Artist: Lez Zeppelin
Title: “Lez Zeppelin I”
Label: Pie Records
Release Date: 9/7/2010
Genre: Hard Rock
Rating: 3.5/5
Before I begin this review I need to ask the readers a question. Are you one of those Rock fans that feels the sacred canon of bands like Led Zeppelin should never be tampered with and that doing so if not only an affront on the bands material but also a sin that is only punishable by the most insidious designs known to man. If this is you to the letter then please stop reading now and pretend we are like two stranger passing by on a busy street with no reason to stop and explain pleasantries. If you are a little more open to suggestion then by all means continue along with me as we discuss the album “Lez Zeppelin I” by the band that calls themselves Lez Zeppelin. If your not paying attention the name might trick your eye, but yes indeed it does say “LEZ ZEPPELIN” and they are an all female tribute to the legendary Gods of Hard Rock. Before getting my hands on this release I could only count a single track that I heard as a part of a compilation release of similar female focused acts to other bands of note and I will admit that they did stand out over their competition. These days it is no longer special or different to have a full female lineup paying tribute to the likes of KISS, ACDC or even Judas Priest and Motley Crue but there seem to be more bad than good among these numerous acts and instead of delivering an amazing aural experience, most are just concerned with the whole sexy attitude and flash with little substance. Thankfully, Lez Zeppelin are not of this kind and something with a lot more grit.
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Artist: Various Artists
Title: “Succession” – A Tribute to KISS “Dynasty”
Label: KISS Fan Tributes
Release Date: 7/9/2009
Genre: Rock
Rating: 2.5/5
In celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the “Dynasty” album by KISS, the people over at KISS Fan Tributes have released the album “Succession”, which is a CD that delivers a number of artists own interpretations of the now classic recording by those masked men from New York City. Before I delve into this any further the reader must be made aware of my being a KISS “purist” and how I hold many of their tunes as gospel and with this in mind will be a very critical judge on how others choose to deliver their material. To be honest, I have been brutal about how Paul or Ace do some of these songs in concert as solo acts and have maintained a harsh view when I felt that the end did not justify the original means. Here does nothing. The album presents the recording sequentially as we heard the original “Dynasty” and begins with the albums biggest track, the signature “I Was Made For Lovin’ You” as done by The Wildflowers. Fronted by a female lead, this has a truer Disco vibe than the original had and even offers up some trance-like techno feel. It’s ok and offers you the aspect of how the song might have been done with a female singer. “2000 Man” was too slow and droning for my taste but it might appeal to the Stoner Rock fan. While the groove of “Sure Know Something” was pretty close to the original, the vocals of Tim McPhate were not up to snuff for the number and made me feel that perhaps he should have given a different tune a go. “Dirty Livin’” was the first track to really impress me for it was the most on target musically and vocally – nice work from the Coal Bin Bros. Shawn Fox delivers a growling Sleaze Punk version of “Charisma” which is not all that bad and came off as my second favorite on the disc.
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Artist: Various Artists
Title: “Hell Bent Forever: A Tribute To Judas Priest”
Label: Deadline Music
Release Date: 9/16/2008
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 3.5/5
The contributions of Judas Priest to the Heavy Metal world are many and based on this fact it makes sense that we would periodically find albums being released that feature other musicians offering up tribute to them by giving us their own versions of legendary classics. “Hell Bent Forever: A Tribute To Judas Priest” finds what appear to be a number of Glam Rock bands taking a stab at the material along with some of the more notable heavy acts of today. The release begins with Motorhead who give us a great rendition of “Breaking The Law” which is followed up by Fozzy’s “Metal Gods”. The band Fozzy features WWE’s Chris Jericho, and he is actually really a good singer and not just someone playing the part of one for kicks. For the most part I found this one to be a rather enjoyable listen and I was able to do this by not expecting every singer on the release to hit the soaring high notes that are second nature to a performer like Rob Halford. I was not sure how I would feel about Great White’s rendition of “Diamonds And Rust” and while this one is vocally on target, I felt that the drumming could have been a little more interesting. I was raised on the “Unleashed In The East” version with the Les Binks’ double kicks from Hell and kind of wanted to hear them on the cover of the track. Warrant does a decent job of “Hell Bent For Leather” but there is some weird solo break added before the original one which I could have done without. Other interesting offerings come from L.A. Guns and Firehouse who each tackle tracks that I would have never expected them doing on their own. There are a couple of numbers that could have been added to this one and perhaps even swapped out for some of the others that we found being done but in the end the track listing ends up reading like a decent “Best Of” collection. I admit that I would have loved to see “Green Manalishi” or “Freewheel Burning” included more so than “Heading Out To The Highway” even though this is a more mainstream tune.
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Artist: Various Artists
Title: “Crue Believers: A Tribute To Motley Crue”
Label: Deadline Music
Release Date: 10/14/2008
Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal
Rating: 3.5/5
In 2008 we had found that the guys in Motley Crue still had what it takes to deliver the goods as the band embarked on their first-ever officially sanctioned “Crue Fest”. The shows were a big time Summer hit and found them sharing the stage with the likes of Buckcherry and Nikki Sixx’s new project Sixx A.M. among others. The bands life and adventures were documented in a best selling book called “The Dirt” and their impact on the Heavy Metal music scene can still be felt even some twenty seven years after they first came into existence. That being said, when one listens to a release like “Crue Believers: A Tribute To Motley Crue”; it’s easy to find many levels of enjoyment since most of the albums contributors are relevant to the genre that they are covering. This largely tasty listen begins with Pretty Boy Floyd who do “Girls, Girls, Girls”, and these guys had already covered the Crue with “On With The Show” on their own debut release many years before so it was nice to see them on this recording. I felt other winners came in the versions of “Piece Of Your Action” and “Red Hot” by a bunch of mixed players from different bands and it was interesting to observe at just how good the oldest Crue stuff came off as covers as opposed to their later stuff. We get four songs apiece from the albums “Too Fast For Love” and “Shout At The Devil” and while many of them are done with excellence I have to say that the rendition that London delivers of the bands second album title track is simply dreadful. While we are on this end of the discussion, another tune that managed to ruin my enjoyment of this one was Leif Garrett’s take on the ballad “Home Sweet Home”. I don’t know who the brain surgeon was that said “get me Leif Garrett for this one”, but it will surely be one that you click past after only a few moments. He might be made for dancing, but certainly not Crue covers. Next time let’s try to stick to the rockers who make more sense in being here. With the bands new release only a few months old I admit that I was surprised to hear Jetboy doing one of that albums pieces here. The new Crue release has still not won everyone over including me, so I felt that the talented group would have been better served by doing something older as opposed to newer.
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Where Heavy Music & Pop Culture Collide
