Saturday
Nov142009
Saigon Kick - 'All I Want'
Saturday, November 14, 2009 at 12:01AM
So last night I was watching Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew. Talk about a trashy show, but there's nothing else on television Friday nights, so there you go. Anyway, Saigon Kick drummer Phil Varone is on the show. He often waxes poetic about being a rock star and getting any woman he wants. While I get enraged and generally want to throw stuff at my TV while watching Phil and the rest of the Sex Rehab cast, I can't deny the quality of Saigon Kick's The Lizard. That album is one of the best records of the 90s, bar none.
When people think The Lizard, "Love is on the Way" automatically comes to mind. That song is great, but I think "All I Want" is a little more representative of Saigon Kick's true sound. Do you agree?
Reader Comments (18)
p.s. I did add this to my "Project Power Ballad" Playlist, Volume II, "Love Is On The Way", is on Volume I. Call it the completist in me. Oh, and now that I'm awake, sorry, but I view these guys as the REO Speedwagon of Hair Metal (Wait, I thought REO Speedwagon was the REO Speedwagon of Hair Metal). Here's what I mean... Even though REO Speedwagon were very successful in the 80's, I still think they sounded more like 70's Pop/Hard Rock. Tho Saigon Kick (cool name, btw) were definitely Hair Metal, at least to me, they were out on the fringes, not that that's a bad thing. I think, because they got in on it at the tail end they were very shrewd by not wanting to be categorized as such and worked to kind of give a subtle grunge or offbeat mild roughness to their sound (even the unusual, fresh and commendable opening guitar treatment of their powerballad, "Love Is On The Way"). It is commendable they dared to be different. But what killed them for me, and why I call them the "REO Speedwagon of Hair Metal" is basically my feeling that this guy Matt Kramer's vocal delivery is so affected, so pretentious, it winds up ruining it for me, anyway, much the same way that clown, Kevin Cronin, from REO Speedwagon's voice does. The band originated from Miami Florida, not Fargo, er... I mean, Champaign-Urbana Illinois, tho something tells me the good citizens of Champaign-Urbana Illinois don't talk like Cronin the Clown sings, for cryin' out loud. And nor do the good... uh, yeah... and nor do the people of Miami talk like Kramer from Saigon Kick. Why does the guy overdo it so much with weird annunciations and stuff. He's got a great voice, he shoulda just let it out straight up. It was distinctive enough as it was (case in point, "Love Is On The Way" which also has a kind of cool robotic and hypnotic repetition going on, too), he didn't need to put all the bizzaro emphasis on the wrong syllables and add avante-garde (to put it nicely) pronunciations to his words. Just sing the muthaf*cker! You've got the voice already! Just so you know I saw and heard the whole thing at the Cat Club in NYC (anybody out there ever used to frequent that joint?). Gotta tell ya, it was so torturously boring. I felt like I wanted my money back even tho I got in for free (cuz of my gal at the time, Juliette, who knew the bouncers...probably better than I realized, just kidding). I will say tho, when they launched into "Love Is On The Way", the whole place just stopped dead. Glasses stopped clinking, the B.S.ers (myself included) stopped B.S.ing and even the chix stopped their usual shriek-out loud greetings to each other. Dead silence from the audience as everyone was just riveted, myself included. They were just sittin' there on stools doing it flawlessly and with total conviction and heartfeltedness (not a word, really, but we'll use it). Then it was back to the phonetic rodeo of the singer and that goofball, er, guitarist, with the inadvertant extreme mullet you see in the video here. Gotta say that annoys me almost as much as when it looks like the singer is praying they make more money or whatever he's doing there in the same vid. But again, versatility is displayed. Had this guy wanted to, he coulda been the hair metaller in his day job, which he was, more or less.. and a punker with the world's tallest mohawk. All he would have to do is put that weird hair glue those mohawk dudes use into his hair and crank up the guitar a little more and dial down the pretention a little bit. Hell, they all shoulda done it. They might have gotten a lot further... I guess I shoulda switched the p.s. with the main body of this note, then again, I want more emphasis on what I said about these guys above the "p.s." Okay, Kenny, I'm loading up the Danger Danger, "Cockroach" album(s) on the iPod and hittin' the beach. I'm sure I'm not the first to try this, but I'm actually gonna alternate the Poley version and the Laine version of each song so I'm comparing each singers version of the same song back to back. I obviously need to take a nap on the beach to, because now I'm really barely making any sense. Rock on, all you Rockerz!
The Boyz are back!
I literally fell asleep behind my computer! Been here for days waitin' for you guys to show up!
Just kiddin'!
I'm actually not that much of a loser, but almost, hahaha!!! Besides, it would be debatable whether camping out here would be a losing prospect. It's really quite Glamourous, don't you think?, considering Al's cool subjects, her observations, all of the winning opinions and quality tips you guys and a few others have on albums to get, etc., in the coolest of commentary sections anywhere, in my humble opinion.
I'd be watchin' That Metal Show right now, if it weren't for my Pop hoggin' up the TV watchin' the Pitt/Notre Dame game... what a nail biter. He's 104 and I'm 60 (okay, I'm exaggerating, but not by much)... see how good a steady diet of this Metal stuff is for ya! I will crank up our trusty Metal Mania (Doncha love those Intro/Outro graphics with the skulls, kaleidoscopic flyin' V's, Trans Am and the Metal Bikini Beauties), tho... after he hits the ol' nailbed... One more drive by on That Metal Show... Why can't they blow that out to an hour and have the guests play live on it? What the hell?
