Monthly Archives: June 2010
On break
It’s been a week since a post of any kind from me here on Metal Excess. That’s a bit of a rarity. The truth is there’s some personal issues I’m dealing with right now and while I’m listening to a bit of music here and there and I have new releases to review, I’m just not in the mood to write about them.
Have no fear, Metal Excess will return shortly! Until then, take care.
OZZY OSBOURNE – Scream
Ozzy Osbourne – Scream (2010, Epic Records)
1. “Let It Die” … 6:05
2. “Let Me Hear You Scream” … 3:25
3. “Soul Sucker” … 4:34
4. “Life Won’t Wait” … 5:06
5. “Diggin’ Me Down” … 6:03
6. “Crucify” … 3:29
7. “Fearless” … 3:41
8. “Time” … 5:31
9. “I Want It More” … 5:36
10. “Latimer’s Mercy” … 4:27
11. “I Love You All” … 1:04
Band:
Ozzy Osbourne – Vocals
Gus G. – Guitar
Rob “Blasko” Nicholson – Bass
Tommy Clufetos – Drums, Percussion
Adam Wakeman – Keyboards
Producer: Ozzy Osbourne & Kevin Churko
I picked this one up along with Vince Neil’s Tattoos & Tequila at BestBuy.com for $7.99 and free shipping and just like the Vince Neil album, I originally had no plans to pick it up. That’s the one good thing about the music industry being in the dumpster these days — low prices finally, otherwise I wouldn’t have given this album a second thought.
At $8, I figured if I didn’t like the album I wouldn’t be losing too much and at least it’d be another new release to review. To my surprise, I’m actually enjoying the album a lot. It was a blind purchase, I hadn’t read any reviews at the time of purchase and it’s a good thing — most reviews are saying it’s either average or bad. Of course, I’m wouldn’t really call myself an Ozzy fan so my expectations were quite low in the first place and went in with an open mind.
It seems the major controversy surrounding this album is the new guitarist Gus G. replacing Zakk Wylde. Honestly, you really can’t tell Zakk’s not here. Most of the album was written by the time Gus signed on and there was very little wiggle room to leave his own personal stamp on the songs. He’s basically playing as if he was Zakk which makes you wonder why Ozzy/Sharon got rid of Zakk in the first place. I think most fans would have accepted Gus with open arms if he had been given free rein but the fact that he wasn’t seems to be the deciding factor for most people. I’m told Gus is a great guitarist from his days in Firewind but I’m totally unfamiliar with that band. Oh well, I’m sure within the next year or so Ozzy will put out yet another live album to document the upcoming tour and then maybe the guitar aficionados will be pleased with Gus’ performance then.
Scream keeps the pace with his last two albums… or with what I’ve heard from them. Ozzy’s always done a good job of keeping his sound updated (even if the songs themselves aren’t always good) and he continues on the post-grunge/nu-metal/low-tuned guitars path that he started with 2001′s Down to Earth. There’s not a lot of flash on this album, it’s modern sounding heavy metal and the only time Ozzy gets close to his ’80s heyday is with the ballads but those ballads are very well done. The album is bogged down with a few generic metal numbers but overall I’ve enjoyed the it… and a bit more than self-proclaimed Ozzy fans have apparently!
Previous to this, the only Ozzy albums I’ve owned were Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman. Both albums have their moments but neither are personal favorites of mine. I’ve just never taken to Ozzy’s voice or bought into the whole image that he’s the end-all be-all of heavy metal. He’s always been a bumbling fool to me, even previous to becoming a reality star/heavy metal joke. Still, I’ve come to appreciate his run with Black Sabbath and after being entertained by this disc, I’m interested in checking out some of his other solo work.
The Ozzy logo and album title you see on the album cover is not actually a part of the artwork. For my copy, it was a sticker on the cellophane wrapper. Pretty strange but it peeled off easy & clean and I slapped it on the cover of the jewel case to make it look proper.
