Artist: Dokken Title: “Lightning Strikes Again” Label: Rhino Entertainment Release Date: 5/13/2008 Genre: Hard Rock Rating: 4/5
When you think of the bands that really made an impact on the Big Metal scene of the eighties you just know that one of the first names to come to mind is going to be none other than Dokken. Since their inception in 1976, the band came into Rock prominence with their debut release “Breaking The Chains” (1983) and by the time their sophomore release “Tooth And Nail” (1984) hit, the band had seemed to reach stratospheric heights and their videos were running rampant on that new medium called MTV while conventional radio was welcoming some of their tracks in a regular rotation. The got lumped into the Glam Metal title but they were clearly a little deeper than many of those bands based on the level of technical ability displayed by guitarist George Lynch and the overall heaviness of their material. Over the years the band has changed somewhat in terms of lineup, as Lynch and Pilson are no longer a part of the group, but singer Don Dokken remains in place with original drummer “Wild” Mick Brown and together along with guitarist Jon Levin and journeyman bassist Barry Sparks have delivered “Lightning Strikes Again”. For those only coming into the picture now and wondering how the band could continue without the firepower of Lynch well let me be the first to say that Jon Levin kicks ass and has been doing justice to the bands classics on the live stage for a number of years. As far as bassist Sparks goes, well he counts UFO and Ted Nugent among his many credits so you know he is more than a capable player for anything Don and company can dish out. The title of the album is also fantastic for on “Lightning Strikes Again” we are finding a Dokken that has returned to the form that many of us first enjoyed in the band. It’s by no means a retro-album but instead one that plays upon the sounds and textures that made them one of the favorites and brings them together with a crunching vibe for the new millennium. Continue reading “Lightning Strikes Again” by Dokken→
Artist: Ted Nugent Title: “Sweden Rocks” Label: Eagle Vision Release Date: 6/10/2008 Genre: Hard Rock Rating: 3.5/5
Almost on the heels of the release of the CD that bore the same name comes the live concert video from Ted Nugent’s appearance on the Sweden Rocks festival back in 2006. Having recently reviewed the CD itself I was rather interested in seeing how this would come out since audio does not always clue you in to the level of quality delivered at the show. My critique of the CD was that Ted’s vocal sounded far too upfront in the mix and the backing players really sounded low, so that unevenness was a little bit annoying. Would this be the same with the DVD, well it was time to find out. Given this is a festival setting where hundreds of performers are crossing the stage, the décor for the band is rather limited to what appears to be cargo netting over some of the amps and of course Ted’s name logo hanging proudly in the back. Nugent was never much for over the top visual displays and was always more about his guitar playing and infamous stage banter and this is what we get in full during the concert. The main difference is that the DVD film features two songs cut from the CD, which are “Motor City Madhouse” and “Klstrphnky” – my guess is had they placed them on the audio only version that they would have needed a second CD. The show itself is pretty good and finds Ted well in command of quite a number of his legendary classics and he makes time to present a track from his forthcoming 2007 release “Love Grenade” with “Still Raising Hell”. It’s a good track, but for me I tend to lean to the classics when it comes to Uncle Ted in concert. His guitar playing is as awesome as ever, but somewhere in the mix I felt that his vocals were not as on top as they were in the CD presentation of this same show. Hey folks, he has been at this for some forty years and while he doesn’t show any signs of stopping, perhaps adding a powerhouse vocalist to the band and leaving him to do his business on the guitar would be the best move. As the fans will note from the show he can still deliver his banter and as always it remains a strong, pro-American message and is as expected also loaded with expletives. Maybe the kids shouldn’t listen in, but of course there is far worse being pronounced in any one Rap song these days so its probably not much of an issue and better they listen to Nugent anyways. Continue reading “Sweden Rocks” (DVD) by Ted Nugent→
Artist: Ted Nugent Title: “Sweden Rocks” Label: Eagle Records Release Date: 5/13/2008 Genre: Hard Rock Rating: 3.5/5