Stump, Jimmy and Donny would just have a field day with more time and the bands playin' and all. It would be the hottest ticket in town both on TV and NYC. I really hope they can expand it out... Tell ya what, I'll write 'em. I'm sure it's not like they haven't thought of it... Maybe we can set up a petition or something, hahaha!!! No, but, really...
So...
The Counsel of the Cauldron convenes once again...
Great to see everyone here again...
Just so long as I'm not the one being basted in the Cauldron...
But how about Matt Kramer...
I got a nice "hot tub" for him to climb in right now...
Hahaha!!!, Kramer, it's not really a hot tub! Lemme hit the remote... Okay, wow look at that phoney Cedar and Teak printed asbestos framing break away to reveal a huge black cauldron with a nice fire of old Jackson and Charvelle "logs" underneath. We'll just use this old Gibson Flying V to stir the pot...
And stir the pot I am, Glamrocker Archie! I can see why Bieler hates him. C'mon, you can tell by the vid, this guy thinks he's the bees knees (n' I just wish they were more like Sleez Beez!).
I can't stand it when people are like that. I mean, y'know, Coverdale's like that, but it's all kind of a pisstake, y'know. He's havin' fun with it. It's all a bit over the top. But these guys? Man, I'm sorry, they're taking themselves way too seriously. More than, dare I say here, Pearl Scam!
Look, as I said, I applaud 'em for being different, and I believe, they weren't just trying to be different for being different's sake. They really mean it. But to take themselves so seriously, and I mean I saw it with my own two eyes back in the day...
Well it's just ridiculous... That whole Mullet/Mohawk thing worked for Wendy-O but on this guy, so serious, and all... Sorry, it's laughable. Then again, if that's the hairdo the guy wants to sport, he should be able to, I guess...
Believe me, I'm not gonna be the one to tell someone how they want to wear their hair... Hell, I often thought of gettin' a triple negative mohawk to promote Adidas but thought about it twice because I wasn't sure how it would play at the office.
Forgot to mention in my description of that experience... The place stopped dead during "Love Is On The Way" because it was simply knockout... It hadn't been played to death yet (on the radio or MTV) at the time, yet. Most everyone that was there didn't necessarily come to see 'em, per se. The Cat Club was a great hang out and chances were you could catch someone there. They might even have been opening up for someone, maybe Alice In Chains (who were killer), or somebody like that, I just don't remember.
But what I do remember is Saigon Kick stopping the place dead during that number. It was the rest of it that was kinda suspect, if you can imagine what I mean, but then again, you guys are really standing by 'em, so you might not appreciate where I'm comin' from on it. At that moment for the duration of the 4 and a half minutes of "Love Is On The Way", Saigon Kick owned the joint.
The rest of it was, for me, and again, sorry guys for layin' into 'em so heavy... it waa just basically mostly a set of contemporized versions of...
"And if you are-ah readeeeeha, I am-ah aaaabull-ah, to-a roll-a with the chaaaangez-ah..."
All because of the singer who Beiler (which one's Beiler? I assume the guitarist and I'm too lazy to find out on Wikipedia and also afraid, cuz I don't wanna know the name of the dude with the mullet/mohawk in the vid)... who Beiler hates. And I betcha he hates him cuz he was to REO'd out... Really, man, I actually think their music's pretty good...
I mean, they kinda cracked the formula on how to bridge Hair Metal and Grunge more successfully musically more than anyone except maybe Alice and Chains -- who I don't think were neither genre... they just were, man... they just had they're own sound... like a real American Rock and Roll Band should be (and who most of my faves aren't... but I just happen to love Hair/Glam more than Alice... I just know Alice is more legit... but that just doesn't mean I have to like 'em as much as, say, Ratt, which is just such a ridiculous notion, I know, but I know what I like!
Saigon Kick really coulda been on the level of Alice and Chains if Kramer wasn't so "REO" in his delivery, and I hope you get my drift, Glamrocker Arch... I don't mean Kramer literally sounds like Kevin what's-his-name (it's beautiful how the human brain works, automatically blocking out unpleasant information, for the most part anyway).
What I mean is, he ain't singin' it. He's being too much of the vocal stylist hambone on it (and as you can tell, I know a hambone when I see one, because of the old adage, "It takes one to know one"). At least he had the sense to sing the hit straight up, not over "sing" it like the rest of the stuff he butchered for 'em. Look, man, Bieler is the sole songwriter of "Love Is On The Way".
Maybe he hates Kramer because he realizes he didn't need another hambone like himself in the band, right. I mean one is enough. He just needed a killer singer. Sorry, dudes, Kramer isn't it for me... not by a long shot. I actually own 3 copies of this friggin' "The Lizard" album (cool cover... doofball band photography... again, so serious... not even mock serious... so uncool) 1 here, 2 in storage along with their 1st, which, I remember, I really found unlistenable, sorry boyz... That album cover, too, warns ya what your in for, too as far as what's inside... Especially the dude in the upper left. I will say, tho, it looks like they started to show some self depracating humor with "Greatest Mrs.: The Best of Saigon Kick". Tell ya what, GlamR, I will get it next paycheck and get back to ya, bro... probably after mid December (on this subject, I mean, of course, hahaha, at least in terms of really having listened to more of 'em again, givin' it a second chance, cuz of you guyz really diggin' 'em).
