Fresh in today’s mail, it is the latest KISS Off the Soundboard CD, Asylum Tour 1985, in Texas!
“But Mike,” you query. “I thought that was a vinyl exclusive, and I thought it sold out too.”
True, it was a stupid coloured 3 LP set, exclusive to the KISS store, and now sold out except in bundles with a shirt.
The Japanese record company said いいえ and issued it on CD anyway. They did a smashing job of it! Some fans received a free sticker; I did not. Inside the cardboard gatefold sleeve was a mini KISS poster, and 2 CDs, each one within its own plastic sleeve within its own printed paper sleeve. The design for this album was a little different from the previous five in that this time there is a picture on the outer cover.
The CD sounds great, and it’s classic fastfastfast 80s Kiss with the unforgettable Eric Carr on drums. That’s why you only see CD 2 in this photo. CD 1 is in the deck! This could have been released officially in 1985.
The early 2000s…they were a weird time, man. Just look at the clothes! One guy who didn’t look like the year 2001 was Andrew Wilkes-Krier. With a dirty white T-shirt and equally dirty jeans, Andrew W.K. came at the dawn of a new millennium. His music was both ultra-futuristically sterile, while also being a throwback to the guitars and keyboards of the 80s. It’s impossible to pigeonhole his music into one genre, possessing qualities of pop, metal, and punk. We do know two things about Andrew W.K.: He likes to party, and he likes to write songs about it.
Andrew’s debut album I Get Wet is hard to describe. It’s loud and banging, while also feeling like the product of a computer. Though there are deluxe editions and Japanese bonus tracks out there, the core album is just 12 songs and 35 minutes. Maximum bang per minute. There are no songs over four minutes, and two that are under two minutes. The instrumentation is guitars, bass, drums, and “programming”. It’s impossible to know how many guitars, as several are credited including Phil X. It’s a thick sound. There are no solos. There is no musicianship. The volume knob has been cranked right off.
Opening up with “It’s Time To Party”, there’s a simple fun riff to headbang to. Andrew’s yelling/vocals is augmented by keyboards to add melody. If it were just his bare voice, it would sound very different. Vocals, keys and guitars are layered thick and drums are cranked up to maximum bang. It’s in your face, and one of the strangest sounds in rock and roll. But…so damn catchy. Dumb and catchy. Exactly the point.
“Party Hard” was a significant hit. I remember watching Andrew W.K. on Saturday Night Live one night, and my girlfriend looked at me and said, “You like this stuff?” I did, and I still hear what I liked.
‘Cause we will never listen to your rules (No), We will never do as others do (No), Know what we want and we get it from you, Do what we like and we like what we do.
The message is simple: Party hard. It’s a loud sonic mush, with a monolithic melody and if you were going to call this a guilty pleasure, then I guess it’s a guilty pleasure.
A repeating piano line introduces “Girls Own Love”, which almost sounds like you were listening to a Van Hagar hit at maximum volume, with your head under water and you’ve already held your breath for half a minute. The overall melody comes through, but everything else is just loud banging. Even Andrew’s vocals are a mixture between melody and percussion. Good song!
The video gamey keys that open “Ready To Die” are indicative of the simple melodic construction of the song ahead. Of course, the monolith of guitars and keyboards and vocals pile on, but you can’t shake the feeling that this is metal Mario music. It’s a good thing these songs are short, because they usually consist of one or two ideas, rinse and repeat.
The tempos remain on high for “Take It Off”. The formulaic piano keys ding while we wait for Andrew to start yelling. You can imagine a sea of morons bouncing up and down to this song in some weird 2001 setting. You can even envision what they looked like. Then, “I Like New York City” breaks formula by opening with Andrew’s multitracked vocals. Basically just a pop song played on guitars. It’s simple enough to be a children’s song. You can hear, in different arrangements, how these songs could be themes for Japanese children’s cartoons.
One cool song is “She Is Beautiful”. To hell with dynamics; this one hits the mark again with the right combination of melody vs. bludgeoning. It satisfies, but is best experienced with head bobbing. Then, the delightful “Party Til You Puke” re-grounds the lyrical message where it should be. You’ll enjoy the chorus of “Party til you puke, party til you puke.” Probably the hardest song on the album, but it’s a narrow range of choices. Fortunately, “Fun Night” brings things down to a sane tempo and non-deafening volume.
“Got To Do It” emphasises pop side of things. It’s weird to hear a song that had this kind of pop potential, but with Andrew W.K.’s growly singing on top. Without trying to sound like a broken record, it was 2001 and anything goes. Synth horns are a surprising choice for the title track “I Get Wet” but they’re soon drowned out by the mush of guitars and keys. You can exchange this song for “Party Hard”, or several of the others, so similar are they. Finally we end with “Don’t Stop Living in the Red” which starts off like a Journey tune before Andrew’s signature banging kicks in.
Listen, I won’t lie to you. You’re not going to get any smarter listening to I Get Wet by Andrew W.K. You might have to put on some Paganini or Dream Theater to make up for the brain cells you burned. Still, you won’t find anyone that sounds quite like Andrew W.K. It’s such a strange combination of sugary sweet melodies, and excessively loud and layered guitars and yells. Sometimes, it’s just what the doctor ordered. It won’t be an album you play every day (nor should you; consult your pharmacist) but it might just be that perfect drug on the day you need it.
VAN HALEN – A Different Kind of Truth (2012 Universal CD/DVD set)
When this album was released in 2012, we all wanted Van Halen to win. Eddie had been through some tough times, but he finally did what the fans demanded: get back together with David Lee Roth, and record a new album. Sure, we all lamented that Michael Anthony was gone, but it was new bassist Wolfgang Van Halen that made it happen. Without Wolf, there would be no final Van Halen album. Just VHIII, and we know how most of you feel about that.