Highlights: “Let It Die”, “Soul Sucker”, “Life Won’t Wait”, “Diggin’ Me Down”, “Fearless”, “Time”
VINCE NEIL – Tattoos & Tequila
Vince Neil – Tattoos & Tequila (2010, Eleven Seven Music)
1. “Tattoos & Tequila” … 3:44
2. “He’s a Whore” … 2:49
3. “AC/DC” … 4:08
4. “Nobody’s Fault” … 4:44
5. “Another Bad Day” … 4:07
6. “No Feelings” … 2:50
7. “Long Cool Woman” … 3:27
8. “Another Piece of Meat” … 3:08
9. “Who’ll Stop the Rain” … 2:51
10. “Viva Las Vegas” … 2:54
11. “The Bitch Is Back” … 3:45
Band:
Vince Neil – Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Jeff Blando – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Dana Strum – Bass
Zoltan Chaney – Drums
Additional Musicians:
Marti Frederiksen – Bass, Drums, Keyboards, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Brad Gillis – Guitar
Jack Blades – Backing Vocals
Anthony Focx – Drums
Will Evankovich – Guitar
Christian Matthew Cullen – Keyboards
Mollie Solow – Backing Vocals
Producer: Jack Blades &Vince Neil, Marti Frederiksen (Tracks 1 and 5)
When I first heard about this album, I wasn’t all that excited about it but I figured I would probably pick it up just because I’m such a big Crue fan. Then I found out this album was mostly a collection of cover songs with only two original songs. I decided against picking it up but I read a few positive reviews for it and noticed Best Buy’s website had the album on sale for $7.99 with free shipping. I ended up ordering this along with Ozzy’s Scream album (it had the same deal). Both albums arrived in the mail on Monday, 6/21 — a full day before they hit the street! BestBuy.com is quickly becoming one of the top stopping places for me when it comes to new music from established acts.
Vince Neil sounds as good as ever (no jokes, please) and he’s backed by a number of notable musicians. Night Ranger’s Brad Gillis & Jack Blades lend a hand with Jack Blades going as far as producing all of the cover songs. Then there’s Beautiful Creatures’ Anthony Focx making a guest appearance. Slaughter’s Dana Strum and Jeff Blando help make up the Vince Neil band in 2010 alongside newcomer Zoltan Chaney on drums. Marti Frederiksen (who co-wrote the entire Saints of Los Angeles album from Motley Crue) plays a few instruments and also produced/wrote the two new tracks.
I think the song choices here were great. Vince said he wanted to cover bands he was a fan of and that had influenced him and that’s great. He’s lent his voice to so many low-budget tribute albums over the years, it’s nice to know he’s not just collecting a paycheck this time. It’s also cool this was released on Eleven Seven (where Nikki Sixx is a head honcho at the label) and Vince didn’t have to put this out on a no-name label.
These covers are inspired. They’ve all been given a slight makeover and a sleazy hard rock edge. Some of his cover choices are surprising, here’s the full list: Cheap Trick, Sweet, Aerosmith, Sex Pistols, The Hollies, Scorpions, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Elvis Presley and Elton John. I’m particularly impressed by the versions of The Hollies’ “Long Cool Woman” and CCR’s “Who’ll Stop The Rain”. Vince sound really good singing these old ’70s hard rockers. His take on Aerosmith’s “Nobody’s Fault” and Elvis’ “Viva Las Vegas” are pretty rockin’ too. I was particularly interested in how “Viva Las Vegas” would sound and I’m glad it was given a hard rock makeover and he didn’t try to remain true to the song’s lounge act roots. Even the two new songs “Tattoos & Tequila” and “Another Bad Day” (which are obvious attempts at getting modern rock radio play) are growing on me.
Vince really sounds like he was having fun with these songs and why not? Like Def Leppard’s Yeah! covers album, this is a good time rock ‘n’ roll album for the summer and it was recorded for no other purpose than having fun. Fun seems to be the Vince Neil way. Though he has somewhat of a scroungy biker image when hanging out in Motley Crue, his solo style appears to be that of a hard rock Jimmy Buffett and he even has an ad in the CD booklet for his own line of tequila! Look out, Sammy Hagar!
Rock ‘n’ roll for the sake of rock ‘n’ roll. Recommended.
