ALCATRAZZ
"Disturbing
the Peace" (Capitol; 1985)
Reviewed by Jeff Rogers
Graham Bonnet has a knack for finding great guitar players, making them shine and then somehow letting them go. He’s sung for many talented musicians -- I guess he just lacks the qualities to keep them in his company. Some singers would have loved to have had his pipes twenty five years ago but, as time fades, so do the projects that he was involved in. “Disturbing The Peace” is one that has all but faded away long ago.
Even Steve Vai, who played on this vinyl
Titanic, couldn’t save it. After a few spins it starts to sound like the
fallen branches from Vai’s career, e.g. his stint with DLR, Whitesnake and his debut solo disc.
Graham’s voice sounds a bit campy after awhile and at times is almost goofy.
He and Vai share writing credits and I’m sure Vai would like to take an eraser
to some of this stuff. It's his discography and I've never heard him wax about how much fun this project was,
anyway.
The songs here are a time capsule of 1985 and since metal was dawning at that time a trip
(and fall!) down memory lane probably isn’t necessary. If you are a rabid fan for anything Vai then this disc probably has your fingerprints on it already. If you value Bonnet’s contribution to metal then pick it up for that reason only.
No cuts beg to be listened to more than once, so I’ll let you decide if you want to pursue this release or not.
For more information, check out http://www.myspace.com/AlcatrazzOfficial
or http://www.myspace.com/therealalcatrazz.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2007 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 20 Nov 2008 01:30:39 -0600.