One more thing on 'em... I checked 'em on Wikipedia earlier when I filed my first commentary on 'em to make sure I got Kramer's name right (know your enemy, right?). There's somethin' on there about them being p*ssed off at Phil Varrone for allegedly stealin' all the money. Howzit, the drummer steals the money? Hey, Al can't stand this guy anyway, so I coulda saved you guys all the trouble of havin' to speed read through all all of this junk by choppin' this commentary down to size to get to a much better reason to hate this band, and that is, simply, what I just stated... Phil is a weenus and Al don't like 'im. He sounds like one and that's good enough for me... and let's not forget Matt "REO" Kramer. (His web sites and crap are amusing, too... what a frickin' narssicist, way worse than me.
So, anyway, money talks as you say, GlamR, (ain't that the truth, cuz talkin' for talkin's sake sure ain't gettin' me anywhere) for sure, and Matt's gonna require some concessions in his contract to bring his REO routine back to the band. Sorry, man, I just had to get the REO thing back in there one more time...
But I guess I better watch it cuz I want to keep those tips and Rockin' Opinionz comin' from you guyz! One thing we sure as hell agree on... Glam Metal... and no one brings it back alive better than our dear Miss Al, for sure! So glad I can hang with you guyz on here, man...
Dudes, "Balls To The Wall" just came on Metal Mania. C'mon, man, you know what I'm talkin' 'bout! Owwwwwwww!!!!!
Another thing I realize, too, as a former singer... er... screamer, myself... and a lousy one, to boot...
...is the possibility you guys are most likely musicians and can really judge Saigon Kick's stuff more on it's musical merits (tho I did say I kinda like the music, just not Kramer), where I'm comin' at it from a former P.T. Barnumesque frontman point of view (no, I did not even come close to sustaining any real position in a band except for like 3 minutes, long enough to nail a few Bon Scott impressions when I was 17) and as an appreciator of real singing (probably since I couldn't really hack it myself). So musically, you're probably going to defend 'em more... I'll give 'em another twirl...
Speaking of singers who shoulda been replaced...
Kenny, I'm beginning to wonder if Poley should have been grabbed from behind while on stage and knocked out with an ether soaked rag long before "Cockroach" came out. He does have the pipes for singin' the high ranges, but he's another dude who sounds like he's from Toronto (sorry, Canadians, don't worry, one of my absolute faves is Brighton Rock), which is really weird considering this band is from Queens. I think I mentioned here previously, that I actually partied with this guy at a Labor Day Picnic... Shows up dressed up all in white on a Harley with a white gas tank and the hottest blonde I've ever seen in my life. Thank my lucky stars I was able to hold my own in conversation with him and really only because he thought my gal was a close runner up, I'm sure. And she was a brunette.
Anyway, he was an airhead, but he sure as hell can sing... Or at least he pretended to be, so I wouldn't hound him too much. But I didn't have much to say cuz I wasn't onto there stuff enough to be able to say something like, 'Hey, man, really love that intro to "Live It Up" or some sh*t. I was his bud as long as I kept feedin' him the Heinies, tho. And he could keep his left eye on my chick.
The beauty of it was, as into Metal as I was, I didn't connect the dots... My chick, Stacy told me "Ted from Danger Danger is comin' but I couldn't really remember who the hell they were, tho at that point I had seen "Naughty Naughty" like a cajillion times on Headbanger's Ball.
When I went on a mission to absolutely blow out my CD collection in 1999 with every Hair Metal thing I could lay my hands on after becoming disinchanted with the Grunge/Alternative path I had gone down along with so many other idiots who drank hte Seattle Kool-Aid and other concoctions from this country, the U.K. and Ireland (hint-hint). I actually think I started to see through the fog when Offspring came out and reminded me how much I loved Metal, tho I know some might find it curious who the messenger was. And Stone Temple Pilots woke me up. I shoulda just stuck to Nirvana and stuck by everybody else who was still fulfilling their record contracts or who had so much conviction, they kept it going anyway, indy style.
Anyway, I'm becoming more and more convinced as my current project continues... and that is, quite simply to unearth every worthy Glam Metal band from '80 to '94 I can find... I am really believing that the best stuff might have been the last...
Case in point for those of you who actually happen to really love Saigon Kick... here they are, '92 with a monster hit and had figured out how to be doin' there own thing, for better or worse, but that's just me...
Or a case I'd rather make...
Kenny's reco... "Cockroach" by Danger Danger, which was supposed to come out in '93 but we all know what happened there (or can easily find out... Wikipedia... then get it n Amazon or however you Webmeisterz and Torrenterz do it). But, wow, Kenny...
I loaded up both versions, like I said, doin' the Poley/Laine Death Match thing, cut by cut, Poley version of a track immediately followed by Laine's version of the same... Gotta say, this is their best album, no matter which singer we determine is better (more on my vote momentito) . Totally ROXXXXXXXX!!!!!
Counsel, please authorize... Digression #147...
This edition of That Metal Show isn't too bad... Lemmy was hilarious... I guess Chump won't be havin' Nikki on anytime soon cuz he just said Aerosmith's better, and he may very well be right, but so didn't need to say it... See why I call him Chump.. and I mean, come on, pluggin' UFO's later tripe like Mechanix? This dude just doesn't get it... He did get the question, "Who produced D Generation". He knows that but doesn't know who the Dead Boys are... btw... I hope you guys checked on that Overkill/Dead Boys Death Match I told ya about, with the song "Sonic Reducer". Now there's some lyrics, boys.
