|
The Hellacopters
By: KNAC.com
January 1st 2001 5:12am
(Polar/Universal)
High Visibility is the fourth full-length album from Sweden's leading hard rock band and it is certainly their most slick and accessible. From the band that's released a million vinyl singles and even more EPs and split albums, comes this 13-song manifesto of punk rock fury, heavy metal thunder and classic rock stylings. While their first two albums, Supershitty To The Max and Payin' The Dues , were rough, raw and full of Stooges-style blasts of punk rawk fury, their third, Grande Rock , took a turn towards tighter, KISS-style arena hard rock. The dirty edge that characterized the production on the earlier albums was replaced on Grande with studio polish and production finesse. Many fans were disappointed and cried sellout but the band hit the road to prove they still had the power - and they did, in spades. Replacing Hellacopters/Backyard Babies guitarist Dregen (and following a carousel of fill-ins) is a blonde haired bloke name Strings, who brings some major chops into the fold with his Michael Schenker meets Joe Perry approach. Again, the production is slicker and cleaner, but the songs certainly don't suffer as a result. The opener "Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial" is classic 'Copters fare. With lyrics about teen angst and rebellion, and a riff that would make Thin Lizzy proud, the band careens and lunges around the tune like they were headlining the Long Beach Arena in '78. "Baby Borderline," "You're Too Good (To Me Baby)" and "A Heart Without A Home" all carry the rock torch high and proud. "I Wanna Touch" is pure Chuck Berry rock n' roll filtered through some Mick Taylor-era Stones sleaziness, while "Toys And Flavors" injects some pop hooks into the mix. All the songs are strong, although with much of the distortion and dirt stripped out of the production the repetitiveness of some of the song structure is apparent. These guys pretty much just write the same song over and over again, and it does get a bit old by album number four. However, the energy, playing, and general vibe is so full-throttle rock, that you can't really blame them for lack of originality. They may sound like stuff you've heard before (AC/DC, MC5, KISS, etc.) but at least it's not the same shit that's on the radio. In a world of Limp Bizkit imitators and second-rate grunge bands, a good ol' fashioned rock n' roll band is a welcome breath of fresh air. I mean, who really ever gets tired of a Gibson Les Paul cranked to 11 through a Marshall stack? Not me. I fuckin' love it!!!
***
Visit www.knac.com for more information.
Copyright 2000 Enigma Digital
|
