THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: tora tora

TORA TORA – Bastards Of Beale

December 17, 2022 /

This is the band’s fourth release which comes 25 years after their last, although I don’t think that album ever originally saw the light of day. I did see a label called FNA records advertising a copy once though. This is another Frontiers back from the dead release that came out in 2019, of all original material. It’s not a bad hard rock album, with some tracks that stand out from the rest.

Silence The Sirens has a killer riff and a rockin’ groove. Son Of A Prodigal Son has a very hard, rootsy, Americana vibe that is huge right now, and they have that heavy Zeppelin vibe down to a T. Let Us Be The One is a real sleazy groover that has that LA late eighties strip feel. Silence The Sirens though, is my favourite and is head and shoulders above the rest. Unusually Side 2 is way better than Side 1 as it’s loaded with the good stuff.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

TORA TORA – Surprise Attack

March 5, 2022 /

I used to see the CD version of this in bargain bins far and wide and stores couldn’t seem to give it away, but now this LP version goes for a fair bit for a minty copy.

This album appeared in ’89 just before the great grunge unpleasantness, so they had a fair crack before disappearing. It’s a typical glam/hair rock album of the late eighties and it’s quite a fun listen. Loves A Bitch is not a bad opener, but the second track, 28 Days, would have been a better choice as it has a great sleazy groove, along with Hard Times which is a sleazed up blues groove.

Walkin’ Shoes opens up Side 2 and has a very simple sleazy riff but it works really well. They are pretty good at writing the catchy chorus rock stompers like Riverside Drive, and the best track on the album She’s Good She’s Bad. The album closes out with Being There, which is the big production number of the album where singer Anthony Corder does his best Robert Plant impression – not a bad way to finish the album.

Does the album deserve its bargain bin status? No it doesn’t. If you’re into the whole eighties rock thing then you will love this.

8.5/10 from The Grooveman.

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