Thursday, January 29, 2015

Throwback Thursday: Buckcherry, by Buckcherry


In the mid-90's just as grunge was dying out there was a hard rock band playing the clubs in Hollywood with a heavily tattooed singer and guitarist who had a sound that was bluesy crunchy style that had not been heard in at least a couple of decades by that point. This band was none other than Buckcherry, though at the time their name was Sparrow (until they got a cease and desist letter form an already existing record label with the same name). After years of hard work and a vast amount of strong support from their local scene, the band finally got signed with DreamWorks Records and then released their self-titled debut album Buckcherry and met with a noticeable amount of commercial success.

The influence from classic rock bands like AC/DC is quite present in Buckcherry, but none of the songs sound like a direct rip-off of anything. From start to finish the album is quite a rocking adrenaline rush, though from time to time it lets you breathe with a few slower songs. For lack of better wording, the style is "cock rock" but at the same time there are some real subjects talked about with honest feelings conveyed to the listener. This is probably what helps separate Buckcherry from many of the other bands of its kind.

Lit Up opens the album with the crunchiest, tastiest, and catchiest riff by Keith Nelson you could possibly think of. When the rest of the band kicks in everything just goes balls to the wall. It isn't a fast song; about upper mid-tempo. Josh Todd's Americanized Bon Scott style vocals match the band for intensity in a way that makes the two entities compliment one another beautifully. This is one of those songs that can get a crowd up on its feet and just jump when played in a live setting. There is nothing else that you could possibly do.

Check Your Head slows things down for a moment, but it does so in a good way. Todd sings about being happy with what you have in life and to appreciate those you have in life because you never know what they are going through and what may happen to them if you're not careful. The music itself is still pretty bluesy and rocking, but at the same time a bit more laid back and played mostly with straight chords. The guitar solo is what really makes this song, though. It is melodic, memorable, and almost a song in itself.

If you only know Buckcherry for songs like Crazy Bitch, then you're seriously missing out on one hell of a rock n' roll song catalog. Buckcherry does not have a single bad song on it and will have you singing along within the first couple of listens. It's cock rock with an actual purpose to it. It is by far my favorite album of theirs even to this day. It really will remind you what rock n' roll is all about if you feel like you have become removed and forgotten about it.

Buckcherry, by Buckcherry Receives 5 out of 5 stars.

Track List:

1. Lit Up
2. Crushed
3. Dead Again
4. Check Your Head
5. Dirty Mind
6. For the Movies
7. Lawless and Lulu
8. Related
9. Borderline
10. Get Back
11. Baby
12. Drink the Water

Buy the album on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Buckcherry/dp/B00000IGQU/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1422596096&sr=8-4&keywords=Buckcherry

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