Working with new producer John Shanks in neutral territory, Van Halen managed to crank out a new album in just three years, starting with jams in 2009.
Wolf knew that Van Halen had to get back to a “classic” sound for their first new album with DLR since 1984. In addition to new music, Wolf dug back into Van Halen’s archive of unreleased material, and picked seven songs that rework and re-write. Roth called it a “collaboration with the past”, which is a good way of putting it. No, it does not sound exactly like old Van Halen; that would be impossible. It does, however sound like Van Halen with Roth.
Opener “Tattoo” was the first single and weakest track. It’s also the only one with audible keyboards (by Dave), though just for texture. Roth said the multi-layered chorus was inspired by artists such as Rhianna, but that chorus is actually the annoying part of the song. Eddie’s fills and Dave’s verses are fine and entertaining, as is Wolfie’s fuzzy bass. The chorus is the weak link, perhaps even worse than the lyrics: lines such as “tramp stamp tat” and “mousewife to momshell”. I like tattoos as much as the next guy, but I’ll never use the word “momshell” except when discussing this album.
The real banger is the second single, “She’s the Woman”, a pretty close approximation of the original Van Halen song (pre-debut album). Wolfie’s playing is monstrous, with a catchy circular bassline that proved the kid had the talent to be in this band. His dad must have loved jamming with him. Ed’s solo really brings us back to classic Van Halen, while Alex’s drums have that sound that we all missed. I hate to say it, but this rendition is probably superior to the original lineup’s version.
“You And Your Blues” has that choppy Eddie guitar we love, and those “ahh, ahh” backing vocals that scream Van Halen, even without Mike. Dave’s lower voice works well on the verses, though he is stretched out on the high notes in the chorus. A great Van Halen album-quality song. (If you’re fortunate enough to have a CD/DVD combo set, you’ll be treated to a cool acoustic version of “You And Your Blues” with loads of storytelling from Roth.)
“China Town” has some of the best shredding on album. From Wolfie’s crazy capo bass to the lightning fast tempo, all four members of Van Halen are on fire. If any song can be said to take the classic sound and launch it into orbit, it’s “China Town”, and Wolf is the star. The bass is not overly high in the mix, but when you listen to it and isolate it in your head, you realize that this guy has brought a new side to Van Halen: bass shred. Additionally, it’s a great song in every way.
Going back to 1984 and an instrumental section called “Ripley”, “Blood and Fire” was reworked in 2000 for an aborted reunion with Roth. Interestingly “Blood and Fire” actually sounds more like Hagar era Van Halen. It does contain one of Dave’s favourite concert phrases: “Well look at the all of the people here tonight!” If this track had been on 5150, it would have fit like a glove, though it would have been one of the more rocking tunes. Edward himself is the star on this one, as he rips, shreds, and tears as if it really was 1984 again.
“Bullethead” sounds new, and also goes back to the 2000 sessions. Van Halen speed and Dave “charasma” are held together by the rhythm section of Al and Wolf. It contains the lyric “Got a different kind of truth”, from which the album takes its title. Ed’s effect-laden solo is no less cool, though nobody will list “Bullethead” in their top 20 Van Halen songs. A cool album track it is, but that’s all.
One of the coolest tunes would have to be “As Is”. Opening with some Alex drum intensity, it breaks into a slow heavy riff, before finally accelerating into a powerhouse Van Halen smokeshow. That running riff sounds so classic, you could swear they injected Ed with youth serum. He sounds like a man reborn, both in terms of shred but also in fun. Ed gets to play with many different sounds and tempos on “As Is”, while Dave also gets to enjoy himself with singing and that spoken word stuff he does so well. Most of this is done very fast.
This sounds like a natural side break. “Honeybabysweetiedoll” (another 2000 track) comes across like a side two opener. Ed is experimenting with new sounds, like he used to, and you’ve never heard Ed sound or play like this before. He goes for a middle-eastern vibe, but with the kind of intensity that other bands do not have the mettle to muster. Dave’s lyrics about soccer moms don’t quite hit the spot where the music is concerned, but nobody’s listening to this song for the lyrics. It’s the guitar that makes the biggest impact here. You can imagine the Ed diehard fans just pounding their fists in celebration when they heard what Ed was up to, before they tried to figure out how he got that sound.
“The Trouble With Never” might be the only track that doesn’t seem like it goes anywhere. You also miss Michael Anthony the most on backing vocals here. It’s just a song. Not a great one, not a bad one…but with one hell of a cool bassline.
“Outta Space” originated in the mid-70’s as “Let’s Get Rockin'”. The riff is classic even though it never made an album before. Dave sings in his highest voice, which is actually cool after a lot of lower pitched songs. As you’d expect for a song originally called “Let’s Get Rockin'”, it smokes from start to finish, top speed and loaded with cool Eddie licks. It’s fun to hear the rhythm guitar drop out during his solo, just as it used to in 1978. Ed wasn’t fond of that sound, but it certainly evokes an era and a vibe. It’s like a warm sweater. Maybe Ed would appreciate that sometimes the absence of a guitar can also speak.
Dave plays acoustic guitar on the fun “Stay Frosty”, an old song that certainly recalls “Ice Cream Man” in every way. There’s one lyric that Dave liked to point out: “If you wanna be a monk, you gotta cook a lot of rice.” Hey, it’s not untrue. Let me put it this way: If you imagined a sequel to “Ice Cream Man”, it’s “Stay Frosty”. Not quite as good, but hits all the same beats that you want to hear.
“Big River” sounds like an older song. It has a cool curly guitar opening, before laying into this awesome guitar/bass groove. More a groove than a riff. Dave’s lyrics and singing are top notch on this song. Classic Van Halen. The surprise is that halfway through the song, for the solo section, it transforms into a completely different groove. This section has some of Eddie’s best playing too. It reverts back to the original riff for the last third of the song. All the while Wolfie is playing the most incredible bass fills, but never stepping on his dad’s toes. Think about that for a second. In the mix, you have the greatest guitar player in the world playing over this awesome riff, but the bass player still manages to throw a whole bunch of cool fills in there, without getting in the way. That’s a band, and that’s family, and that’s talent. If this song had been on an album like Fair Warning, people would still remember it today.
