REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Day: September 16, 2023

BLUE OYSTER CULT – Tyranny And Mutation

This is the band’s second album, which came out way back in ’73. Yup, fifty years ago!

A far different beast from what they came to be. This album is more in line with what the MC5 and the Amboy Dukes were playing, rather than the slick machine that put out Imaginos. They were even called punk rock four years before that became a thing.

Yes, it does sound dated that’s for sure but tracks like The Red & The Black, Hot Rails To Hell, and my favourite 7 Screaming Diz Busters still sound great. It must have been the producer’s favourite as well as it’s a lot louder than everything else, especially the intro riff.

BOC are a very intriguing band and they have a great body of work that is worth investigating.

7/10 from The Grooveman.

ROXY BLUE – s/t

Another resurrected band from those dark days of the early 90’s. They put out Want Some on Geffen in ’92, then nothing until 2013 when they put out two self financed CD’s, and then nothing again until this appeared on Frontiers in 2019. This is a new Church Of Vinyl reissue that came out early in ’23. They come across as a raw version of GnR mixed with Ratt and early Aerosmith.

Silver Lining is a stripped down almost barroom rocker but Rockstar Junkie is a kickass rock n’ roller that should have opened up the album. Scream keeps the grooves a comin’ with a near funky riff and groove, and a killer hook and chorus. Collide strips things down to acoustic guitars and ballad city. Nice hook and chorus and play out solo. Outta The Blue closes out Side 2 and that descending riff is cool, otherwise it’s straight up sunset strip.

Todd Poole can sure write a good tune and Side 2 opener Blinders has a cool Americana vibe. It’s favourite track time with The Well Runs Dry. A simple crunchy riff, a pounding groove, a simple football chant and we a have a winner. Human Race has a very nineties raw sound that reminds me a little of Alice In Chains. How Does It Feel is about as basic as it comes. A simple muted riff, a simple beat, and bare vocal with harmonies makes this quite an emotive little tune. Back to the crunch with What It’s Like. A killer riff that I’m sure I’ve heard before is the bedrock of this beauty. We close out the  album with Overdrive, a low-fi sounding punkish tune that puts a bit of a downer on what is otherwise an enjoyable album.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.