I'm bumping Frown's second rec down to the bottom of the list because he broke the rules, so onto Cheap Trick it is.
Heaven Tonight by
Cheap Trick
Recommended by: The Batlord
So, here is the deal with Cheap Trick. I've heard a fair amount of their hits and singles, but I've never actually listened to one of their full releases. I own
In Color on vinyl, but I've just never gotten around to giving it a full listen, so in some ways this album will serve as an intro to the group, although I do recognize a few of the tracks on the LP already.
Surrender - This is one of the tracks I already know, as I first heard it on Guitar Hero... II I think? It's just as catchy and fun as I remember it being, as the band blend together power pop writing with some solid musicianship. If the rest of the album is filled with catchy hooks like this gem of an opener, I should be in for a treat.
On Top of the World - The guitar riff on this cut rules. I'm not usually all too crazy about the use of piano in rock music, but hey, they make it work for what it is, I can't lie. This one is very much like
Surrender in the way that the song is really just built around an awesome hook, and that's why I'm liking it so much thus far.
California Man - This one is a cover of a song originally performed by The Move, and it certainly sounds familiar. This one feels a lot more true to the hard rock genre than the first two tracks did, and I'm all for that. Is the line "I rocked my mamma so bad" a sexual innuendo?
At this point in the album I'm contemplating throwing on my leather jacket and buying myself a motorcycle because that's what this music was made for.
High Roller - Right from the get go it's clear they're carrying on with the harder tone, and I'm looking forward to that. The first two songs were solid little power-pop tunes, but California Man was far superior, and I'm hoping for more of that same hard rock kick ass-ery as the album progresses.
Not a bad song, but their are definitely some moments that don't quite feel as strong as others. The short solo at the end was a nice touch and brought it back up for me, though.
Auf Wiedersehen - For all of you who aren't Grindy, wiedersehen means goodbye in german, at least according to Wikipedia. The lyrics on this thing are quite dark, and dabble on the topic of suicide, but if you don't really listen to the lyrics and only focus on the band, you probably would think it's a relatively positive song because of how upbeat the music is. The drummer is really wailing on his set on this one, I bet it'd be a sweet track to see live.
Takin' Me Back - I think I've heard this one before as well, although the intro does have a somewhat generic late 70's/early 80's hard rock sound to it. Damn, never mind, the track took a turn I wasn't expecting out of nowhere thanks to the synths being included, and now there's an organ in here too. I'm being reminded of another band with this one, but I can't for the life of me figure out who. Oh well, I digress, this is another good one and I'm starting to think I'll need to download this album as it sounds like the perfect driving tunes.
On The Radio - I want to write a musical to accompany this album, a stage play about some douche bag who always wears his varsity football jacket and rips around on a motorcycle in a pair of greasy blue jeans. That's what this album makes me feel like, it could soundtrack any of those "coming of age" movies set in the 70s, and it would make them infinitely better (except Dazed and Confused because that movie is already great.) The back and forth vocals between the lead singer and the backing vocalist are pretty cool.
When the radio host came on the track to do his whole spiel, I thought I had accidentally started playing music out of my library, it really caught me off guard. I think it was just because of how less dated the production on his voice sounded, but it was strange nonetheless.
Heaven Tonight - Another seriously dark lyrical cut. The hook of "would you like to go to heaven tonight?" is something I would more so expect on a single from a shock rock artist like Marilyn Manson or something, to be honest. I preferred when the band seemed to be going full tilt, pedal to the floor with hard hitting rock tunes, but this isn't a bad change of pace and it shows they can slow things down fairly well.
I'm looking at the Wikipedia page for the song, and apparently Apu sings it on an episode of The Simpsons. Remember when The Simpsons was actually good?
Stiff Competition - Alright, we're back. I could write about this song, but why do that when the guy who wrote the song, Rick Nielsen could tell you his thoughts instead
"I see it as male and female genitals marching like whole armies and whole corps of these going around and talking with each other. So the male says to the female 'I look hard in your eyes' and all that stuff, it was love at first sight' - I mean maybe these appendages, or lack of appendages, depending on what your gender is, maybe they have these sort of feelings, maybe there is a little brain under yonder! So I try to put myself in that position..."
What the **** is this dude on about? It's an okay track anyway though.
How Are You? - This one sounds very doo-woppy, and I'm finding myself gravitating towards their heavier stuff on this LP, so it's kind of a let down. It's not bad, but it's one of my least favourite moments of this album.
Oh Claire - Please don't be a ballad, please don't be a ballad, please don't be a... live jam? I was making the assumption it would be a ballad based on the name, but I guess that's just some wordplay by the group based on the town of Eau Claire, Wisconsin? Huh. Okay well that was too short to even write about, so never mind that.
My first impression of Cheap Trick: why aren't they Chula's favourite band? This album is full of incredibly catchy and fun tunes that manage to make a genre and era of music that I'm usually not all that fond of (70's/early 80's hard rock) and turn it into a good time.
Part of me is surprised that you were the one to rec this Bat, but I know you have a thing for "fun" music, or anything that is even the slightest bit catchy, so I can understand why you might dig this one a fair bit.
Final Verdict: This is a definite pass, and I'll be coming back to it a few times in the near future, without a doubt.