Highlights: “Tattoos & Tequila”, “He’s A Whore”, “Nobody’s Fault”, “Long Cool Woman”, “Who’ll Stop The Rain”, “Viva Las Vegas”
RAVEN – Walk Through Fire
Raven – Walk Through Fire (2010, Metal Blade Records)
Original Release: 2009, King Records (Japan only)
1. “Intro” … 0:52
2. “Against The Grain” … 3:52
3. “Breaking You Down” … 3:02
4. “Under Your Radar” … 4:05
5. “Walk Through Fire” … 3:20
6. “Bulldozer” … 3:53
7. “Long Day’s Journey” … 4:50
8. “Trainwreck” … 3:34
9. “Grip” … 3:31
10. “Running Around In Circles” … 3:40
11. “Hard Road” … 3:45
12. “Armageddon” … 6:31
13. “Attitude” … 3:24
14. “Space Station #5″ … 4:01
BONUS TRACKS
15. “Live At The Inferno” [live] … 4:17
16. “Rock Until You Drop” [live] … 5:32
Band:
John Gallagher – Vocals, Bass
Mark Gallagher – Guitar
Joe Hasselvander – Drums
Producer: Raven
This album was originally released exclusively in Japan in 2009 but received European/U.S. releases in 2010. I’m American and I have the American version that features two new bonus tracks, so that’s good enough to call this a 2010 album for me. Previous to buying this album, I owned only one Raven release — their debut Rock Until You Drop. It was okay but didn’t thrill me enough to catch up on the rest of their catalog. Still, I was willing to give this new release a try, even willing to buy the Japanese import but it was so expensive. I was relieved to hear a U.S. distribution deal was finally secured for this album.
Though I haven’t followed Raven’s career, I can at least report this album continues the NWBOHM meets early thrash/speed style they started with. For anyone else unfamiliar with this band, the closest comparison I can think of is Anvil. Both bands have that New Wave British metal sound while slightly pushing it to the limit and into the territories of speed & trash metal. I’m particularly impressed with John Gallagher’s high pitch vocals. It adds to the charm of this old school metal release.
Though this album isn’t going to make my Top 10 for the year, it’s still a fun heavy energetic listen carried by John’s vocals and great guitars. Hardcore Raven fans should be very pleased.
I hate this album cover, it’s so cheap looking but it appears they were maybe giving a nod to previous album covers for All For One and Live At The Inferno. In another bit of annoyance “Necessary Evil”, a new studio track, was left off the European/U.S. releases and replaced with two live “bonus” tracks. Frankly, I would have rather had a listen at another new song especially when John’s voice seems strained on “Rock Until You Drop” and the crowd seems rather subdued (small?).
Highlights: “Against The Grain’, “Under Your Radar”, “Long Day’s Journey”, “Trainwreck”, “Hard Road”
http://www.ravenlunatics.com/
http://www.myspace.com/ravenlunatics
DAVID COVERDALE – Into the Light
David Coverdale – Into the Light (2000, Dragonshead)
1. “…Into the Light” … 1:16
2. “River Song” … 7:19
3. “She Give Me…” … 4:12
4. “Don’t You Cry” … 5:47
5. “Love is Blind” … 5:44
6. “Slave” … 4:51
7. “Cry for Love” … 4:52
8. “Living on Love” … 6:31
9. “Midnight Blue” … 4:58
10. “Too Many Tears” … 5:59
12. “Don’t Lie to Me” … 4:43
13. “Wherever You May Go” … 3:59
Musicians:
David Coverdale – Lead Vocals, Guitar (“…Into the Light”)
Doug Bossi – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Earl Slick – Guitar
Marco Mendoza – Bass, Spanish Guitar, Backing Vocals
Denny Carmassi – Drums
Derek Hilland – Keyboards
Mike Finnigan – Organ, Piano
John X. Volaitis – Keyboards, Percussion, Harp
Dylan Vaughan – Guitar
Tony Franklin – Bass
Bjorn Thorsud – Tambourine
Jimmy Z – Harmonica
Linda Rowberry – Vocals (“Wherever You May Go”)
Producer: David Coverdale
Not surprisingly, Into the Light, David Coverdale’s first official solo album in over 20 years sounds pretty similar to Restless Heart, the Whitesnake album that came out three years prior to this release. Restless Heart was originally intended to be a solo release but the record company interfered (as they are prone to do) and released it under the name “David Coverdale & Whitesnake”. Of course, the Whitesnake name was featured prominently on that album’s cover.
Well, Mr. Coverdale finally get his way and full solo credit on this release from mystery label Dragonshead. I see many listings online claiming this album was released by EMI but I don’t see their name anywhere in the credits and I can’t find anything about Dragonshead online. Coverdale’s vanity label? Anyway, Into the Light continues Coverdale’s journey back to his roots and there’s a few bluesy rockers and ballads on here that would sit comfortably on any early Whitesnake release like “River Song”, “She Give Me”, “Cry For Love” and ‘Living On Love”. “Don’t Lie To Me” is the hardest rocker of the bunch that seems to pull together all eras of Whitesnake, much like the entire Good to Be Bad album did.
Alongside the bluesy numbers is also a collection of fairly mellow melodic rock/pop numbers which don’t really intrigue me all that much but apparently this whole album was very cathartic for Coverdale who was still trying to find himself after allowing himself and Whitesnake to fall into the “hair metal” image in that was so popular in the late ’80s.