The closing song “Beat’s Workin'” starts with a cascade of Alex Van Halen drums, gone gonzo. It then breaks into a fun riff and a good time album-ender. A song called “Beats Workin'” should sound like a celebration. I get a bit of a Max Webster vibe, though heavier, along with a hint of Aerosmith. Once again the rhythm guitar drops out when Eddie goes solo, but then Wolf gets a moment in the spotlight too. His fuzz bass tone is very much unlike Michael Anthony’s. There’s a moment here when he and Alex are just playing while Ed does his thing, and it feels beautiful, especially now, knowing the family will never be reunited. But let’s not get too somber. It’s a party, after all.
The bonus DVD also includes acoustic versions of “Panama” and “Beautiful Girls”. They are alright. Valuable to have in your collection. You might not go back to listen to them very often. Another reason to own this physically is the lyric sheet, with cool sketches for each song. This is a Dave touch.
Final thoughts:
The album cover, though a cool picture of a train, just doesn’t feel like classic Van Halen. Then again, what does? They’ve had so many different kinds of covers.
The production on this album slams.
Though Eddie is the star, and we’re all listening to every note he plays, it doesn’t sound like an EVH solo album like VHIII did. It sounds like a real band album.
John Shanks and David Lee Roth did the best they could with what remains of Dave’s voice, and did a fine job of it by doing more of that speak-sing thing.
The flow on this album is excellent. There is hardly any filler, and every song works in its given slot, especially the closing trio of “Stay Frosty”, “Big River” and “Beats Workin'”.
When Tim Durling, author of Down For the Count: The Y&T Album Review, found out I didn’t own any Y&T, he sought to rectify the situation. As a passionate and knowledgeable fan, he knew that I wanted to start with a good compilation that covered all the songs I liked, and as many albums as possible. The Ultimate Collection was the CD he vouched for, and he did not steer me wrong. This is an amazing compilation.
The disc opens with four songs from Earthshaker, their first album as Y&T after two records as Yesterday & Today. “Dirty Girl” is an unusual if brilliant opener. It’s both slow and heavy, with a couple genius guitar solos, one different from the other, and each telling a story. This track plods in the best possible way, with a cool signature riff and a stomping beat. The chunky “Hurricane” and an epic “Rescue Me” follow, but “I Believe In You” is a real standout from Earthshaker. This is a powerful metal ballad, like something the Scopions used to score hits with. Dave Meniketti has expert control of his voice, with a vibrato to die for.
A clutch of songs from Black Tiger (produced by Max Norman) follows. The title track from that album fades in from ominous jungle sounds (because tigers usually live in the jungle). “Cat eyes! She draws you in!” Dave is singing about a different kind of jungle here. The black tiger he’s singing about is of the feminine variety, and Dave wants you to heed his warning. “She’s playing for keeps, so you better get away!” Just a smoking metal track with stinging guitars. “Open Fire” is just as heavy, if a bit faster. These two songs boast hooks, both on guitar and vocals. Y&T are experts at this high-velocity rock, but “Forever” could fool you into thinking it’s another ballad…until it storms off, bordering on thrash metal. “Forever” definitely competes with the kind of heavy rock bands that were starting to make a name for themselves in the early 80s. Leonard Haze pushes it over the top with his adrenalized drumming.
Chris Tsangarides took over production duties on Mean Streak. We only get two heavy hitters, including the title track “Mean Streach”. (That’s a joke – listen to the chorus.) “Midnight In Tokyo” is the other, and by contrast, this song isn’t as simple or straight ahead. Complex, jazzy verses collide with melodically heavy choruses. Phil Kennemore must be credited for some really incredible, gallopy and melodic bass playing.
In Rock We Trust was produced by Tom Allom of Judas Priest fame. We only get one track from this record, the big hit “Don’t Stop Runnin'”. This one is especially notable for the backing vocals. The band probably don’t get enough credit for that, and the thick and sweet chorus is all band. Though I did see this music video on Toronto Rocks and the Pepsi Power Hour once or twice, it should have been a lot bigger. This band had a number of circumstances against then, as discussed in Tim Durling’s book, available on Amazon.
The next couple studio albums were produced by Kevin Beamish. Some may love, and some may hate, the direction this band evolved on Down for the Count and Contagious. If the songs chosen here are any indication, the band were going for a more radio-oriented mid-80s mainstream sound. They still managed to pack punch into the songs, but “Summertime Girls” and “Contagious” are notable more streamlined and polished. The melodies and backing vocals take more prominent positions, and keyboards enter the fray. I think these tracks are great. They are among my childhood favourites. I love the backwards-recorded drum parts on “Summertime Girls”.
A live track from Open Fire provides some much-needed music from the first Yesterday & Today album, which was on London Records and unavailable for this compilation. Wicked riff from Joey Alves on “25 Hours A Day”! Note the backing vocals once again. Whether they were polished in the studio, it doesn’t matter. The band can sing. This fun rock groove has a little more power than the studio version. Nice bass solo from Phil!
The end, temporarily, was 1990’s album Ten produced by Mike Stone. The ballad “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark” turned me off back in the day. It was too soft for the direction I was headed. Judas Priest was dropping “Painkiller” while Y&T released a ballad. It just wasn’t what I wanted. I should have given Ten a chance. I love this song now. Though the lineup had changed, and Journey’s Steve Smith was playing drums in the studio, it still sounds like Y&T. Those melodies and backing vocals! That “touch by touch, little by little!” hook just knocks me out, not to mention Meniketti’s voice and delivery.
