BOULDER
"Ravage
and Savage" (Tee Pee Records)
Reviewed by Christopher J. Kelter
I think I can feel a blood clot forming in my brain as I listen to
Boulder's "Ravage And Savage." Boulder seem more concerned with audio horseplay than putting any serious metal to any kind of
recorded format. The music is indeed savage and the sound is solid enough to build a metropolis
skyscraper, but only if the pieces were falling off a runaway train. Perhaps my own biases are
revealing themselves - Boulder has reminded me that metal can be done with its tongue firmly in its
own cheek.
Given my penchant for all things technical it took me some time getting used to Boulder's
rambunctious old-school approach to heavy metal. If sound could be cut with a dull knife,
Boulder would do the trick. I'm not saying "Ravage And Savage" is bad, but I am saying that Boulder lay
the musical insanity rather thick. The snarl of Angus Young, the attention-challenged pace of
Ramones, a devil-may-care attitude, a garage band mentality, as well as a hint of Southern groove all combine
to form a hard rockin' and smarmy, if not messy, musical demolition crew.
Subtlety is not Boulder's strong point. Following trends is simply not an option either. The resulting
purity (in the traditional sense) and search for a few laughs are Boulder's redeeming qualities - this
combination will surely garner Boulder more fans in the years to come.
In the end Boulder provides mixed results. It's quite obvious these guys enjoy what they're doing and I bet they put on one hell of an energetic stage show, but I'd have to be in a pretty damn demented mood to enjoy Boulder to the fullest extent. "Ravage And Savage" also comes with a bonus of Boulder's previous effort "The Rage Of It All" (a 1998 demo) making for a grand total of 20 tracks in 67 minutes.
"Ravage And Savage" was produced by Paul Hamann.
For more information visit http://www.boulder.8m.com.
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 © 2000 by R. Scott Bolton. All
rights reserved.
Revised: 15 Apr 2024 14:51:32 -0400
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