For some reason, Coverdale likes to cover his own material (to his credit, he did it quite successfully). He does it again here with a new version of “Too Many Tears”, which is just a slower version of an already slow song… which was released on Restless Heart only THREE YEARS earlier. Given the even slower tempo, Coverdale voice is restrained and the song just doesn’t work as well. Why even bother?
I do have to say that “Wherever You May Go” is a fantastic ballad, one of the best I’ve heard from Coverdale. I remember this album coming out in 2000 and had heard this song online and loved it, but didn’t buy the album. I guess I was afraid the whole album would be too mellow for me but this song that constant play on my computer back in those glorious Napster days.
The final word on Into the Light is that it’s a decent album. Anyone who liked Restless Heart will probably like this but there’s a few mellow moments on here I could have done without.
Highlights: “Slave”, “Cry For Love”, “Living On Love”, “Don’t Lie To Me”, “Wherever You May Go”
RAM – Lightbringer
RAM – Lightbringer (2010, AFM Records)
Original Release: 2009, AFM Records
1. “Crushing The Dwarf Of Ignorance” … 1:37
2. “Lightbringer” … 4:28
3. “In Victory” … 4:18
4. “Awakening The Chimaera” … 4:24
5. “Ghost Pilot (MI II)” … 5:36
6. “Suomussalmi (The Few Of Iron)” … 9:03
7. “Blood God” … 3:29
8. “Titan” … 6:03
9. “The Elixir” … 6:46
10. “Prelude To Death” … 3:04
Band:
Oscar Carlquist – Vocals
Harry Granroth – Guitar
Daniel Johansson – Guitar
Tobbe Petterson – Bass
Morgan Pettersson – Drums
No, I didn’t hold down the shift key for too long. The band’s name is RAM, not Ram, and they’re a Swedish metal act that plays primarily in the traditional/”classic” heavy metal style (with a cool old school band logo to boot) and occasionally thrash creeps in. The inspirations are the usual for a band that plays this style: Priest, Mercyful Fate, Maiden, Metallica, etc. The Mercyful Fate influence is obvious just by vocals alone. Oscar Carlquist displays a number of vocal ranges throughout the album, most notable being the shrieking style of King Diamond. Unfortunately, he also sometimes resorts to the metal growling that I hate, but thankfully those moments are brief and do not dominate the songs.
Despite the old school mentality of these straight forward heavy metal numbers, I hate to call this band a “retro” act. In fact, I hate to call any band a retro band. I’ve seen some reviews online knocking this band and the album just because it isn’t modern metal. So what! As long as the music is good, who cares ?!? Why does any genre or style of music have to be pinned down to a specific decade?
“Awakening The Chimaera” is the song I was primarily referring to when it comes the growling. It’s actually a good song but it loses all momentum for me in the middle of the song when Oscar starts singing that way. Yuck! Luckily, “Lightbringer” and “In Victory” (which as a good groove) are right before it and the epic “Suomussalmi (The Few Of Iron)” isn’t too far behind it. I have to agree with the general consensus that it’s the best song of the bunch. I manages to sound traditional and fresh. “Titan” would be my second favorite song. It’s 100% pure straight ahead heavy metal as is “Blood God”. Either of those two songs could have easily come off an ’80s metal album.
“Crushing The Drawf Of Ignorance” (which is a pretty cool title!) is the intro and “Prelude To Death” the outro. Intros/outros don’t really mean all that much but they are fine for what they are. Really, the only song that lacks “oomph” is “Ghost Pilot (MI II)”. Total filler on an otherwise very good album.
From what I can tell, the album was originally released in June 2009 but AFM rereleased it in June 2010 with a slightly altered cover. Well worth the pick up for traditional metalheads.
Highlights: “Lightbringer”, “In Victory”, “Suomussalmi (The Few Of Iron)”, “Titan”, “The Elixir”
VANDEN PLAS – The Seraphic Clockwork
Vanden Plas – The Seraphic Clockwork (2010, Frontiers Records)
1. “Frequency” … 6:16
2. “Holes In The Sky” … 5:33
3. “Scar of an Angel” … 7:28
4. “Sound of Blood” … 6:50
5. “The Final Murder” … 9:54
6. “Quicksilver” … 8:59
7. “Rush of Silence” … 9:28
8. “On My Way to Jerusalem” … 12:53
BONUS TRACK
9. “Eleyson” … 5:32
Band:
Andy Kuntz – Vocals
Stephan Lill – Guitar
Torsten Reichert – Bass
Andreas Lill – Drums
Gunter Werno – Keyboards
What I saw the track list for this album, I first thought “Nine songs. That’s not too bad,” then I realized the shortest song is 5 1/2 minutes and the longest songs clocks in at nearly 13! Yikes. Songs that long can sometimes be a chore and a bore to get through but I’ve found myself enjoying most of what these German prog metal-heads are offering up.
