as Boris get to J-Pop. Sparse, haunting, and surprisingly calm, this is Boris' most accessible album to date. But, is it any good?

    The title track comes first. "Attention Please" shows off the sound of the album. Built around a hypnotic and danceable bassline,  angular guitars puncture the bass and drum groove, and they are surprisingly lacking in overt distortion.  Guitarist "Wata" shows off her very soothing and ethereal voice. Very haunting vocal. Different, but "good different". "Hope" is next. Very heavily influenced by "Shoegaze" music, it even features Mellotron-like strings a la Smashing Pumpkins. My Bloody Valentine would be the reference point for this song, very fuzzy and distorted. The male-female harmonies also remind of said band. Despite being somewhat a rehash of MBV and other Shoegaze bands, I like Boris' take on the genre.

   "Party Boy" is next. A heavily distorted bass shows Boris getting back to their old metal tricks. Electronics and effects add layers to the basic bass riff, over-top a cheap-sounding drum machine. The song is a little sparse for me, given the incredible noise that Boris are known for. Not bad, but somewhat boring. "See You Next Week" is very slow and dreary. Almost "Sigur Ros-like". A pulsating drum sound stutters over reverb-drenched guitars and white noise. Very sleepy and a tad too long, I nonetheless enjoyed the desolate isolation that the song produces. "Tokyo Wonder Land" is my favorite song off the album. Very dark and noisy, the song is a radical departure for Boris. The cheap sounding drum machine makes its return, and is somewhat distracting. But the song gets points for its very unconventional drumbeat, cracking and buzzing guitars, and funky bass. What a noise this song makes, incredible racket. As a side note, I saw Boris a few years ago and was amazed by the noise that they make live, almost unbearable, like MBV themselves.

  "You" is another sleep-inducing song. Soothing and relaxing Wata agains begs us to fall asleep. But interjections of apocalyptic-sounding guitar atonality prevent total sleep. Frog-like background noises add a very creepy element, and disturbing effects and electronics are present throughout like dream-like song. Very interesting sounds, and it shows that Boris can really produce any sound that they want and are very adept at manipulating their instruments. "Aileron" is a very short instrumental acoustic guitar piece. Influenced by jazz and classical guitar, it is very beautiful and a nice break from the very noisy song before. Next. "Les Paul Custom '86" is the most similar song to the band's older material. Noisy without crushing your ear drums, it is very catchy at times. However, I find the drums distracting as they are often out of time with the other instruments. Boris have done this on other songs, and it is probably intentional, but it doesn't work for me on this song. But fuzzy guitars and bass make up for the odd and distorted drums, and I did enjoy this song. "Spoon" is again quite "Shoegaze" sounding. Drums pound with Jimmy Chamberlin-esque fervor. Very 1990s sounding, the song is hazy sounding and slightly reminiscent of both Shoegaze and late 1980s U.K. rock bands such as the Stone Roses. Very noisy, it is nevertheless quite gentle and beautiful. Like MBV, Boris can make a racket and feedback sound very warm and inviting. Last is "Hand In Hand". Another slow and dreamy song, again think "Sigur Ros" as the starting point for the sound of this song. A good song, but very slow and it does drag on somewhat.

   Attention Please is something new for the band. Less metal and heavy rock, the album is certainly not as loud as many other albums. If you like Boris for their heaviness, this album probably won't be for you. But if you have a broad musical pallet and enjoy some of Boris' more electronic albums, this album should more than make you happy. A very different album, but a nice departure for an album. But, I would hate to see Boris making music this slow all the time.

Rating-7.5/10
   

Motley Crue-Too Fast For Love-Review

    Originally released in 1982, "Too Fast For Love" is the debut album by infamous L.A. rockers "Motley Crue". Many people consider this album to be the best album released by the band, a raw and energetic album full of youthful "starry eyes" moments, before the band became a bloated (literally) shadow of its former self.  Let's see if those folks are correct...........

       "Live Wire" is a live staple of the band, even today. The best use of a cowbell this side of Blue Oyster Cult, Tommy Lee shows that he was not just a pretty face. A perfect blend of punk speed and metal ferocity, the song is easily one of the band's best. "Come On And Dance" is next. Very raw, it sounds basically like a glorified demo. Lee lays on more cowbell, and guitarist/mascot Mick Mars produces a very dirty and muddy sounding guitar mix, but it is somehow punchy without being over the top. Vince Neil  shows off some nice pipes, and lays down a nice and lusty vocal. Good song. Public Enemy #1 is not one of my favorites. It lacks the bite of the first two tracks, my lighter and poppy, but somehow not very catchy. Not a bad song, but very thin-sounding. "Merry-Go-Round" is one of my favorite songs by Crue. Basically a pop song, it is an early example of a Crue ballad a la "Home Sweet Home". Very sweet and innocent, it's an early Crue classic that is sadly not played enough live.

