REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: the end machine

THE END MACHINE – s/t

This is my 800th review!

This is the first album from The End Machine, which is basically Dokken without Don. We have Robert Mason on vocals, Mick Brown on drums, Jeff Pilson on bass, and George Lynch on guitar. This is a very cool melodic hard rock record, that for anyone doubting are still being made today.

Leap Of Faith opens up with a killer little guitar intro before the songs settles into a superb slow brooding groover. Hold Me Down as a sweet picked riff from George, with a four to the floor groove, some killer guitar from George, and I’m really loving Robert’s voice on this one. Bulletproof starts with an old blues sat on the porch style groove. The hook and melody are awesome on this track. Superb tune! Ride It is an uptempo Dokken style groover that rolls along at a fair pace. I love Jeff Pilson’s harmony vocals! Alive Today has a huge hook and chorus with a superb melody, the riff and groove are a little left-field on this one. My favourite track is the close out track Life Is Love Is Music. It has a very old school sounding riff with a killer chord pattern, and with nearly every song on the album, the chorus and hook is superb. Hopefully there will be a third instalment as these guys make great music together.

10/10 from the Grooveman.

THE END MACHINE – Phase 2

According to George Lynch, this is an intentional return to the original Dokken sound – just without Don Dokken on vocals. The vocals are handled by Robert Mason who (just to confuse you) was the vocalist in Lynch Mob. So why not call it Lynch Mob I hear you ask? Well, with the BLM movement so very prominent around the world, George thought it would be disrespectful to use that has a band name again.

I’m not sure what Don made of this album and the one before, but the music on offer here is way better than anything Dokken have put out since Under Lock And Key. There is not a bad song on this album, and Robert Mason is a great vocalist – plus with Jeff Pilson doing harmonies, it’s a sure fire winner. I’m a big fan of George Lynch and he does not disappoint on this album, his playing and tone just hits the spot for me. There are so many great tracks on this album, We Walk Alone, Dark Divide, Shine Your Light, and the totally awesome Devil’s Playground.

If you were a Dokken fan, or just love great melodic rock, you should really own this record.

10/10 from The Grooveman.