Y&T came back in 1995, retaining Stef Burns and Jimmy DeGrasso from the last incarnation. Musically Incorrect was the name of the album, and “I’m Lost” is an absolute smoker! You’d think it came from one of the earlier albums…because it does. It was originally on Struck Down and re-recorded here. It’s one of the fastest songs on the compilation, and the raw 9o’s production gives it a vintage sound. It’s challenging stuff. DeGrasso absolutely smokes on the drums. No wonder he ended up in Megadeth a bit later on. The same lineup remained on Endangered Species in 1997. A heavy ballad called “God Only Knows” represents that album. It’s passionate metal, with the kind of wrought-iron arrangement you expect from a power ballad. Absolutely killer lead solo work.
The final track takes us back to the beginning. A live version of “Beautiful Dreamer” from 1991 is originally from the debut Yesterday & Today. Again, it’s a little more complex, but still boasting the kind of melodies, riffs and singing that we expect from Y&T. That is, high quality heavy rock.
This is easily the best first-purchase Y&T you can make. It’s a great sampling of as much music as you can reasonably expect. Solid listen front to back, and then back to front. Liner notes are by the late Gerri Miller of Metal Edge magazine.
Though they had Bob Rock in the producer’s seat, Tonic really stopped rocking on their third album.
TONIC – Head On Straight(2002 Universal)
This album really should have been their best to date, with talent like Bob Rock at the console. Instead, it sounds as if Rock was bored or distracted, and there was nobody in quality control for songwriting. The band sound desperate, chasing hits, and not doing what they used to – rock in their own style with twang and stomp. The bland cover art belies the faceless music within.
The misleading opener “Roses” is a typical de-tuned early 2000s rock song. The riff and chorus fail to lift off. It slams hard, but there’s nothing at all to hook you in. It’s as if the band have forgotten how to write songs. You can hear that Jeff Russo is doing some cool stuff on guitar, but you can’t actually hear it! It’s buried under the uninteresting riff. It’s like they forgot all that southern charm that made their debut and follow-up both attention-getters.
Second track “Take Me As I Am” is the first ballad, and it’s fine, if a bit cookie-cutter. It has hooks. Three more ballads follow, and none are as memorable as anything on the first two albums. Even the title track, “Head On Straight”, is a ballad. I was expecting a rocker. These ballads just don’t have the weight or impact of past albums. They’re well produced and hefty enough, but they lack that je ne sais quoi they used to have.
“Liar” is the first rocker in a dog’s age, and it’s crap. Low on melody and high on cliche, it ain’t good. Then, more ballads! Songs like “On Your Feet Again” might work a lot better if there were only two. As it is, the brain just can’t differentiate from song to song.
Fortunately, “Come Rest Your Head” isn’t a ballad, but it also doesn’t really rock. It has one riff that rocks, but it meanders into the murky swamp of “meh”. Bet you’ll never guess that “Ring Around Her Finger” is a ballad though, and it’s the sappiest yet. Singer Emerson Hart affects an annoying falsetto. This song just stinks. It’s followed by “Believe Me”, which I guess for lack of better words, we will also call a ballad. It’s not a rocker, so what is it? Mid-tempo schlock with xylophone, on an album that needed adrenaline in any form. It’s atrocious, is what it is.
“Irish” is also embarrassing. Would you call this a sea shanty? A rock sea shanty? I have no friggin’ idea. Normally I like this kind of thing – rock music with a celtic bent – but maybe I’m just sick of this album and feeling salty.
The album ends on…a ballad. “Let Me Go”. It’s so cliche, it could have been music from a Family Guy montage. Fortunately the song picks up at the end, but until that point, it is the most cliche song on the entire album. “Let me change my direction, I won’t take their rejection!” But Emerson…you did change your direction. You use to have some serious emotion; now you’re punching a clock. It’s no wonder this was Tonic’s last album before a break up.
The shame of it is, I like these guys. I adore the first twoalbums, and I followed Jeff Russo through to his career in TV soundtracks. The last minute guitar burning on “Let Me Go” is far too little, too late to save this album.
Blink Once was a surprising pleasure. Given how far the Arkells have sailed through the seas of rock, pop and blues, they seemed to be content circling ’round various genres of pop now. Experimenting with hip-hop vibes, soulful backing vocals, dance beats and loops, the Arkells still managed to keep catchy guitar hooks as part of the mix thanks to Mike DeAngelis. The bass thump of Nick Dika is still there, while Tim Oxford refuses to play anything simple on the drums. Max Kerman’s lyrics still bite, but Anthony Carone’s keyboards now make up a large share of the hooks. It’s still rock, but definitely far removed from their first track on their first album. Blink Twice is largely composed of short songs, none reaching four minutes, and over half featuring guest performers from the world of pop.
Blink Twice opens seamlessly, exactly where Blink Once left off: “Last Night I Heard ‘Em Sing” closed the former, a brief snippet of the latter’s opener “Reckoning”.
“Blink twice!” announces Max. “There’s gonna be a reckoning!”
Strings, horns and thick backing vocals adorn this soulful rock song. An instant classic. Though far more vague than past political songs, it’s clear that Max is taking shots at the upper crust. “It’s a drop drop in the bucket for you, becomes a knock knock on your ocean view.”
Though Max warns of a reckoning, track two brings this back home to more personal topics. “Past Life” is a duet with Nathan Willett of California’s Cold War Kids, a band I’ve never heard of before. The two work well together with distinctly different voices and styles, singing the same melody. Mike DeAngelis provides a nice thick guitar hook that the song orbits, but this is upper echelon pop rock. One lyric that sticks out is when Nathan sings “Feel like Bob Dylan’s son, always in the shadows.” Elsewhere, Max proclaims “I’m a little Wallflower, singing ‘One Headlight’.” Jakob Dylan did deserve stardom, but the line “I’ve gotta find my own way to write a song,” seems misplaced. The Arkells sound like they’ve mastered that already.