    "Take Me to The Top" is another quasi-punk/metal hybrid. Very fast and driving, the song has the simplicity of a punk song, but is somehow heavier and more aggressive. Very basic, it really shows that Crue has always been more about attitude and theatrics than musical complexity. A decent song. "Piece Of Your Action" almost makes the album a concept album. Another tribute to sexual conquest, I am not a big fan of the production on this track. With only one guitar, the song doesn't sound fleshed-out enough. The solo is sparse and simple, and Nikki Sixx's bass playing reveals some of his early limitations. Not a band song in itself, but terrible production. "Starry Eyes" is another song suffering from poor production. The song itself is very different musical from any other song released by the band, and makes me wonder about who its composers or co-composers were. In any case, not a bad song either, just very different-sounding. Somewhat 1970s-sounding, like a demo from the early pre-Crue days on the Sunset Strip. The title track, "Too Fast for Love" is a killer classic. A very nice metal-lite riff is the centre-piece of the song. The influence of the Sex Pistols can be heard all over this track, very snotty, but also meaty and aggressive. A great song. "On With the Show" closes the album. Vince's singing is somewhat more off-key than usual in this song. Lee's drum is over-busy, and lacks accuracy. The whole song feels sloppy, unfinished. Skip.

   "Too Fast For Love" is not a great album. Motley's best album in my opinion is the underrated "Girls, Girls, Girls". But, it is a decent first effort. Despite being musically simple, it makes up for that fact with charisma and balls. You could do better, you could certainly do worse.

Rating-6.5/10
  

Deep Purple-Come Taste The Band-Review

   "Come Taste the Band" is the tenth and final album released during Deep Purple's original run. The only album released with guitar legend "Tommy Bolin", this album sounds at times different from previous Purple albums, but somehow familiar. In this author's opinion, "Come Taste the Band" is easily one of the best albums released by the band, and an underrated classic. Let's take a look....

   "Coming Home" is up first.  A classic "Purple" track, it sounds like the musical equivalent of a 747 soaring through the skies. A tale of the hardships of the road, Purple sound tired after years of constant touring, still having a lot of energy, but winding down. Great song, and very loud. "Lady Luck" explores musical ideas from their "Burn" era further. Bluesy, but funky at the same time, the recently deceased Jon Lord adds nice touches of synthesizers to his very thick keyboard and organ sound. Bass work by Glenn Hughes is amazing and very funky, and Bolin shines on the six-string, great musicianship on this track. "Gettin Tighter" is the highlight of the album. A song about band dynamics and musicianship, Purple were definitely a very tight unit at this point. Glenn Hughes' vocals are top notch, and more soulful and sweet than David Coverdale's bluesy howl. It's nice to see Hughes taking the lead vocal, as this did not happen enough on Deep Purple albums. Great song.

   "Dealer" concerns the band's increasing problems with drug dealers pushing their wares to the band. Very bluesy, it is actual quite similar to songs found on early "Whitesnake" albums. However, Bolin is a total beast on the guitar: not as technical as "Richie Blackmore", but just as enjoyable to listen to. Bolin added an American element to a very European band, he added a bluesy grit and rawness that was missing until that point. The very bass-heavy "I Need Love" is next. Showing the growing influence of funk on the band, Jon Lord adds a "Clavinet" sound that nicely accompanies an almost "slap" bass. Effects are all over the song, especially the low-end. They sound somewhat cheesy and dated, but don't detract from the overall sound. A cool 70s jam-like song. "Drifter" takes the band into much more American-sounding territory than ever before. Sounding somewhat like Steppenwolf, a very heavy blues riff drives along white-hot guitar licks from Bolin. "Love Child" is another favorite of mine off the album. The bass, guitars, and organs play a very thick and viscous blue-metal riff that is catchy as hell.  A weird synthesizer breakdown happens at the end of the song. Not a big fan of this section, it shows the direction the band probably would have taken had it continued, very electronics-heavy. Not a bad song, but not essential.

   The strangest song on the album is next. The jazzy and soulful "This Time Around" is very Stevie Wonder sounding. Showing Hughes amazing vocals, I love his singing, but I am not a huge fan of the jazzy piano and rubbery synth-like bass. Curious-sounding, but not a good direction for this band. "Owed to G" continues the basic structure of "This Time Around", but adds more guitars and feels more jammy. I pretty much always skip this one, not a big fan. "You Keep Moving" reminds me of "What's Going on Here?" from "Burn". I especially like the bass-line, and it really shows that Glenn Hughes is underrated as a bass player. The songs a bit too bloated and long for me. Not bad, but nothing truly amazing about this track.

   "Come Taste the Band" is a very good album. Tommy Bolin was a great addition to the band, and easily made up for the massive hole left by Richie Blackmore leaving. It's a shame that the band imploded and Tommy Bolin would die before another album could be released. Oh, what could have been. But for now, listen to what was...Deep Purple Mark IV.

Rating-8.5/10