Okay, back on Danger Danger. I'm gonna let Poley off the hook here a little bit, Kenny. Those first two records are awesome. I almost like the second one better, y'know with the ape stealin' Jane from Tarzan on the cover.
I say, "Almost", because I love "Naughty Naughty". As wimp rock as Poley can get (my ex-axeboy actually said to me, when I played him "Naughty Naughty" a couple of months ago, "These guys are some real poseurs, aren't they?", without even knowin' who they were. Not as much as Saigon Kick, hahaha!!! Sorry, just wanna make sure you guys are still readin' this, like a rider of an old Van Halen contract about "no brown M&M's").
Right, apples and oranges, Saigon Kick and Danger Danger... not! Sorry, which one's gonna have the chicks wilder at the party?!
Metal Mania Alert: Dig that chick in Dokken's "Into the Fire" but what's with Lynch's hair. Talk about a mullet to rival Wendy O. The boy can shred tho, can't he? Dang! Love this band to no end. (I really am like Beavis without Butthead, no? Or vice-versa, as you may find the latter a better comparison, hahaha!!!) Of course, Dokken's a German dude... Germans absolutely rule in the Glam rock cognoscenti, do they not? And, for the record, I'm Irish... (Thin Lizzy, not too shabby, but that's about it). I just got that second Gotthard album, "Dial Hard" (figured it was under the wire cuz it was recorded in '93, I believe) Yeah, bro GlamR, killahz extraordinaire. That dude's an excellent Coverdale clone (all right, not completely, but I mean it as a compliment... total b*lls) and the guitars crush. Oh, that version of "Hush", or how about "Firedance" and "Standing In The Light", etc. Totally right up my alley... I'll check out Shylock (great name, ya just know it's good.) and Shakra. Dude, Bonfire's one of my faves. How did I ever miss 'em the first time around?. I think Al said she saw 'em, I believe having mentioned that on one of her posts awhile back.
Yo, GlamR Arch, thanks for the tips. Yeah, Gotthard... cripes how did I ignore them the first go around when I started looking at everything (thanks to the net). Here's something cool real quick. I found a lot of stuff by reading the reviews of Justin Gaines, "Corporate Rocker", on Amazon. Check him out. Another huge Gotthard fan, too, I might add. And this guy gets to the point and writes way better than me, just like Al.
I wrote him an email to thank him for all the quality tips but it looked like one of these things, so I think he just thought I was a kook (and he thought right, hahahaha!!!). Anyway, check 'im out. You'll love what he has to say, if you haven't seen his stuff already. I'd love to see him weigh in on here... And if you want a recommendation on who makes the best heated towel rack... he reviews stuff like that, too... Hahaha!!!... No offense, Justin.
Okay, Kenny... one more quick (hahaha!!!) drive by on DD's "Cockroach"... Did the "play by play". Loved both versions. Think either version is better than the first two albums (by a hair) and tho Posey (hahaha!!!... Oh, I'm crackin' myself up on that one)... er... I mean, Poley... does occasionally display some b*lls (n' I mean small ones) here and there (and despite his own REO tendencies with strange pronunciations, etc.),
I like him on some of the tracks actually better than Laine cuz I'm a sucker for a hyena every time. That said, I like Laine much better than Posie on most of it. He sure as hell has way more b*lls than Pole (oh, this is just too good), for sure. It actually makes the exact same music behind him sound harder than with Poley, tho sometimes the transverse is also the case, but much rarer).
I'll continue my side by side beach experiment tomorrow (seriously, I could listen to this album for daze still and will), and see if I can commit to better memory who I like better where, etc., on it.
But right now the standouts for me are the opening cut, "Still Kickin'" (Laine), "Sick Little Twisted Mind", (Laine), "Good Time" (I think Poley but it could change tomorrow guess maybe because it's a great slice of cheese metal and you remember what you said about him previously.. hey, man, y'know all this sh*t I been sayin's stirrin' the ghosts on Sunset, too, dude!).
And I think Pole's better on "Don't Break My Heart Again", cuz he's such a balladeer (tho he's gettin' slightly over the REO borderline with the Canadian accent here, too -- or is that Detroit?). I think my absolute fave is Laine's job on "Don't Pull The Plug" and it's a total crank fest, too, and love that intro... funny as hell). And man, do the guitars, crank on this one, their best album, ever! Kudos, Kenny!
Okay, boyz... You're saved... that Armored Saint "Can U Deliver" just came on and steamrolled right over me, my computer, and unfortunately for you boyz, Saigon Kick. It really flattened me worse, tho, so would you mind terribly, one of you, peelin' me off the dirt over here with that flyin' V we been usin' to stir the Cauldron of Kramer Soup with? Thanks, bro's.
Metalboy!: "Lizzy?"
Lizzy: "Counsel adjourned."
Metalboy!: "A little more PAM, guyz, pleeez? Ouch!"
Disclaimer: Not responsible for typos, run-ons, dangling participles or thoughts that went unfinished or paragraphs that stop dead or ideas that veer off to Bellevue or any of that kinda stuff. I should be responsible, but as you might guess, I've never been to big in the Responsibility Department. This is way more fun! Besides, I'm too lazy and ready to collapse to go back and read this crock over again anyway, tho I'm sure I'll regret it in the morning... wait, it is morning... uh, y'know what I mean. Rock it! Rock it!