I am not familiar with Vanden Plas. They have been around since the 1986 so it is entirely possible their sound developed and evolved completely on their own but I have to say they have a very similar sound to Dream Theater and in lighter moments — Rush. Even in my unfamiliarity with prog I could easily pick that out. This certainly isn’t a knock on the band. It’s like telling an AOR band they sound like Journey or a thrash metal band they sound like Metallica — it’s high praise, I think, even if that means the music doesn’t sound completely original.
The smooth vocals of Andy Kuntz unsurprisingly bring to mind Dream Theater’s James LaBrie. LaBrie isn’t the only singer Kuntz reminds me of though. What may come as a surprise is that I am also reminded of Don Dokken… and that was before I knew they covered Dokken’s “Kiss Of Death” for one of their previous albums! Another surprise is Kuntz sounding like Great White’s Jack Russell. Just listen to “Quicksilver” and tell me it doesn’t sound like Russell when he sings a ballad!
When the album rocks, it is very good. “Holes In The Sky” may very well be one of my favorite songs of 2010 and “Frequency” is good metal but I’ve found there are many slow, light moments sprinkled throughout these lengthy song. The keyboards get more of the spotlight than I would have wished as well.
Though prog fans will probably get more of a kick out of this album than I did, I still think The Seraphic Clockwork is a solid album with enough hard ‘n’ heavy moments for a thumbs up from me.
Highlights: “Frequency”, “Holes In The Sky”, “Quicksilver”, “On My Way to Jerusalem”
LIZZY BORDEN – Love You to Pieces
Lizzy Borden – Love You to Pieces [Remastered] (2002, Metal Blade Records)
Original Release: 1985, Metal Blade Records
1. “Council for the Cauldron” … 3:13
2. “Psychopath” … 3:38
3. “Save Me” … 4:05
4. “Red Rum” … 3:53
5. “Love You to Pieces” … 4:29
6. “American Metal” … 5:54
7. “Flesh Eater” … 4:52
8. “Warfare” … 3:49
9. “Godiva” … 2:29
10. “Rod of Iron” … 4:31
BONUS TRACKS
11. “Wild One” [demo] … 3:17
12. “Whiplasher” [live demo] … 2:24
13. “Warfare” [live demo] … 2:27
14. “Dirty Pictures” [demo] … 3:44
Band:
Lizzy Borden – Vocals
Tony Matuzak – Guitar
Gene Allen – Guitar
Michael Davis – Bass
Joey Scott – Drums
Producer: Lizzy Borden
The first Lizzy album I ever heard was Menace to Society and it was disappointment in my eyes and I felt the more recent Appointment With Death was basically an album of filler outside of a few notables. It is only my love for Master of Disguise that has compelled me to dig through the rest of their catalog. Love You to Pieces is the band’s first LP and it’s a classic that’s chock full of solid heavy metal/power metal with an Iron Maiden influence as well.
There’s just something about Lizzy’s voice that I really enjoy. I can see how some people would be turned off by his high nasal, operatic delivery but it’s unique and I guess that’s one of the reasons I’m a fan of it.
As you can tell by the cover, there’s a good amount of sleaze involved as well (not only do we get a chick in lingerie but in the mirror you’ll see an ax-wielding Lizzy) but what’s a Lizzy Borden album without some sex & violence? Lyrics from the song “Flesh Eater”:
“I growl for my meat
While you bark for the bone
I plunge in so deep
You swallow me whole
You lust for my tongue
It makes me feel mean
I bound your arms
And lick you clean”
Romance? Bah, who needs it! However you may feel about those lyrics (I personally find them to be gleefully juvenile and trashy), the actual song is very good and probably the song where Iron Maiden’s influence is most felt on this album. The rest of the album continues to deliver great metal music whether it’s the heavy metal anthem “American Metal”, the love-gone-psycho tale of “Love You to Pieces” or just the plain psycho in “Psychopath”. This comes pretty close to being my favorite Lizzy album but I still have a soft spot for the theatrics of Master of Disguise. Great release anyway you hack it though.
