(Golden robot)
01. A Hot Minute
02. Acid Babe
03. I will take you higher
04. Soul Mom
05. Hard to Say Goodbye
06. When you get home
07. Last Chance
08. Bruised and Beaten
09. I want to be someone
10. The lonely days are over
A great group with terrible timing, LOVE-HATE released two of the best albums in the entire glam/hair metal movement, just as the world moved on and instead embraced the stark mush of grunge. Both “Blackout in the Red Room” and “Wasted in America” hold up very well today too: arrogant and crazy rock records, filled with great songs and a palpable attitude. Four more albums followed, but no matter how good the heavy music was clearly looking elsewhere. Thirty years later, and after several false starts and unexpected detours, PEARL JIZZY finally assembled a line-up worthy of the band’s name and produced an album that pretty much matches the priapic energy of those aforementioned classics. “Hell, CA” is a big brash, bellicose rock ‘n’ roll album, and pearl seems elated to be part of it.
This is an exercise in keeping things simple. “A Hot Minute” is the archetypal rock album opener; funky and fast, it tells you everything you need to know about LOVE-HATEthe musical intentions of , while sounding like a mass brawl in a sleazy, shitty bar. Job done, you might say.
From there, it’s just LOVE-HATE doing what they’ve always done, but with more sonic muscle than those older albums ever had. “Acid Baby” is an incredibly groovy leg through lysergic visions of sex and scandal; “I will take you higher” is all nerves, glam rock riffs and psychedelic scuzz; “Soul Mama” is a braggart, AC DC– hoedown style; “When You Going Home” is a wonderfully rowdy and relaxed southern rock anthem. None of this is unexpected, of course, but the quality of these songs more than justifies the price of admission. During this time, Jizzy Pearl sings his veteran at the top of his voice, still sounding like he’s had way too many late nights and nailing every hook with ill-disguised glee.
It takes a certain amount of musical intelligence to make music as simple and familiar as this without lapsing into lazy pastiche or parody. “Hell, CA” is a serious return and an extremely pleasant surprise. In 1990, LOVE-HATE kicked more ass than most. When it comes to straight rock ‘n’ roll, they always do.
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