Welcome to the Cauldron... it's still warm and let's just grab some of Jimi (my 2nd fave guitarist since I was 14 and now, new Glam Rock hero -- read that book, "Room Full of Mirrors", if you haven't already, and you'll see what I mean) Hendrix's old lighter fluid to restoke the flames of the odd shaped guitars under the Cauldron.,,
I may have tried to get Lizzy Borden to adjourn, but now that you have peeled me off the ground, we're back. I'm hoping the other boyz haven't left yet...
Don't know if you read my comments on Saigon Kick (to be honest, I know it's a lot to weed through as I tend to veer off).
I agree, in my comments, as well, Saigon Kick were fresh, no doubt. It's the "taking themselves too seriously" part (a la Pearl Jam, who Cobain desbised for the very same reasons) that ruins 'em for me. That aside, and aside from the extra pretentious singer (looks like he's escaped the Cauldron -- somebody gave him a Kiss beach towel and I see him runnin' down to the Crossroads where he's gonna have to deal with Eric Clapton - another sometimes "too serious" culprit and Robert Johnson - who was not, but gave all these guys the juice they needed to think they needed to be), Kramer, and I mean that purely from a musical standpoint (if you wanna consider his vocal stylings as singing), with his unintentional REO schtick.
He proved it with "Love Is On The Way", that he can sing, and he proves on this video that he chose to be a vocal stylist, instead. Had he not crapped up "What You Say" with his "vocals", the tune may very well have approached "Love Is On The Way" chart topping status, or at least been a close second the way "I Won't Forget You" is runs second to "Every Rose Has It's Thorn", both of which are blown away by "Love Is On The Way", in my book and you guys are probably scoffing at the notion of even comparing them.
However, I'll pick my Poison anytime over SK, which shows ya I could very well not have the slightest idea of what I'm talkin' about here, since you may regard them as a joke as I do, but nevertheless, a joke that can be played on me anytime, cuz that's just my kinda stuff, is all.
That said, and ignoring (is that possible) Kraynerd, the kind of "new territory" Saigon was exploring, as you so astutely pointed out, Glen, was much more adventurous than anything typical Hair Metal cash cows like our dear Poison attempted.
True, as you also pointed out, the vocal harmonies Saigon Kick displays in "What You Say" and to even better effect on "Love Is On The Way" are beautifully handled. It's the doubled vocal of our Mr. Kramer on everything except the chorus that's overly pretentious, in the case of "What You Say" and I didn't know the word "Pieces" was pronounced "Peeeeeeesuz" until Kraaaaaaaaymerf corrected me.
Same goes with "All I Want", which woulda been total hitsville, had it not been for the weird vocal delivery on everything except the main vocal.
Awesome you saw 'em in NYC with King's X, but I hope, for your sake, you were good and drunk, just kiddin'. What year and what venue?, if you don't mind me askin', Glen.
Man, I'm really opening myself up to be replace Kramer inside the Cauldron (got anymore of those Kiss towels, guyz?, I'm gonna be beggin' to get out as soon as you guyz throw me in) on this one but you know what's comin, based on that other "band" you mentioned... okay, I'll say it, "King's X". These bands really were two peas in a pod, donchya think, and for the same reasons, whether you love 'em or hate 'em (hee, hee, sorry).
And that to me is disguising week hookless tunes with overcompensating Berklee overtrained overplaying disguised as musicianship. And this mohawked "metal" head (I'm sure he doesn't regard his music as "Metal", so they don't really even belong here, but then again, maybe some of my musical references don't belong here either, except maybe Cobain, who I contend had Metal tendencies, or at least on some of his stuff... Hello?!, "Smells Like Teen Spirit"! The others, namely, Hendrix and Clapton are Hard Rock, though both contributed to the creation of Metal, and I think you'd have more willingness on the part of Hendrix, if he were around, as Page does, that it is an honor to be thought of as an architect of Metal. Clapton, not so much, and this get's back to his propensity to take it all too seriously, tho he has said ZZ Top is his favorite band playing today, and those guy's really know how to lay down some serious music in a fun way.
And I don't mean like Van Halen fun with big stupid grins all over the place, tho I think Rudolph Schenker wins hands down in that department. Lemmy, too, said last night, on That Metal Show, when Chump asked him, "If you weren't in Motorhead, what band would you most like to be in?" and Lemmy said, "ZZ Top". I wonder what Lemmy woulda said if you asked him what he thought of Saigon or King's? I'll let you guys fathom that one, but you know what I would say, by now, I'm sure.
And like my comments up top about King's X, same goes for Saigon Kick. Overplayin' it, man. Though a helluva lot more catchy, hands down.
King's X was on a helluva Hendrix trip, too and I don't mean in a good way like hard rock heroes, Trower, Stevie Ray Vaughan (okay more revved up Blue Eyed Blues, him, than Hard Rock), and, tho less of a hero, but a definite Hendrixian, Frank Marino, too.
Cannot stand King's X!
It's got nothin' to do with anything (contrary to what people may think. Don't forget, I've got a Hendrix fixation right now, and I mean that in the most positive sense possible to man), except the fact that here's another dude who's just way too serious about nothing, as in nothing to say, sorry.