“Take Back Everything” has an older-school Arkells sound. This brings us back to the Morning Report days, perhaps the band’s finest hour. It’s important to listen to all the instruments and hear what each member of the band brings to the table. From day one, the bass has provided interesting textures and it’s still doing that here, while Mike DeAngelis explores his fretboard for new melodic compliments.
Hip-hop rears its head a lil’, on “Human Being”, a duet with Canadian electronica star Lights. Her vocals are sublime, but the chorus of “I’m just a fuckin’ human being,” doesn’t quite hit the spot. The song has its moments, including a catchy keyboard melody by Anthony Carone. It’s a shorty, over in just 2:34. We know the Arkells love Drake and that whole genre, but if I am going to have rap in my musical diet, “Human Being” isn’t so bad.
For duets, the high point of this album is the ballad “Teenage Tears” featuring Tegan and Sara. Not a duo I have heard before, but of course every Canadian knows who Tegan and Sara are. The twins sing as one here on a delicate ballad that boils tension and exhaustion together into a nourishing audio broth. Too much metaphor? Well you describe it, then. All I can tell you is that “Teenage Tears” is a classic; it hits you fast and doesn’t let go. You feel its familiar warmth immediately. It’s a “greatest hit” if you ever wanna compile one. The haunting music video is filmed in an empty mall, which certainly reminds of the pandemic days.
“Miracle” marks the midpoint of the album and the last song on side one. It blends the bluesy bent of their early albums with modern production. There’s guitar crunch but also the loopy melodic plinky bits that are popular in music today. Pretty good song, but it ends abruptly, and is surrounded by superior material.
“Nowhere to Go” crashes the party, opening side two with an upbeat pop rocker like the Arkells are prone to do. Wesley Schultz is the singer from the Lumineers dueting with Max, and their voices just add a little texture and variety to a song that otherwise might have got lost in the shuffle of similar bangers. However, the sax solo by Jake Clemons is a jumper! Nephew of Clarence, and member of the E-Street Band today, you know what you are in for. Just hit the “back” button a little bit and play that sax solo one more time! It has the exact same energy as classic Springsteen.
The biggest left turn is “Dance With You”, a pure disco song with lots of guests. American pop duo Aly and AJ provide the backing vocals. Surprisingly, the song is bilingual: half in French! Max sings in both English and French, while Québecois crooner Cœur de Pirate (Béatrice Martin) provides a breathy French counterpart. Her vocals stand out for being so different. By all means, give it a listen. The Arkells have never been afraid of taking a step too far, and for some this may be it, while others may joyfully embrace every beat. La plus grande surprise s’agit de “Dance With You”, une chanson disco pure avec de nombreux invités. Le duo pop américain Aly et AJ assurent les chœurs. Étonnamment, la chanson est bilingue: la moitié est en français! Max chante en anglais et en français, tandis que la crooner Québecoise Cœur de Pirate (Béatrice Martin) fournit un homologue français époustouflant. Sa voix se distingue par sa différence. Bien sûr, écoutez-le. Les Arkells n’ont jamais eu peur d’aller trop loin, et pour certains c’est peut-être le cas, tandis que d’autres peuvent embrasser avec joie chaque battement.*
There is even a dance remix called “Danser avec toi” available on an iTunes single, with more lyrics in French and more instrumental grooves.
“Running Scared” is another ballad, but completely different from “Teenage Tears”. Laid back sax and an easy tempo render a song for the night time. It’s immediately followed by an upbeat pop rocker: “Something’s Gotta Give” featuring Joel Plasket. As we race towards the close, this catchy singalong serves as one last blast-off before we face the end. “Blink once!” announces Joel. “Then I black out! Blink twice, ’til we cash out.” It’s just a party tune. But something’s gotta give…
“Lost my guitar, lost my keys, lost my favourite pair of jeans…” The finale “Floating Like” is about all those things that bring us down…but then that upbeat soul chorus hits and it’s like, “who cares!” There’s a cool “These Eyes” kind of vibe coming from the piano, but the chorus is pure soul. Sunshine and breezy days in the form of song. “Now I’m feeling weightless, like I’m gonna make it!” says Max. This is a song to help get you there.
Blink Twice is another triumph. Completing the Blink duology with an album full of duets seemed uneven considering the first album only had one. Instead, both albums do sound cohesive when played together, but the duets on Blink Twice seem to allow the album to build towards something. Towards a conclusion. A hopeful conclusion. After the pandemic weighed so heavily on us all, music was (and still is) a reflection on what we endured. Blink Once and Twice might be played together as a soundtrack from those days. While both albums are strong, diverse, pop-centric and experimental, Blink Twice is the climax.
“Blink Once is about resilience. It’s about grieving with loss and fall outs and finding your way back. The making of the album began before the pandemic, but the material seems to hit harder after everything we’ve been through over the past 18 months. These songs are about finding comfort in your family, community and music.”– Arkells
ARKELLS – Blink Once (2021 Universal)
Blink Once is the album on which you can definitively say the Arkells transitioned from a rock band to a pop band. Historically this is the kind of move that earned my wrath, but I’m a lot more chill about it now. Opening your ears to new kinds of music can’t hurt you, and you may in fact find that you like what your eardrums are beating into you. When you already love the singer, the drummer, and the other musicians, it’s a lot easier to make that leap.
And Max Kerman is one hell of a singer.
Rather than review in track order, I thought I’d start with what I think is the best song and the clear highlight of Blink Once. The single “All Roads” is stunning. Just have a look at its music video, shot by drone over a local landmark: the Devil’s Punchbowl in Hamilton Ontario. The band members all make appearances as the drone flies overhead and then zooms down for their closeups. It’s a remarkable video fitting a very special song. (I forgive Max Kerman for being in his shorts-and-gym-socks phase.)