In the world of Hard Rock music there are few musicians or even individuals like “Uncle” Ted Nugent and in a sense that is a depressing thing since the man approaches life and Metal with such energy and vitality at every single turn. The outspoken guitarist has been a mainstay on the concert circuit and long preached a drug and alcohol free lifestyle, maintains his advocacy of bearing arms and hunting game and very proudly standing up for ones country and political beliefs. To say that Ted Nugent is an interesting guy would be an incredible understatement and this live concert CD captures some of his essence at the Sweden Rock Festival that was held back in June 2006. Over the years I have seen Ted perform with a number of players and each of them worthy of some recognition when it came down to it. For the show at Sweden Rock we find him with a really powerhouse rhythm section that comes care of Barry Sparks on bass and “Wild” Mick Brown on drums. You probably recognize the names as two of the members who currently tour with Dokken and based on their years of experience at dishing out quality Hard Rock there was no way that this show was going to sound anything less than killer. The set is loaded with Nugent signature classics such as “Wango Tango”, “Free For All”, “Wang Dang Sweet Poon Tang” and the ultimate staple “Catch Scratch Fever” and all of them still sound as fun live today as they did when they originally made their appearance decades ago. Continue reading “Sweden Rocks” by Ted Nugent→
Artist: Dokken Title: “Unchain The Night” Label: Rhino Records Release Date: 3/13/2007 Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Rating: 3.5/5
In 1985 the home video for eighties Hard Rock sensation Dokken entitled “Unchain The Night” was unleashed on the Metal fans of the world. The VHS Tape (anyone remember those?) included eight of the bands videos from their hit singles of the time and also featured very candid footage of the group on tour, onstage and just having fun in the towns and hotels that they would visit. Historically the group was touring in support of their second platinum album “Under Lock And Key”. The “Old School” fan that I am remembers these videos very fondly and not only from the tape which I owned and is still buried somewhere, but from when they first aired on both MTV and also the U68 “Power Hour”. The memories come flooding back to me as I watched this DVD and I had to laugh aloud at the fact that I recalled these videos as being so “cool” at the time while realizing just how cheesy they actually were. I was young, but so was the format of music video and its super powered grip was not yet at full strength. Dokken as a band was a guilty pleasure for many Hard Rock and Metal fans as while they had the suave crooning singer in Don, there was also blistering guitar from George Lynch as well as pounding drums from “Wild” Mick Brown. The level of appeal the band had was able to snare fans of the melodic and the heavy as well. Continue reading “Unchain The Night” by Dokken→
Artist: Dokken Title: “From Conception: Live 1981” Label: Rhino Records Release Date: 3/13/2007 Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Rating: 3.5/5
Thanks to the folks at Rhino Records listeners that found their love of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal in the eighties will truly appreciate this one. As the music of “Live 1981 From Conception” by Dokken starts spinning in their CD player they are taken back in a time warp . The hard core Dokken fan will immediately raise their eyebrows knowing that the band would not be signed until a couple of years later and not release a live album until 1988’s “Beast From The East”. These are the facts that make such a release all the more special. In the liner notes by Don Dokken himself he states that as he searched through master tapes for music to be used on an anniversary edition of “Breaking The Chains”, he would come upon reels that simply said “Dokken Live”. These reels would have performances of the band that were recorded before they were signed as the group searched for a record deal, and believe me friends this is one terrific find. The set performed for this concert is loaded with vintage classics from the bands earliest years as well as a number of tracks that that would never actually make it onto the bands catalog of releases. For the most part these songs are a mystery even to the bands most devout supporters. Their presence alone makes the release something that the fans will really enjoy. As they perform, the listener will find a band that is both young, hungry and really showing just how capable they are of the success that will find them not too far in the future. Continue reading “From Conception: Live 1981” by Dokken→
