Tricky Woo – First Blush
This 2005 release shows how far this band has evolved since the noise-fest of The Enemy Is Real. They are now more of a 70’s hard rock band – though with punk’n’roll sounds, as well.
Their opener, “Pink Thunder”, is so 70’s that is almost sounds like Ram Jam’s version of “Black Betty”! Heavy guitars and damn near a boogie beat! But don’t think that’s a bad thing! These guys rock!
The title cut has a bit more of a garagey edge to it, though in a modern-day vein rather than an over-the-tops Sonics/Swamp Rats vein. They do have cool vocals, a memorable chorus and killer guitar leads! Guitar licks almost overwhelm “Lover Don’t You Lie” – melodic lines swirl all over the damn place before the band settles into a groove and come out with a catchy tune! There are even twin guitar harmony leads in the song that are reminiscent of Thin Lizzy! (Though that may just be because I’ve been listening to them lately!)
Vocals and guitars scream through “Born in the City” to the point where they almost lose touch with reality, but then they bring everything together with a solid instrumental interlude. Freakin’ hard to describe, actually, though they manage to pull it off!
I do think that they sound like a heavier, punkier Thin Lizzy on “Living in the Danger Zone” and again, they manage to still come up with a catchy chorus. “Rat Feathers” is maniacal chaos that reminds me a bit of Celebrity Skin doing their wilder versions of Sparks-styled wackiness. These just may be my touch stones though – the band might be thinking something completely different, but I dig the insanity of it all!
The band sounds like they’re channeling Rainbow in “Mistress of the Mountain”, right down to the closing acoustic interlude! Then they pull out a Black Sabbath rip for “We Are the Vampires”, which is damn appropriate! “Mechanical Flowers” seems to be their version of a Redd Kross (Neurotica-era) take on the 70’s, though it is incredibly brief!
The closer, “Dirty Business” seems to grab just about everything from 70’s hard rock and throw it into a Kiss blender (Kiss makes those now, too, don’t they?) and still manage to sound like Tricky Woo!
This is a wild bash of 70’s hard rock, pseudo-speed-metal and punk that still manages to be fun and catchy!
Their opener, “Pink Thunder”, is so 70’s that is almost sounds like Ram Jam’s version of “Black Betty”! Heavy guitars and damn near a boogie beat! But don’t think that’s a bad thing! These guys rock!
The title cut has a bit more of a garagey edge to it, though in a modern-day vein rather than an over-the-tops Sonics/Swamp Rats vein. They do have cool vocals, a memorable chorus and killer guitar leads! Guitar licks almost overwhelm “Lover Don’t You Lie” – melodic lines swirl all over the damn place before the band settles into a groove and come out with a catchy tune! There are even twin guitar harmony leads in the song that are reminiscent of Thin Lizzy! (Though that may just be because I’ve been listening to them lately!)
Vocals and guitars scream through “Born in the City” to the point where they almost lose touch with reality, but then they bring everything together with a solid instrumental interlude. Freakin’ hard to describe, actually, though they manage to pull it off!
I do think that they sound like a heavier, punkier Thin Lizzy on “Living in the Danger Zone” and again, they manage to still come up with a catchy chorus. “Rat Feathers” is maniacal chaos that reminds me a bit of Celebrity Skin doing their wilder versions of Sparks-styled wackiness. These just may be my touch stones though – the band might be thinking something completely different, but I dig the insanity of it all!
The band sounds like they’re channeling Rainbow in “Mistress of the Mountain”, right down to the closing acoustic interlude! Then they pull out a Black Sabbath rip for “We Are the Vampires”, which is damn appropriate! “Mechanical Flowers” seems to be their version of a Redd Kross (Neurotica-era) take on the 70’s, though it is incredibly brief!
The closer, “Dirty Business” seems to grab just about everything from 70’s hard rock and throw it into a Kiss blender (Kiss makes those now, too, don’t they?) and still manage to sound like Tricky Woo!
This is a wild bash of 70’s hard rock, pseudo-speed-metal and punk that still manages to be fun and catchy!
posted by rich @ 3:16 PM
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