I know I haven't been as consistent with my posts lately, but I've been dealing with a lot of stuff, including making some very long articles. There was just a lot to cover, including some debut albums, and I had a lot to say about the others as well. We're focusing on more straight-ahead rock with this one, while the next one will be more proggy. For now, here's what I've been checking out lately!
Last time I checked out this band, they had picked up John Wetton and carried on their way with more hard rock full of organs and tight vocal harmonies. With this album, nearly all of the progressive rock and fantastical lyrics have been streamlined out. However, this makes them rather in line with many of their contemporaries.
All the comparisons I've been making to Deep Purple and Vanilla Fudge hardly apply anymore, as they've shifted into something like a blend of Styx, Foreigner, Boston, and Queen (though not as theatrical). Of course, there are a few twists here and there, like with the shifting dynamics of "Misty Eyes", the genre-switching in "Woman of the World," and "Can't Stop Singing," which sounds like it came from a funky musical. Ken Hensley's organs and synths don't seem as prominent on this album, either, despite being the main songwriter. John Wetton actually contributes to the songs as well, but it's hard to know what exactly he's responsible for.
Still, there were a few tracks I liked. "Weep In Silence" is actually a decent ballad, with some solid solos from Mick Box, "Misty Eyes" had some great energy making me think of Styx in particular, and "Can't Keep a Good Band Down" was pretty fun. Unfortunately, this would also be their last album with their iconic singer David Byron. It turns out he was drinking a lot and it affected his performance, so the band had him sacked. John Wetton left as well, never really feeling like he fit in with the band, and the band understood. After listening to all these Uriah Heep albums over the last few years, it really is an end of an era. As I carry on through their discography, it will be interesting to see how they transition from here.
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Speaking of Queen, after the breakout success that was A Night at the Opera, and the following four-month tour, the band pretty much went right back into the studio the next year and hammered out this one. Meant to be something of a companion to the previous album, the band really explores the dynamics of their sound, perhaps even pushing a little too far, sometimes, with not enough to show for it.
Ranging from hard rock to gospel and from piano waltzes to folk pop, it's definitely a demanding listen. Queen have never been shy about pushing a song in a weird direction, so this is largely nothing new. However, I wonder if they weren't a little rushed in the studio, as some of these songs don't feel quite as developed as the ones on their previous album. The opener "Tie Your Mother Down" is a pretty bog-standard blues rock song, like if AC/DC was being lazy. "Long Away" takes a few cues from the folky parts of the Beatles and the Byrds but hardly feels like Queen. "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" is pretty campy with it's bouncy, music hall style, leaning into their iconic theatrics, but not really working as a song. "Drowse" goes for this trance-y vibe on a slide-guitar riff, but it never clicked with me, as it felt weirdly anxious the while time. Overall, these tracks feel a little odd, and unfortunately, not very memorable, at least compared to the hits I know so well.
Speaking of hits, though, "Somebody to Love" really stands out with its epic gospel choir (even though it's just the band redubbing themselves several times over). "The Millionare Waltz" at least has some curious dynamics, "White Man" has this heavy, twangy riff that matches the angsty, brooding song quite well, and "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" is a decent enough power ballad to end the album on. Naturally, all of this is performed very tightly, as they comfortably reuse a lot of their iconic beats, like tight vocal harmonies and Brian May's melodic guitar work. It's not a bad album, but it does feel like a bit of a let down after A Night at the Opera, and I can't help but wonder if maybe it just needed a bit more time in the studio to help bring it together as more of a whole.
Here's another one of those bands where I've heard of them, but never really listened to them (though I imagine I've heard "Mean Streak" on classic rock radio at some point). Touring with the likes of Journey and Queen under the name Yesterday and Today (after an American Beatles release), they got picked up by a British Label and released their debut album. While they may have had some metallic styles later, they start with a pretty decent set of blue-collar blues rock.
The main takeaway I had when listening to this is that they seem to have the straight-ahead simplicity of Bad Company, but with heavier riffs from Sabbath or Zeppelin. While some of it can get a little bland, even the weaker tracks are elevated by Dave Meniketti's shredding solos! He has an American 70s style, dedicated to playing a lot of notes quickly, often sounding random, but it really works for the sound they have. "Come On Over" is a perfect example of this blend they have. However, I think the main stand outs are "Earthshaker" and "Fast Ladies (Very Slow Gin)" for have a lot more energy than the rest of the album (though "Fast Ladies" does have some strange mixed meter playfulness). "Game Playing Woman" is their most proggy, starting with a funky riff, but in the middle they drop it down to some very moody jazz. From there, they build back up to the funky riff, and the transition is really quite smooth.
The only real problem I had was that the production was a little muddy. Phil Kennemore's bass was big in the mix, but some of his notes don't land well, and Leonard Haze's drums feel more like thuds and impactful whacks. It's a shame because they're playing good stuff. While I know I've said this before on other debuts, but I can see a lot of promise with this one. If they can gets some decent production and maybe give their songwriting a boost, I'd find a lot to like! I plan on jump into their next album pretty quickly, so I'll find out soon!
With the band slowly embracing their hard rock destiny with the last album, they maintained their lineup for the follow up the next year. While there was some proggy noodling before, here the songs are aggressively streamlined, with most of them being under four minutes!
At this point, their sound is very much in line with what rock music was doing, with plenty of energy and dual guitar harmonies. "Pictured Life" and "Catch Your Train" start the album well with some good energy. The title track is also decent, with Klaus Meine providing some pretty aggressive vocals. Of course Uli Jon Roth gets plenty of opportunities to shred, and he brings his vocals to "Hell Cat" and "Polar Night," which are some pretty weird songs. I wasn't sure if they really fit well with the others. "In Your Park" is a pretty average ballad, and the closer "Yellow Raven" is a slightly better one, especially with that big riff at the end.
Overall, I think this is an improvement, but I do wonder if perhaps this isn't an over-correction. Most of these songs are so short and clean, it's hard to really appreciate them. They do expand out a little towards the end, but otherwise, this album shows a clear shift to focusing more on no-filler hard rock. At just under 35 minutes, it's a burst of good energy with some catchy tracks, but not much more.
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