DE LA CRUZ – Street Level

Label: Frontiers Records

Release Date: March 26, 2013

Rating: 8/10

Reviewed by: ToddStar

Is 80’s hair metal really dead or in the middle of a comeback?  I guess it depends on who you ask.  The guys in De La Cruz are clearly under the impression the genre and sound never really went away.  “Street Level” opens the disc with guitars blaring and vocals with just enough grit and ‘ooh yeah’ to immediately recall many songs of my youth.  The pings and squeals are in the right place and the vocals layered just right to mirror a sound that ran rampant 27 years ago.  “Girls Go Wild” starts off with more guitar from a lost decade and keeps the song moving along.  The guitar work is really good on this track and the mix with the drums and bass is perfect for the track.  The vocals are a bit overdone, but what song in the 80’s wasn’t?  “Turn It Up” is more 80’s goodness.  This song demonstrates all that was good about that genre of metal.  The guitar licks are clean and fun while the vocals are dripping with an attitude that couples with the party style chorus.  “Legions Of Love” is another song that fits the cliche 80’s mold with guitar solos galore and layered vocals that are ripped straight from any album of the era.  “Gimme Love” is another good song that has the key ingredients from 80’s hair metal.  The guitar work on this track stands out and makes you take notice.  “Cherry Bomb” has a different feel when it opens, but keeps its foot planted firmly in its roots.  The vocals during the verse are a little rougher than other tracks, but it is nice to see that these guys are more than a one-trick pony.

“Dreaming” is one of the better tracks here.  The guitars are full of squeals and soaring notes that tightly follow the vocals.  The drums and bass are solid underneath the track.  The chorus is layered and full of catchy lyrics.    Who doesn’t love a track about ‘that summer’?  “Invincible” kicks off like a cool keyboard infused rocker, but that is where it ends.  The song is missing something.  It shifts gears from mellow to rocker without much transition and the vocals are a bit rough and doesn’t match the music.  The background vocals do sound a lot like Def Leppard, by the way.  “Worlds Collide” has a very 80’s feel when the guitars come charging out of the gate and the raspy vocals nicely contrast the clean guitar sound and the layered background vox.  The solos and runs are tight and well placed in the track.  “S.E.X.” has the chugging guitar riff that are the anchor of an era.  The lyrics are exactly what is expected at some point from a band carrying the hair metal torch.  This one is lost on me.  “Set The Night” is a better tracks and features some great guitar work.  The fret work is fun to listen to and it stands out compared to some of the other tracks.  “Shine” ends the disc with a cool ballad that might have been better placed earlier in the tracking.  The vocals here give a little depth to the singer, but is wasted closing the disc.

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Category: CD Reviews