You couldn’t name a price, You couldn’t buy me off, Don’t need to read my mind, There’s only one thing that I want, All roads will lead me to back you.
Don’t let the opening bloops and blips of programmed music fool you. Once the guitars kick in, the song takes off just like the drone in the video. Soaring through the clouds on muscular wings of melody, “All Roads” is nothing short of a masterpiece. “All Roads” sounds like a #1 pop hit from 1988, with the production values of today. Those “huh!” backing vocals are absolutely from the 80s. It’s cinematic, as if it came from one of the great romance movies of the decade. This song is huge and impossible to forget.
Incidentally, I like the production on the lead vocals. It’s as if you can hear the room that Max is singing in, instead of being uber-bright and clean.
Fortunately, the album is stacked with memorable material. The opener “Liberation” boasts catchy verses over programmed beats and synths, but then breaks into a chorus that sounds Caribbean in original. After this, a massive drum beat maintains a tenuous link with rock music.
One of the big singles was “You Can Get It” with American Doc-boot-stompin’ singer and rapper K.Flay (Kristine Flaherty). She has an interesting breathy style, but this is the song that requires the biggest listener adjustment. The horn section helps, as does the entertaining “Wheel of Fortune” music video. Really, it’s all about the horn section. Live, I’m sure that “I don’t give a fuck, tell me what you want, you can get it!” part is fun to sing along to. On album, it’s all the horns!
One of my complaints about the prior album Rally Cry was that didn’t have any truly sad tear jerkers, emotional songs that just make you break down. Blink Once returns to that territory with “Strong”. This is a song I can relate to — staying strong for members of your family. “Here’s the rules: stay strong for me, and I’ll stay strong for you.” Most poignantly, as I remember the summer of 2018 (that summer that never was): “Summer is here but it’s sleeping away, why would we want to miss a good day?” Chills, tears, you name it: they’re all here.
A short acoustic interlude of “Liberation” called “Little Moments” makes you wish for a full-on acoustic version. This transitions to a necessary party song called “One Thing I Know”. A good time piano bopper with samples and loops, like many Arkells songs, the chorus is as big as the sky is wide. A more beat-driven song called “Truce” follows, with slinky horns again delivering the hooks. The lyrics are as relatable as always: “We both say that we fucked up, can we call a truce?”
One of the more interesting songs is “Nobody Gets Me Like You Do”, which seems to relate lyrically to other songs. The line “I’ll follow you down any road” recalls “All roads will lead be back to you”. The words “But you’d tell me straight if I fucked up,” bring us back to the previous song. Most importantly, it’s another melodic summer champion, gliding on mighty wings of pop music. The saxophone solo is right out of 1985. You can almost visualise the sunglasses, colourful tee-shirts under white suits, and deck shoes (no socks). Another album highlight.
“Swing Swing Swing” is one of the only album mis-steps. It starts with what sounds like studio outtake chatter: “OK I wanna try to do one of these kinds of songs where people are like, happy and dancing, but everyone’s like really fuckin’ sad when they listen to the lyrics.” That they accomplished, with the line “a long winter learning how to be alone again” giving you an idea. Musically it’s another horn-driven R&B style pop song, but not one of their best. The awkward reference to the Beatles’ “Let It Be” seems forced in an attempt to seem cool.
Fortunately, “No Regrets” puts the album back on track. A dance beat is accompanied by synth and, yes indeed, more unforgettable Arkells melodies. The chorus is huge, and just enough to remind you that this album has some great pop songs on it. Brilliant disco-like strings add to the whole and bring it up to another level.
“Years In the Making” was previously heard on 2020’s Campfire Chords, the acoustic “lockdown” album. Here is it fully dressed with horns and programming. The acoustic version might the superior one for purists but there is little wrong with the Blink Once recording. The choice is yours.
Another brief interlude called “What the Feeling Was Like” talks of hardships, but the closing song “Arm In Arm” is all about overcoming them. “Not gonna lie I’ve been fucked up. Not gonna lie it’s been a long year,” sings Max. And indeed, 2020 was a little fucked up, and it was a numbingly long year. The music is bright, with those necessary “woah-oh-oh” Arkells backing vocals. It feels like triumph.
That’s not the actual closer: An outro sample of a string section from “Reckoning” alludes to the next album, when Max says “Blink Twice…” Truly, it’s a two-album set, but we’ll get there next time.
If you’re into iTunes, check out a completely different version of “All Roads” called the “Night Drive” version. They even made a music video for it. It’s not a remix, but a completely different recording. A completely different mood. It doesn’t have the impact of the original, but it is a very cool supplemental.
Blink Once seems split between three directions: Extremely upbeat happy pop songs, kinda corny and semi-successful R&B forays, and a really sad ballad. At times it feels like these directions don’t mesh. It was a weird time. We needed upbeat music like this at that time. We were all dealing with a lot of shit. This is an album to pick you up on a bad day. Mostly, anyway.
March, 2020: the world came to a sudden halt as the Covid-19 pandemic spread from city to city, nation to nation. We isolated in our homes and offices to keep our loved ones safe, and we waited it out. For bands, everything stopped. Gigs were cancelled, and recordings had to be done remotely from home. On the bright side, this resulted in some brilliant music from legacy bands. For the Arkells, it meant stopping all work on the next studio album (Blink Once) and separating for four months. At the encouragement of bassist Nick Dika, the band got down to their singer-songwriter basics with a series of stripped-down versions of the “greatest hits” (so to speak). Keyboardist Anthony Carone assembled the individual pieces into something cohesive, and Campfire Chords was born! The title refers to the “campfire test”: if a song sounds good done acoustically around a campfire, then it’s a good song. Bon Jovi have a similar philosophy.
