Loudness - Rockshocks
Crash Music - CMU 61169 - 2006
By Philip Whitehouse
Since pretty much every single other review of this album on the 'net starts with an extended history lesson, I'll just trust in our readers' abilities to use Google and leave it at saying that Loudness are a famous Japanese hard rock/heavy metal band who've been around since the 80s. Rockshocks is a compilation of some of the prime cuts from their first five albums, re-recorded with a fuzz-friendly and admirably balls-out-heavy production and complete with three brand new bonus tracks.
As an introduction to the band for people who don't remember them first time round (such as yours truly, who wasn't born until '84), Rockshocks is a stormer. Minoru Niihara's vocals sit somewhere between Bon Scott and Robert Plant, with a little added Japanese wackiness for taste, Akira Takasaki's guitar playing mingles thrashy, up-tempo riffage with stadium-rock grandstanding wrapped in a massive stoner-rock tone, while the rhythm section of Masayoshi Yamashita (bass) and Munetaka Higuchi (drums) lay down a rock-solid foundation to proceedings. The riffs for the most part are prime, old-school, vintage heavy metal - cast-iron, lead heavy and absolutely dripping with sleaze - but the songwriting is varied enough to include AOR-esque major-chord arpeggios, extended cosmic-jam lead breaks and spacey midsections.
For people who already own the five albums that the material is drawn from - I reckon this is still worth picking up. It's a far more consistent, seamlessly flowing affair than your average greatest hits disc simply because everything's been re-recorded with the same production - which is, it bears repeating, really heavy. Not to mention the fact that the three bonus tracks are cracking in and of themselves - heavier, thrashier and faster than the other material, whilst still retaining that Loudness vibe. Of course, that Loudness vibe is one of an 80s-era band that made it big during the glam/hair metal explosion, so Loudshocks may not be for everyone - but for those who are interested, I'll let Minoru have the last words - "Let me help you rock and ro-o-o-o-o-o-ollllll!"
7.5/10 (UM's Review Rating Scale)
Loudness' Official Website
Crash Music's Official Website
Crash Music - CMU 61169 - 2006
By Philip Whitehouse
Since pretty much every single other review of this album on the 'net starts with an extended history lesson, I'll just trust in our readers' abilities to use Google and leave it at saying that Loudness are a famous Japanese hard rock/heavy metal band who've been around since the 80s. Rockshocks is a compilation of some of the prime cuts from their first five albums, re-recorded with a fuzz-friendly and admirably balls-out-heavy production and complete with three brand new bonus tracks.
As an introduction to the band for people who don't remember them first time round (such as yours truly, who wasn't born until '84), Rockshocks is a stormer. Minoru Niihara's vocals sit somewhere between Bon Scott and Robert Plant, with a little added Japanese wackiness for taste, Akira Takasaki's guitar playing mingles thrashy, up-tempo riffage with stadium-rock grandstanding wrapped in a massive stoner-rock tone, while the rhythm section of Masayoshi Yamashita (bass) and Munetaka Higuchi (drums) lay down a rock-solid foundation to proceedings. The riffs for the most part are prime, old-school, vintage heavy metal - cast-iron, lead heavy and absolutely dripping with sleaze - but the songwriting is varied enough to include AOR-esque major-chord arpeggios, extended cosmic-jam lead breaks and spacey midsections.
For people who already own the five albums that the material is drawn from - I reckon this is still worth picking up. It's a far more consistent, seamlessly flowing affair than your average greatest hits disc simply because everything's been re-recorded with the same production - which is, it bears repeating, really heavy. Not to mention the fact that the three bonus tracks are cracking in and of themselves - heavier, thrashier and faster than the other material, whilst still retaining that Loudness vibe. Of course, that Loudness vibe is one of an 80s-era band that made it big during the glam/hair metal explosion, so Loudshocks may not be for everyone - but for those who are interested, I'll let Minoru have the last words - "Let me help you rock and ro-o-o-o-o-o-ollllll!"
7.5/10 (UM's Review Rating Scale)
Loudness' Official Website
Crash Music's Official Website
