Man Raze Album Review

Phil Collen’s first priority will always be Def Leppard. After all, that band has been his bread and butter for more than two decades now. Of course, many famous musicians have outside interests other than their day jobs. Like the rest of us, these musicians have hobbies, or “side projects” that can often produce great things.

A million years ago,  Phil Collen and bass player Simon Laffy played together in the band Girl. Look to the side bar of my archive articles and you’ll find a series called “A Week of Girl.”

Girl is one of my favorite bands.  It was fronted by a pre-L.A. Guns Phil Lewis. Anyway, Girl disbanded, Phil Collen joined Def Leppard and that was that. Now, Collen and Laffy are back together – and joined by Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook.

The trio call themselves Man Raze. The band has been around a few years now, but just recently released their debut called Surreal (VH1 Classic Records). In a lot of ways, Man Raze is like Girl for the new millennium. If you’ve ever listened to Girl, you know the band liked to experiment with different sounds, jumping from heavier Metal to reggae-influenced tunes. This holds true on Surreal. Here is the track list:

This Is It
Turn It Up
Runnin' Me Up
Every Second Of Every Day
Spinning It Out
Can't Find My Own Way
Skin Crawl
Low
Connected To You
Halo
It's Entertainment
Shadow Man

There is a lot of greatness here. “Every Second of Every Day” is a strong track and it sounds like it belongs on the radio. The same is true of "Connected to You," "Shadow Man" and "Turn It Up." 

Perhaps most invigorating here is the affirmation that Collen can sing. I mean, really, really sing. Remember my most recent Def Leppard concert review? I said Collen should help Joe Elliott more with the vocal duties. Now that I hear Collen sing in Man Raze, I’m thinking he should just become a vocalist period. This isn’t to say he isn’t a great guitarist – but I have to admit I’m floored at the quality of his voice.

It’s easy to listen to Surreal and forget it’s not a Def Lep release. I suppose this is why the album title is so genius. The trio surely knew what they were doing here. It’s obvious for critics – and fans – to draw comparisons to Girl and Def Leppard. We just have to be fair about it all.

Surreal is a strong release that stands completely on its own merits. In fact, I can a lot of people who don’t like Def Leppard actually digging Man Raze. Remember, Surreal isn’t a wholly Glam release. There are mixed elements here. The listener must have an open mind and give it a chance. If you do give Surreal a chance, I predict you will like what you hear.

Support the band. Buy the disc. I know it’s available on Amazon.com and I bet you can get it a local music shop, too.

www.manraze.com

Well...I'm Nothing if Not Metal

Houston's Rock the Bayou music festival starts in two days. I leave Ohio at 5 a.m. on Friday and am scheduled to be in Houston before eight. In theory, I'll be situated and in place in plenty of time to see the first act take the main stage.

Now, I'm a native Buckeye. In Ohio, we don't get hurricanes. We get tornadoes and earthquakes. I'm not a fan of either, but at least I know how to react to both situations. Currently, Hurricane Gustav is tracking just past Haiti and into the Gulf. As of midnight, the hurricane looks like it is headed right toward Houston.

How fast do hurricanes move? That depends. I spent a lot of time last night reading about Gustav. Turns out, this hurricane is packing a punch and moving quite rapidly.

What happens if Gustav inches toward Houston during Rock the Bayou? I have no idea. Quite frankly, I hope the festival organizers have an evacuation or shelter plan in place. Again, I don't know what do in a hurricane - except stay out of the storm. That's all well and good unless you are in an open field, watching some Glam while the rain pelts your back.

I can deal with rain. I went to the local shops last night and purchased a couple new ponchos and a travel umbrella. Of course, I'll assume my Bring Back Glam! pink umbrella won't be much of a match for Gustav. Needless to say, I also purchased rubber boots. All items are safely packed in my suitcase.

I'll be at Rock the Bayou come hell or high water (yes, the pun was intended here). If there's a hurricane at the fest, I'll report on it here. I mean, hell, Rocklahoma had a crazy storm - why shouldn't I endure a hurricane for Glam too?

***All this talk of storms has me wondering: What is the most dangerous situation you ever endured in the name of Glam?

Now...some inevitable songs about rain. Enjoy!

Here's Warrant performing "Let it Rain" at Gazzaris back in 1987:

Here's Jackyl with "When Will it Rain:"

Here's Nelson performing "After the Rain" live earlier this year:

Rock the Bayou Instant Updates

Remember, you can follow me on Twitter - and get instant updates from this weekend's Rock the Bayou festival in Houston, Texas. If a Glam riot breaks out, I'll let you know. If Hurricane Gustav sweeps through and knocks down power and tents, I'll let you know. If Kix blow everyone else off the stage, I'll let you know. If Jeremy Guns lets me sit in his lap, I'll...um, never mind. I'll keep that to myself!