At least he's not trying to reinvent the English language a la Kramer, though I will say, he is a fine singer. He's just not really singin' 'bout anything, tho I will give him the occasional equal rights thing which is a good thing. But for me, guys just not catchy, and therefore, not moving. His heart just doesn't seem in it either, or if it is, you can't tell cuz he's just too stoned out, or whatever.
His mohawk doesn't help either, but hey, maybe he should form a super group with Bieler called The Mohawks. I saw this guy walkin' down the street once in the West Village (goin' past that cool store, "Love Saves The Day", Glen) by himself, struttin' like all hotsh*t (takes one to know one, like I said previously) but somehow seemed a little sad and forlorn, which maybe had somethin' to do with the fact that he knew they weren't really gonna crack it with his mixed metaphored, convoluted approach. I mean, c'mon man, this guy just wasn't and isn't Rock and Roll. And those Bozos in his band ain't either. I don't care how gooda musician each of 'em is, this is Nerd Rock, plain and simple. I was in a cab when I saw him and, let's put it this way, had that been Mick Marrs or somethin' I woulda hopped out and harrassed the hell out of him, like a tongue out of the side of my mouth, Metal puppy that I am. This guy? I'll just keep goin'.
And that's even considering all the spiritual and messages of tolerance that pepper his stuff, which I do appreciate as a conceptual springboard. It's King X's execution that I fault.
Too complex, too intricate, hiding their collective lack of hooks, licks and all the other trappings of what make Rock,"Rock!" Or Metal, "METAL"!, for that matter!
Even if they do have an occasional "hook" or "riff" or "lick" to play with they always squander it on a mediocre song or forget about it completely as the song progresses.
Back on Saigon Kick... look, I need your help (and maybe the help of a psychiatrist, too, as you guys may all sense, hahaha!!!)...
Same comments as I made on King's X, generally, apply to Saigon Kick, I'm afraid. Not huge in the hook/lick/riff department, unless you can prove me wrong... and try to find one without the yodeling, please. Really a Metalish Rocker tune by Saigon Kick on par the mellow "Love Is On The Way"...
In other words, do they have a more rockin' song on par with the level of quality of "Love Is On The Way". If you think you got one, please let me know...
It's the completist in me that wants to know...
Since I have two ballads by Saigon Kick now, with the edition of "All I Want", albeit, reluctantly...
I'm now tryin' to find one to throw one the more rockin' playlists I've got goin' on...
And, sorry, Glen, it ain't gonna be "What You Say"... um... the song... not what you say, literally, which I value...
Please, tell me, Glen, what I should put on that truly rocks b*lls by these guys...
Boyz...
Kenny (you are 1 for 1 with that "Cockroach" album, dang, that's killer! Still floggin' it!)...
Any ideas...
GlamR Archie?...
I'm all ears...
Anyone else?
Please join the Counsel...
We are all here...
Glen, again, welcome to the Cauldron...
Need your input on a Saigon Kick tune to throw on the Rocker list... And I hear ya on Phil Varone, but I'm glad Kramer most likely ain't never comin' back unless Jason kisses *ss and Phil Varone keeps Kramer's money. I'd actually prefer Varone keep the money, if he did indeed steal it, as Kramer alleges. I'd rather they keep it minus the yodeling. Though, maybe whoever they've got now or who they would get, may wind up doing it, too at Jason's prompting. And they can continue on the Reunion Circuit instead of the big leagues... Yeah, so Al is right, Phil Varoom's an *ss but, it's true, what you point out, Glen, that doesn't stop him from being a helluva drummer...
But, alas, Drummers can be replaced more easily than leader guitarist/songwriters or original singers, unless they're John Bonham, and if Varone is the impediment keeping Kramer out of it, and Phil doesn't own the admittedly fantastic name of Saigon Kick. adios, Phil, you're a pain in the *ss anyway.
And I'm startin' to really feel the heat...
Let me outta here!!!
I wanna bring my official authorized Kiss beach towel I'm gonna go get at Walmart and roll up to the beach with "Cockroach" crankin' on my iPod, for now...
I'm hittin' the beach and "Sleepin' My Day Away"...
Disclaimer: Same as in my previous entry. Typos and dangling brain cells included.
Thanks for the tips... I'm checkin' out "The Lizard" and "Hostile Youth" now... Sorry, can't bring myself to do anything with "What You Say", tho... Too, many ruffles and flourishes for my taste...
I just got both albums, burned through 'em, chucked everything except "Come Take Me Now". Killer power ballad and Kramer doesn't oversing it. Like I said the guy's got a helluva voice and doesn't need to crap it up (and he doesn't on this one) as he did with most everything else he did. Great guitars (nice lead, Jason -- he's the one with the talent, regardless of the bald sided wing job apres mohawk he's sportin', everything here. Killer harmonies on the outro, the works. And it works. Love it (can't believe I'm sayin' that).
These guys definitely faired better with the Power Ballads. Maybe because Kramer didn't feel the need to try and steal the spotlight from the real talent here, principle songwriter and guitar whiz, Jason.
Okay, too, guys... I managed to find one rocker "Metal" cut out of it all (or rather, a 1/2 of one) that I can deal with...
"I.C.U." off the first one. Rockin' Metal Guitars, etc. Killer lead. Kramer only yodels on the first half, then at last, lets his great voice shine through without all the pretention...
