THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Month: October 2022 (Page 3 of 4)

LIVING COLOUR – Vivid

October 26, 2022 /

There was a huge burst around this band and album – mainly due to them supporting the Rolling Stones and Mick Jagger getting behind them. For me, it was the lead off track, Cult Of Personality, that dragged me in. Everything about this track I loved. The riff, the groove, Corey’s vocals, and Vernon’s crazy solo just dragged me in. 

I caught them a couple of times on this tour, and they were killer. The bringing together of all these musical styles was a sure fire winner, with only Fishbone doing anything similar. I Wanna Know is basically an RnB vocal with a rock groove and vibe on top. Middle Man, which today is my favourite track, has a killer riff a ripping funky groove and man this just smokes. Desperate People brings together a punky main riff with a funky under groove. Open Letter To A Landlord is Corey’s finest hour, a superb vocal with a topic close to his heart – and that main riff!

Funny Vibe kicks off Side 2 with a very metal riff before the most funky of grooves takes over. Memories Can Wait follows, and man what a tune. It begins again with a heavy funk groove with Vernon seriously wailing, then a very delicate and beautiful middle eight that drops into a fast punky riff. Broken Hearts has a very hip hop main beat with a country guitar over the top – it shouldn’t work, but it does – plus there is a beautiful solo from Vernon. Glamour Boys, which was produced by Mick Jagger, is funk mixed with calypso until the main hook. The band’s theme song follows with What’s Your Favourite Colour? – a seriously groovy funky vibe with the title just repeating. The album closes out with Which Way To America, another social commentary piece. A killer heavy funk groove and vibe with a very metal main riff. A great band  and superb album.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

P.I.L LTD – Album

October 26, 2022 /

Johnny is one of those guys you either love or hate. He seems to bring out the best and worst when his name is even mentioned. I have met him on a couple of occasions and found him to be very knowledgeable. Now, this album was a bit of a departure as he was given the opportunity to have killer backing band by bringing in some hired guns – namely Ginger Baker, Steve Vai, and Ryuchi Sakamoto. The end product is fantastic.

I came to this album through the involvement of Steve Vai. His contribution on key songs lifts the album to epic proportions. Opening track, FFF, has a great groove courtesy of Ginger – and Vai adds the sprinkles on top. Rise actually charted and was a good choice for a lead off single, but Bags was the track that made everyone sit up – that’s my favourite tune on the album. Awesome contribution from Vai, and Ginger’s drums are simple but effective. If you are only interested in Vai’s guitar noodling, then fade out track, Ease, should have you drooling – his solo is very dramatic and makes the whole album.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

LILLIAN AXE – s/t

October 25, 2022 /

This is the band’s first album released back in ’88, and was produced by Robbin Crosby from Ratt. Nope, they sound nothing like Ratt, but they are a heavy melodic rock band with the emphasis on the melody. The band revolve around vocalist and lead guitarist, Steve Blaze – a killer player with a decent enough voice.

Opener, Dream Of A Lifetime, is a killer tune with a big hook and riff, and heavy on the melody. Inside Out has a hint of sleaze and blame, but it’s the solo that stands out on this tune. Vision In The Night has a generic riff and groove that could be any melodic rock band of the time. Picture Perfect is a fun track with a simple riff and a hands in the air groove. The More That You Get is more of the same, and Mr. Crosby seems to be having a say in proceedings as this sounds very Ratt.

Over to Side 2 with Misery Loves Company, and the riff is a lift from a Ratt song, but slightly inverted – great tune though! Ballad time with Nobody Knows. Big keys in the intro to Hard Luck, and the guitars sound huge. Waiting In The Dark follows and the hook and chorus are huge – definitely the big production number. The album closes out with Laughing In Your Face and this my favourite – a great fun track with a really cool riff and the customary big sing-a-long chorus.

After their initial burst they sort of disappeared, only to sporadically reappear to release albums every now and then. There is a new album just out so the comeback is on…again!

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

SUNBOMB – Evil And Devine

October 25, 2022 /

Another Frontiers created band that don’t really exist other than a studio project. This time they have brought together Michael Sweet from Stryper, and Tracii Guns from LA Guns. This is quite a heavy album and Tracii has written some killer riffs that range from speed metal, to very heavy old school Sabbath style tracks – like Take Me Away, which you’d swear was recorded in their Sabbaths prime years. Sweet’s vocals are awesome – he is really belting it out here.

This a very heavy album that neither of these two have done before. Tracii’s guitar work is a revelation throughout the album with epic riffage and ripping solos. My favourite track would be the title track, Evil And Devine. It has a killer riff and groove, and Sweet is really going for it. The production is awesome and Tracii gets bonus points for that. It would be cool if they would play this Live, but I can’t see that happening.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

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