Swedish hard rock come metal band Crazy Lixx formed in 2002 by singer Danny Rexon and they have been playing their take on 80’s hard rock ever since. They released their debut album on Swedmetal, their local Swedish record label and they gained quite a reputation on the back of that. So much so that they went on to release two more studio albums and a live album. They are currently in the studio working on a new album for the Frontiers label. It was the label that suggested it was time to give the debut a wider release and keep the fans happy until the new one comes out in mid 2019. They have added seven bonus tracks and promise the same treatment for two other past albums too… New Religion and Riot Avenue.
Their debut, Loud Minority, is the one under scrutiny here and the line up consists of Danny Rexon (Vocals), Vic Zino (Guitars), Joél Cirera (drums) and Loke Rivano (bass). It opens with ‘Hell Or High Water’ that is certainly 80’s in structure but with a heavier edge than many of that era. Imagine Poison with even more substance and attitude; add in a stonking guitar solo and a chanting ready chorus and you start to see why they are held in high regard. ‘Dr Hollywood’ and “Want It’ have some quiet moments between heavy sections and sound a little like Bon Jovi but, can I say this?… better!
‘Make Ends Meet’ still carries weight behind the sing-a-long bits. ‘Boneyard’ starts with a great bass line (almost Bond themed) and the sound of a ‘phone ringing which had me reaching for the landline! It soon turns into a fast paced rocker with another quality guitar solo. ‘The Gamble’ completes the original album with an acoustic ballad again bringing Poison to mind. The bonuses bring two ‘new’ tracks and four demos and one unplugged. The most effective is the unplugged version of ‘Dr Hollywood’ due the acoustic harmony treatment I like it better than the full fat one and is my favourite track of the lot because of that acoustic sound.
This is a good, good time album with plenty to enjoy… provided you like 80’s rock with added grit, pace and weight. It will be interesting to see how they develop on the next release.