The second half is great and therefor the song makes it on my A-list Glam Metal Rockers Playlist. Man if he only sang like that on the rest of these albums besides this and the power ballads, I might be agreeing with all of you diehard fans out there.
p.s. Christine.. Thanks for the tips and I would never have bothered to look into these guys further had it not been for your comments. Gotta say, tho... I'll take your namesakes over these guys in a blind taste test anyday. There's a reason your name isn't Christine Kramer or even Christine Bieler and if your with Al and some others I'm sure including myself, you sure as hell wouldn't ever consider being named Christine Varone! The hell with him and them! Sixx on the other hand... now there's a genius!
Great to see y'all back on here. The Insider, Glamrocker Archie, Glen...
You guys are killers and I gotta say, The Insider has served me my just deserts, with my own drivel on top. Calling it a rant, and it may very well be, certainly makes clear you must have unconditional love for this band, ignoring the phoniness that Kramer dude brought to the party and the self pretention these guys hindered themselves with. Go over to Al's Queensryche post to read my drivel on those guys, too, if you care to, to see what I think of Geoff Tate. I find parallels.
I know Kenny Ozz don't like 'im much either (that's an understatement, if there ever was one). One thing, too, Kenny loves your boys Saigon Kick to no end, and I have enormous respect for Kenny's opinion, so I'm just gonna write it off to the classic notion of "We just agree to disagree"... though I don't think I'll ever earn your respect, since you view my opinion as "wasted drivel" as opposed to stepping out of your Insider track of Saigon Kick, where you think they could do no wrong.
Really, Insider, "I'm just sayin'". Does that mean we're supposed to take your comment that my comments are wasted drivel is a fact. Certainly, I don't regard what you say as wasted drivel. If you can, though, and I know it's a test of attention spans, cuz I do go on a little long, there's stuff in there. Our fellow Counsel members seem to think so even tho they disagree with me. Other wise they would not have responded with such great feedback.
If you don't mind me asking, what in it do you find to be wasted drivel? Please explain. Tho I don't like the band you represent, I am ripping them, not you. Please gimme a break with the personal stuff. I'm just sayin'! Hate that sh*t.
I told ya where I think they did right and I wish they would have done more right. I wonder what Beiler would say about my REO analogy. But you probably like REO, Rush, Queensryche (They've actually kinda grown on me a little bit, very little), and King's X. All take themselves way too seriously. I like my Metal either perfect or completely trashy. No in between and to me, that's where these guys belong. M-e-d-i-o-c-r-i-t-y masked by overplaying gimmicks or really what bugs me is the over "singing" gimmickry of Kramer.
Instead of gimmickry to hide lack of talent, which is quite amusing in itself but most of the bands that do that are havin' fun with it. I think what it is that kills me about these guys, is that they are obviously accomplished musicians, the guy Kramer can sing, Beiler even shows he can write, but conceptually, they miss the boat. Dumb songs and false bravado = boredom.
The last thing I will say, Insider, remember -- I did see 'em back in the day, just when "Love Is On The Way" came out... not after it was a hit. Dude, I wanted to like 'em. Bought it just by lookin' at the cover, too. But you know what they say about that. And remember, this, too. "Love Is On The Way" wasn't beat to death yet on the radio or MTV when I saw 'em. They owned the room at the Cat Club for that 4 1/2 minutes or so they were playin' it. Everyone knew it was a hit before it even really hit. Remember also, I said Kramer is just singin' it unadorned and unabashed.
He just rarely did that on any of the other stuff and I'm thoroughly convinced had he just samg the stuff without the curly Q's your boys would have gotten a lot further. Hell, people like me that are so easily influenced, might have even wound up wearin' my hair like Beiler.
However, I'm remembering that I'm up against you guys like 4 to 1 now and it's my *ss, cuz I've suddenly found myself in the Cauldron! So, I'm gonna listen more to 'em...
Now let me wipe the drivel from my mouth and see if I can waste a little more of your time... I do appreciate even the harshest of criticism and was just talking to my ex-shredder about how these things really aren't supposed to go on and on in the internet world. There only supposed to be a few sentences long, but for now, I'm gonna just keep typing.
What time I do waste of yours, I do hope that all of you will at least get the mildest chuckle at some of my lame attempts at marginal humor...
Let's stoke the fire underneath with a few more of these Charvelles and Jacksons. You guys really got it goin' now. Gotta say, The Insider has really heated this thing up.
Phil is back! Ola Soleeba! I'm not worthy. Kramer's a frickin' posuer and you know it, dudes! He frickin' ruined your frickin' band and Beiler knows it, too, I bet for reasons Glamr Arch pointed out earlier.
If they get Kramer back you guys will be on a Saigon Kick for Saigon Kick all over again, and I'll be soakin' my head in this frickin' Cauldron.
Gotta say, too, when I went back to find out what GlamR Arch said about Kramer hating Beiler, not only did I realize that you may have been right on my drivel being wasted. I just went on and on, but I was just bored with Saigon Kick and fascinated with anything and everything else I really wanted to talk about like ZZ Top. Now there's HAIR Metal, boyz, hahaha!!! I just want you to know, too, Insider, that I wasn't drunk when I wrote it. I'd never bother to write anything, if I was...
On a more positive note...
Let's take a break from the Saigon Kick/REO/King's X Axis of Boredom for a moment...
First a quick one to the Insider... It will be interesting to see what you say about any of the singers I talk about over on Al's latest, the Queensryche post. I doubt we'll agree on any of 'em cuz somethin' tells me you're a Les Claypool fan.