Remember - you must have the text alert function enabled on your Twitter account to see my instant updates. These updates will also scroll in the pink box on my Myspace page. Of course, texting is more immediate. Please check your phone plan to make sure you can accept many text messages. Twitter is free, but some plans charge per text message. I don't  want to run up your phone bill, so please make sure you have a texting plan before agreeing to follow Bring Back Glam!

A Piece of Motley's Past...

Two great videos here: clips of Motley Crue rehearsing for their 1994 tour with John Corabi. The clips focus mainly on Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee. Apparently there are more clips - but the owner hasn't yet uploaded for lack of views. If you all click the links and watch the clips, maybe the owner will upload the rest of these videos and we can see more of Motley's history.

Even in turmoil, I'm always amazed at how happy Nikki seemed during this period. Perhaps he was truly optimistic at the possibility of a new singer. The chance for change. A new direction. Whatever the case, Nikki's spirits are clearly high in this clip - and Tommy Lee and Mick Mars are jovial as well.

We don't see too much of John Corabi in these clips. I suppose throughout his tenure with Motley Crue, Corabi intrinsically knew that was the fifth wheel. Vince was physically gone, but his ghost remained. The nineties were tough for Glam bands. Even tougher for a band that had just kicked out a very loved and famous lead singer.

John Corabi is immensely talented - and Motley Crue's self-titled 1994 release is an amazing album. Those people that say it sucks simply can't get past the notion that it is Motley Crue without Vince. Regardless of whether this is right or wrong, Nikki Sixx owns the Motley machine and - at one time - decreed Corabi the new Vince. I consider Motley Crue among the best of their canon - and consistently rank the release within the top three efforts by the band.

Here is part one of the rehearsal footage:

Here is part two. Of the two clips, this is my favorite.

The best thing about YouTube is rediscovering a band's personal history. Fans get to live the ups and downs through moving clips. The bands themselves get to hide from the evidence!

AC/DC vs. Metallica

AC/DC and Metallica are two bands that have enjoyed a rare amount of success. Both bands are huge and still have rabid fan bases. Sure, the most recent albums by both bands were less than great,  but anytime the possibility of a new AC/DC or Metallica album is mentioned - people get a little crazy. People get even crazier at the talk of a tour. Now, both AC/DC and Metallica are getting ready to release new discs and a full tour supporting the material. Which tour will be bigger?

I honestly don't know who to give the edge here. Quite frankly, I'm going to both tours and I'll get both albums, too. AC/DC have been around longer but when the chips fall in place, I'm probably a bigger Metallica fan. Either way, I think both tours are going to be massive.

How massive? I'm not sure. My guess is that ticket prices for both tours will be astronomical - with AC/DC having a higher nightly guarantee and subsequently older audience. At least in North America, the tours are winter events - and that usually means pretty big venues. Metallica is coming to Ohio in November at the Schottenstein Center. For those of you not from Ohio - that is on the campus of Ohio State University. Everything at Ohio State University is absolutely huge. I am guessing that AC/DC will play two Ohio dates. 

You know what this means, right? It means I'm going to be shelling out a bunch of cash for fanclub memberships to get close tickets.

So, which will be bigger? Metallica or AC/DC? Which show will you attend?

There is no doubt in my mind that both tours will be among the highest grossing of 2009 - and maybe even this year if the respective bands play enough dates. I don't expect cheap tickets. I gave that dream up a long time ago.

Big Cock Need Our Help!

For whatever reason, I had no idea that my friend David Henzerling and his band Big Cock had entered the Make Rock History contest. That contest - sponsored by Guitar Center and Gibson - is basically giving away fame. You see, the wining band gets to tour with Motley Crue next summer. Think about it: Big Cock obviously fits with Motley Crue. I can just imagine that show now.

Big Cock have a few songs and videos uploaded to their MakeRockHistory.com profile. Just click here to vote. If I understand correctly, you can vote once a day for your favorite band.

After you've voted for the band, you might as well go ahead and buy their new album Motherload if you don't already own a copy. Talk about some good Glam.

Since Rock the Bayou is Less than One Week Away...

A few of my favorite videos by bands playing next weekend's massive Rock the Bayou festival:

RATT "Nobody Rides for Free:"

Lita Ford "Hungry:"

Alice Cooper "Feed My Frankenstein:"

Twisted Sister "Leader of the Pack:"