THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Month: July 2024 (Page 5 of 7)

TED NUGENT – Little Miss Dangerous

July 12, 2024 /

If anyone remembers uncle Ted from the Double Live Gonzo days, you know how wild and hungry he was as a killer guitar player. Now, if you stepped off the planet for a few years and the first thing you heard was this and somebody told you it was Ted, then you would think “no way.”

This album is super polished and melodic rock radio-friendly, essentially everything that Ted wasn’t in the 70’s. It’s not until the third track in (which is the title track) that the old Ted makes an appearance. Even though the song reminds me of Billy Idol, at least the guitar is wailing and loud. Crazy Ladies is pure old school Nugent. Pounding double kicks all the way with Ted riffing up on the guitar good and loud, and lyrics that only Ted can get away with. It’s definitely my favourite track.

It’s a fun record that really comes to life when Ted gets to sing.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

ACCEPT – Russian Roulette

July 10, 2024 /

This album is Accept’s seventh release. It came out in ’86 and it was the last before Udo departed, only to come back again, and then leave again. I guess a lot of people look at this line up as the definitive Accept as this was the one that got them up the ladder. I do like a lot of the modern Accept records, as Wolf Hoffman sure knows how to write a good riff.

This album gets overlooked somewhat as Balls To The Wall and Metal Heart gets all the praise, but there are some great tracks hidden within the grooves. Opener T.V. War is good old speedy Accept with double kicks all the way and a trademark Wolf riff fest. Aiming High has another uptempo Wolf riff and groove with Udo wailing, as only he can. There are a few too many slower tunes on the record, and even a ballad which at the time, didn’t go down to well. My favourite track is definitely T.V. War because that is how I expect Accept to be.

Not as bad as everyone makes out.

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

MR BIG – Lean Into It Live. The Big Finish

July 9, 2024 /

So this was recorded as part of Mr. Big’s current farewell tour at the mighty Budokan in Japan and was released as part of this year’s RSD. The band have always been big in Japan, even when the rest of the world gave up on melodic rock.

Lean Into It is my favourite of their studio albums and you get it all in chronological order with this live version. Eric Martin’s voice isn’t as good as it was and it sounds as though he is struggling a bit here, though he gives it everything. Musically the band are on the money, and Paul Gilbert’s sounds as good as ever, as does Billy Sheehan. Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy is my favourite track here. It’s one of the best things the band did and stills sound good here. I’m a massive PG fan and his playing is so good throughout the whole album. 

It’s a shame that they are calling it quits as a band but it’s best to go out when they are still cooking.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

ACE FREHLEY – 10,000 Volts

July 8, 2024 /

This is probably one of Ace’s best solo efforts, mainly due to the inclusion of Trixter pair PJ Farley and Steve Brown in the writing and production of the album. In fact, there were a raft of rumours doing the internet rounds saying that Steve Brown not only played rhythm guitar on the album but they were his solos. Well, if you listen and know anything about Ace and his style then you will know he plays just about all the solos on the album. I would say Steve Brown had a bigger hand in the writing of the songs than the solos played.

Ace always had the knack of writing really good catchy pop rock tunes and this album’s contenders are Constantly Cute, Cherry Medicine, and Back Into My Arms Again. My attention however is drawn to the two stand out tunes on the album: the title track (my favourite track on the album) which is just superb with a killer riff and a chorus that you will be singing all day long, and the anthemic Cosmic Heart which is just such a great song with that great hands in the air chest beating chorus.

Kiss haven’t put out a new album for over twelve years, they have instead gone out on the endless farewell tour coining in the cash. At least Ace is still putting out new music which is what a true musician would do. Here’s to the next one!

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

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