But, I do hope you do at least get a laugh out of it. Try and remember, tho we don't agree on much, as far as I can see, I've got over 7800+ CD's (in storage at an undisclosed location of which, I'd say about 3,000 are Metal and Classic Hard Rock. I can hear what we are talking about and as I mentioned somewhere on Queensryche...
I discovered something about myself in Art School...
And that is the belief in this notion...
"I don't have to like something, to know whether it's good or not".
Try that one on for size, Insider.
I've applied it to Saigon Nix and I'm still not seeing it or at least not much. I told ya I like the last 1/2 of I.C.U. off the 1st one. And I like the ballads mainly cuz all 2 1/2 examples demonstrate how great the band is when Kramer doesn't overdo it, though he borders on it on "All I Want", except for the chorus, where Beiler and Company save his ass with the harmonies.
Okay, I applied the "I don't have to like it, to know whether it's good or not on RUSH and all I get is 2112. I applied it on King's X and came up a big fat "O". I tried it on Queensryche and I get that, tho I don't really like 'em I can see that it's good. Kenny doesn't agree. Nor duz MotCru3x6er. But I can see how people could see that they're good.
I'm suprised you guys haven't weighed in on 'em. Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised when I pitstop at Queensryche when I head over to Broken Teeth in just a short while...
GlamRockr -- dude, what can I say, thanks for still wanting to engage in the conversation despite my questioning SK. I really wanna like 'em, believe me, I just can't.
Glen: I'm gonna check out again, "Torture", "Killing Ground" and "One Step Closer". I bet Beiler just sings 'em pure and simple, like he does his harmonies, since he wrote the material and probably does not showboat like his FORMER singer (huh, Insider, "I'm just sayin'"). I'll get back tonite with my opinion of 'em before I pass out on my officially licensed Kiss king size rotating bed that's shaped like Gene $immons tongue that's stickin' out at The Insider (great name and movie, too, Inny) right now.
Glen, again.. Also, great info on Studio 54. I can't remember who I saw in there. Mostly I went to the Cat Club and if not there, places that were all around Studio 54...Roseland (where I saw Slayer (zzzzzzz), Ramones and the Sex Pistols, among others), the Roxy (Guns twice with Izzy right before he quit. The only time you would have been able to him run through all the great and not so great Use Your Illusion stuff he wrote. And that was like two days before Use Your Illusion came out, if I remember correctly. The Divinyls. Oh, was she hot! The Damned, both Mark I and II in one night in a reunion in like '89, Chuck Berry in '88. And L.A. Guns in '89. I know I saw somebody in Studio 54. Damn.
Glamr Arch, again... Me tryin to remember what I saw at Studio 54 -- Talk about goin' crazy, like you tryin' to remember if you heard that Tempest thing somewhere else. Funny, it sounded like somethin' he might have tried elsewhere. Who the hell are all the other dudes, tho. The 220 Volt guy's good on it, tho. I think you just got some nervous performers on that Swede Metal Aid thing, too, which is cool, kinda. Really gets the emotion across. I agree though, Hear'n Aid rocks more. Thing is, it's really not as good of a composition as Joey's thing. Anyway, I just forked out 50 bills for that dang Japanese press half-*ssed Hearin' Aid thing, "Stars". I know, I know, there's other means, but I like lookin' at the pix and graphix. But, sheez... fitee? I don't think it's even an original press.
Glen... Last thing on the stub... still got my Zep, May 27th, 1977, Capital Center stub. Snuck down 3rd row and Richard Cole came down and said, since we were yellin' and screamin' so loud, "Mr. Plant says it's no longer clever and if you don't discontinue, there shall be measures"... Hahahaha!!!! I was 17. Thanks for the tips on what SK songs to reinvestigate.
Hey, dudes, The Insider included (you sure you're not MetalbUy in disguise, he's another mean dude, too, but with anger management issues , though I don't think you've gone to that more advanced stage of discourse), look over on that Europe post and the Crash Diet post. I said some stuff on there about other bands including some lists I hope you can blow out a little more. Brighton Rock! My fave... "Assault Attack" (appropriate, since I'm under fire from The Insider). And I put up a list on the Queensrite post about some singers I like.. I'm ready to face the gattling gun over there, especially from The Insider, cuz I'm now realizing how commercial most of 'em are, tho, you don't think Saigon Kick wanted to be commercial, despite the weird bite our own *sses, take no prisoners meatheaded mentality.
You guys are gonna need more Charvelles and Jacksons for the fire, it could prove to be a long night. I'd help ya gather the kindling, but you still got me in this Cauldron and The Insider won't let me out yet.
Okay, last but not least...
The Insider... What can I say dude, I'm hurt by you makin' it personal. Remember, it's the band I'm rippin' not you. Yeah, I might even be rippin' your opinion. But I'm not callin' it "wasted drivel" right out there, tho, it may very well be, I dunno. Tell you what, I'll try to stay on topic more if you will also try and keep it less personal and more civil. In the meantime, may I suggest, if they get your boy Kramer back in the band, you volunteer your services to run The Saigon Kick Official Fan Club since you're so into 'em to the fighting death. Hey, man, look, you already got 7 charter members, including yourself.
Me, I want to run The Donna's Official Fan Club!
Disclaimer: The usual pseudo-legalese about typos, lame sentence structures and other things that may reduce this to rambling, "wasted drivel".