The 2000 reissue features a few bonus track demos. “Wild One” is good but sounds a bit commercial and could’ve been on almost any glam rock band’s album. “Dirty Pictures” should’ve made the album. I’m not sure when these songs were recorded. “Dirty Pictures” features a lyric that mentions “visual lies” which is the name of the band’s 1987 album. I hate when reissues seem to get random bonus tracks that have no relation to the album they are on.
Anyway, this is a great album but if anyone is going to pick it up, make sure you get the reissue.
By the way, can anyone tell me what Lizzy is saying at the beginning of “Council for the Cauldron”? Sounds like whatever he said was being played in reverse.
Highlights: “Psychopath”, “Red Rum”, “Love You to Pieces”, “American Metal”, “Flesh Eater”, “Rod Of Iron”, “Wild One”, “Dirty Pictures”
ERIC CARR – Rockology
Eric Carr – Rockology (2000, EMI/Spitfire Records – Canada Import)
Original Release: 1999, Spitfire Records
1. “Eyes of Love” … 3:29
2. “Somebody’s Waiting” … 3:48
3. “Heavy Metal Baby” … 4:34
4 .”Just Can’t Wait” … 3:56
5 .”Mad Dog” … 3:16
6. “You Make Me Crazy” … 4:04
7. “Nightmare” … 4:22
8. “Nightmare” (live demo) … 3:42
9. “Too Cool For School” … 3:59
10. “Tiara” … 4:26
11. “Can You Feel It” … 4:02
12. “Nasty Boys” … 3:27
Musicians:
Eric Carr – Lead Vocals, Drums, Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Bruce Kulick – Guitar
Adam Mitchell – Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Producer: Bruce Kulick, Adam Mitchell and Eric Carr
Yet another album in a long line of them that I’ve been “familiar” with for many, many years and thus I delayed ever purchasing a copy. $3 for a new, sealed copy on Amazon was too good to pass up! Turns out I got the Canadian release that came out a year after Spitfire originally released it in the United States but it’s the same exact track listing.
When I first heard this album, that’s when I started to become a huge Eric Carr fan. From everything I’ve read and have heard about him, he was a great guy and this collection of demos just proves how great of a musician and songwriter he was (to be fair, Bruce Kulick and Adam Mitchell also wrote/played on these songs). Too bad Gene and Paul didn’t allow him more of a creative hand in KISS.
Actually, a few of these songs were written with KISS in mind though “Nasty Boys” and “Too Cool For School” were intended for his animation project The Rockheads. “Eyes of Love” and “Mad Dog” definitely sound they could’ve been KISS songs. It almost sounds like Eric is trying to emulate Gene, though whether he was writing these songs for himself or Gene I don’t know. Most of the songs just seem to be songs Eric was kicking around on his own time for his own amusement or maybe even a solo disc. I believe all of these songs were recorded from 1987-1989 but in 1999 with some additional production Bruce Kulick overdubbed a few solos with the blessing of Eric Carr’s family.
For what is basically a collection of demos, many of them are in pretty good quality, especially considering that according to Bruce’s liner notes many of these songs have only survived in cassette form. A couple of songs don’t even have complete lyrics and feature Eric scat singing in order to get a feel for the song. It’s a pretty interesting listen and “Nightmare” is set up this way but you can just imagine (or I can, at least) what the lyrics might have been. “Nightmare” is a pretty epic ballad, I love it. Again, I could hear this being a KISS song, with Paul singing.
Speaking of ballads, Eric seems to excel at writing these. They aren’t the typically sappy power ballads but haunting ballads. “Nightmare”, “Somebody’s Waiting”, “Tiara” (quite a bit dated with the keyboards) and “Just Can’t Wait” (which never had vocals put down) are excellent.
“Eyes of Love” and “Mad Dog” are just a few of the great rockers found here. “Can You Feel It” is another hot rocker full of positive energy. Far from complete, “You Make Me Crazy” is really good too which Bruce notes was actually being referred to as “Van Halen” for a time because of its sound.
This is an amazing collection of demos that gives the world a glimpse of Eric Carr — beyond the make up. Maybe none of these songs are 100% complete (though some come close) but there are a number of great songs here that would have been considered classics were they ever finished. Unfortunately Eric never got the chance.
Essential album for any fans of Eric Carr’s time in KISS.
Highlights: “Eyes of Love”, “Somebody’s Waiting”, “Just Can’t Wait”, “Mad Dog”, “Nightmare”, “Tiara”, “Can You Feel It”