Campfire Chords opens with a surprisingly somber “Knockin’ At Your Door”, which was more of an anthem in its single release. Souful backing vocals and pedal steel guitar gives it an entirely new feel. Although everything about the melody is the same, it feels like a new song.
Following this is a brand new song: “Quitting You”. This lovely acoustic country ballad is just a beautiful love song. Fiddles and acoustic guitars ring clean, while tambourines jangle in the background. “I thought of maybe quittin’…but there’s no quittin’ you.” Because it’s the Arkells, there are some cool “woah-oh-oh” singalongs too, because what’s a campfire without a singalong? An Arkells classic.
A second new song, “Years in the Making” opens with harmonica and a strong Max Kerman melody. This track later appeared on Blink Once in a vastly different arrangement. A true Arkells anthem, you can hear it on this stripped down version. It’s all about the melody, and then the hit of the chorus. The piano break in the middle is really nice.
One of their earliest hits, “Whistleblower”, is slowed down and intensified with soulful backing vocals and steel guitars. This one simmers, compared to the manic original. It has a different kind of intensity, but the tension is there. Another early hit, “Michigan Left” from the same album comes across really well acoustically. The “woah-oh!” chorus is intact, and though it’s slower, it’s just as uplifting. An even earlier song, from their debut album Jackson Square, called “I’m Not the Sun” comes next. It’s gentle and floaty, though the lyrics are dark. “So don’t let me be your guiding light, ’cause I’ll get you lost in the dark, I’m not the sun, there’s no guarantee, ’cause I burn out hard like a spark.” Returning to the present day, “Don’t Be A Stranger” from the Rally Cry album is a song that might be an improvement. Taking off the layers of polish, but leaving the string section in, it just breathes really smoothly now. It’s the same song, but it hits differently.
An absolute highlight of this album is the new version of “Comes to Light” from their best album High Noon. There’s a Bruce Cockburn feel to the guitars; quintessentially Canadian. This one just cuts clean through. The steel guitar is featured again, and the melodies shine. “And with my headphones on, as I fall asleep, you’re my barricade from intruding dreams.” While the original is hard to top, this one has magic to it that can’t be defined. A masterclass in re-imagining.
Another Arkells classic, “A Little Rain (A Song For Pete)” takes us to church! The Arkells go gospel, and do it like it’s second nature! The rich choir-like backing vocals lend it an undeniable authenticity, but Max Kerman absolutely nails it too. Not bad for a guy who, by the lyrics, “never tried religion”. A little rain ain’t bringing him down goes the chorus, and that feeling is washed upon the listener like a baptism. Pay attention to Nick Dika’s expressive and lyrical bass work.
Back to Rally Cry, the anthem “Eyes on the Prize” is stripped down to just acoustic and voice. Though it was written pre-pandemic, one lyric rings way more true from the perspective of 2020: “I think I’m done with the motherfuckin’ hiatus”! The choir returns with Max on the chorus, and a harmony chimes in, but the music remains mostly simple acoustic guitars and soulful singing.
Revisiting the early years again, the light and airy “Book Club” is a delight. The backing vocalists enhance its soulful feel, which was always there on the album version. Following this is the slow and moving “And Then Some” from Morning Report. One of the Arkells most beautiful love songs, it falls in the category of “personal favourite”. The original has a real pulse to it, and this one is quite different in that way, but there’s also a newly acquired softness to it. “Kiss Cam” from Michigan Left works well, given the lyrics. “This campfire won’t last forever, the Hip have only wrote so many songs.” Sadly true. “We can’t stay up north for the summer, head back to the city, find a job.” Can relate! Speaking of personal favourites, Jen loves “My Heart’s Always Yours” in particular. This acoustic version is transformed into much softer fare, like a dreamy morning anthem.
A steel guitar-laden version of the anthem “Hand Me Downs” is a back-end highlight. Then “11:11”, already a brilliant single in its own right, is enhanced by the acoustic treatment. This is another one that may in fact surpass the original. At the end of the day, it all comes down to personal taste. If you have more attachment to one version of another, that’ll colour what you prefer.
Finishing out the CD are the anthem “Relentless”, which always had a soul/R&B flavour. Here it simmers intensely like hot pavement. The closing track is the immortal “Leather Jacket” from High Noon, known to laymen as the “pay phone song”. Steel guitars take us out to the country and that’s where the album goes as it rides off in the sunset like some kind of Canadian cowboy driving a dusty pickup truck through the gravel. This is tagged by a lovely singalong (with horns) of the main hook, “You call me up from a pay phone, and I said who the fuck uses a pay phone! There’s a crazy New Orleans outro like you’ve never heard, and that’s it!
These kind of “re-imagining” albums (if you will) can be so hit and miss. I mentioned Bon Jovi earlier. Remember that atrocity they did, This Left Feels Right? It was so, so wrong. The Arkells made no such mis-step here. They key is…they didn’t have to take a left turn. They just needed to turn to a different side of their sound, and focus in like that for a whole album. The result is an acoustic album that has depth, variety, and in some cases, some versions that could top the originals.
You can’t get “Quitting You” anywhere else; to date this is its only release.
WHITESNAKE – Here I Go Again: The Whitesnake Collection (2002 Universal)
Back in the days before David Coverdale began lovingly curating his 80s catalogue with expansive box sets and assorted compilations, the record labels were doing it for him. And, all things considered, they were milking it pretty hard with very little in terms of added value to the fans who already had a decent collection. 2002’s Here I Go Again: The Whitesnake Collection might have been the first one really worth buying.
At its moment of conception, it was probable and perhaps likely that a large number of Whitesnake fans didn’t already own all three of the Geffen albums on CD. Perhaps they just owned Greatest Hits, or 1987. Rather than force fans to buy (or re-buy) a three disc set for all that material, Universal gathered 24-bit remasters of the three albums with some associated bonus tracks and released it all as more affordable two disc set. It offered good value for fans looking to get those albums digitally, or those just trying to acquire the bonus tracks.
Starting off with the rare “Radio Remix” of “Here I Go Again”, a familiar song leads the charge. This unusual version has Dan Huff on guitar, Denny Carmassi on drums, and Bill Cuomo on keyboards. It’s shorter without that long “keyboard heaven” opening. As a radio remix, it has choppier guitars, more keyboards, and prominent female backing vocals. Huff’s solo is refreshing after being used to Adrian Vandenberg’s for so long.
From there, the compilation delves into the albums, in their US mixes and running orders. Therefore, Slide It In kicks off with “Slide It In” just as I remember it. It will always be debated which version of Slide It In was superior, the original UK or the partially re-recorded US mix. I have long maintained that the US had more punch, and I still prefer it. John Sykes was a powerful force, and his modern guitar squeals helped push Whitesnake into the 80s (for better or for worse). From there the album runs through the big singles “Slow An’ Easy” and anthemic “Love Ain’t No Stranger”. These two songs alone are worth buying the album for, but the deep cuts are strong. “All or Nothing” and “Gambler” are darker, while “Guilty of Love has an upbeat rock singalong power. “Hungry For Love”, “Give Me More Time” and the cheeky “Spit It Out” are all memorable, but the dramatic “Standing In the Shadow Of Love” remains one of the most impressive Whitesnake closers to date.
There are no Slide It In-era bonus tracks included, but the next album 1987 is augmented with plenty. We already had the radio remix, so the disc dives in with opener “Crying In the Rain”, actually a re-recording of a track from Saints & Sinners, just like “Here I Go Again” itself. The CD runs through all of Side One of 1987 and partly into Side Two, with “Children of the Night” being the last song on the disc. This is the one and major flaw with The Whitesnake Collection: the oddly timed split between Discs One and Two. “Here I Go Again” (the album version) was meant to close Side One of 1987, but these things can’t be helped.
After you blast through that remarkable album and all the John Sykes guitar fireworks it contains, you are treated to a number of extras. UK-only songs “You’re Gonna Break My Heart Again” and “Looking For Love” should have been on the US album. One rocker and one ballad, they aren’t really like any of the other songs and could easily have strengthened an already mighty album. Then, for the fans that have always wanted to hear the one and only solo that Vivian Campbell recorded with Whitesnake, you are given the single mix of “Give Me All Your Love” (1988). An odd choice for a single originally when better songs were available, but significant due to Vivian’s tenure with the band. His solo is more whammy-inflected and shreddy, but it is still memorable and fitting. Weirdly, Campbell is not credited in the booklet though Sykes and Vandenberg are. The final bonus track of this era is the lovely keyboard ballad B-side “Need Your Love So Bad”, a re-recording of a Slide It In-era B-side. A song that could have even been a single! This showcase for David’s vocals features only keyboards and the man himself; no other instruments.
Some fans would stop the disc here and hit eject, for the controversial Steve Vai era is next with Slip of the Tongue. An acquired taste, or perhaps not acquirable at all, Slip of the Tongue was a left turn. Going even slicker and more modern, Coverdale eschewed the blues for the most part and took his band of pirates space truckin’. For Steve Vai fans, this album features his most commercial playing, for he didn’t write any of the songs. Adrian did, but was sidelined by injury. Now with Rudy Sarzo and Tommy Aldridge on bass and drums, the band was completely different from the 1987 version! David was pushing his voice into a higher register and it never quite sounded the same ever since. Though Slip of the Tongue was a powerful statement in the world of inventive guitar fireworks, it ultimately proved unpopular with those who preferred when David was singing the blues. Results may vary, but the perennial Vai-era bonus track “Sweet Lady Luck” closes the disc as it should. It does not have the Chris Lord-Alge remix of “Now You’re Gone”, but hey.
There are minimal liner notes and photos, and it’s amusing to read the notes from the perspective of a time when Whitesnake was no longer a band. (They reunited in 2003.) However the value here is getting all this music and relevant bonuses all in one place for a good price. It just made sense.
“Oh-oh-oh!” sings Max Kerman in his most anthemic of choruses. “When your head gets dizzy and you can’t get right. Oh-oh-oh! But you push on through, don’t be denied.” This single from Rally Cry is an obvious highlight.
Kerman has always stood up for the little guy, in the face of banks and landlords. “First of the month gets you stressed out, and moving trucks bring you right back.” That’s what “Hand Me Downs” is. You get the impression that these characters in these songs are amalgams of people that Max knew. Most importantly, even more than the lyrics, is the power of the music. “Hand Me Downs” is one of the Arkells most immediate, most catchy, most powerful songs to date. And that’s saying a lot. If there was a quintessential “trademark” Arkells song, “Hand Me Downs” would be among them.
This 2019 digital single came with three versions. The album version, a live version, and a duet with English punk-folk rocker Frank Turner. The Turner version is an entirely new recording, not just a remix. A little more acoustic, a little less ornate, a little more live. Very much up Frank’s alley. It’s a little jarring to hear his accent on an Arkells song, but it’s a quick adjustment. Turner grabs the verses by the balls and makes them his. He mixes well with Max on the chorus. A brilliant version, and perhaps should have been released as a single in its own right.
The third and final version is an acoustic take from Clubhouse Austin (you can see a photo of Max on their website), and it’s perfectly recorded. Very little noise, very clean. Small rooms often make for the best live recordings. Their vocals are absolutely perfect. Arkells have proven time and again how talented they are in the studio, but it is live that counts the most. “Hand Me Downs” live is flawless, yet not: those vocal quirks that only come from a live performance, and only serve to sweeten the song, are everpresent.
“Hand Me Downs” makes for a brilliant three-song single. It is still available for purchase.
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