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GONE WILD - Gone Wild

 

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RELEASED:January 31st, 2007
PRODUCER:Rob Smith
LABEL: Polar Music New Zealand
BAND:
Rob Smith

Richard Anderson

Matt Sturgess

Nils-Ole Finbak

+
Interesting hodgepodge of influences, Decent guitar work, Some cool production tricks
-
Drums need to get creative, Production overall is weak, Arrangements could be better

TRACKS:

1.Don’t Wanna Be A Star 2.Escape 3.The Good Ole Boys 4.Gone Wild 5.Heavens Above 6.Achilles (instrumental) 7.War of Words 8.Don’t Need Them Blues 9.Montage 10.El Pronto Mofo 11.Ditto 12.Comfort Within 13.Introspective/Outrospective 14.Turn Out The Lights

OVERVIEW

Now here’s the kind of record I don’t get to review very often.  The 3 of you that actually read my reviews know that I specialize in breakdown-ready hardcore, metal of all types, prog rock, and any other sort of rock that mainstream radio won’t touch anytime soon.  The last thing I expected in my mailbox was an album where the singer sounds like Joey Ramone, the keyboards smack of Duran Duran, and the guitars crunch like Guns & Roses…and there’s a saxophone solo too.
            New Zealand’s Gone Wild not only have a clear influence from those bands, but it also sounds like they’ve got a healthy respect for anything that came out on FM radio in the 80’s.  The blues influence is also very pronounced, especially on tracks like “Turn Out the Lights” and (obviously) “Don’t Need Them Blues” – a definite plus in my book.

            Unfortunately, this album boasts a few significant problems as well, the biggest of which comes in the form of the drum tracks.  Now I have no problem with electric drums, but the drum parts on here are painfully basic, and a real drummer would go miles in making Gone Wild more interesting to listen to.  Second, the band’s diverse influences work against them at times – in some songs, the keyboards seem to pop up out of nowhere, and some tracks can’t seem to decide whether they’re supposed to be full-on rockers like Motley Crue, moody, darker numbers like the Cure, bluesy jams like...you get the idea.                        

SONGS

“Don’t Want to Be a Star” starts off much like Bon Jovi and Van Halen songs of old, and it’s decent, but just begs for a double injection of the swagger and attitude that made 80’s rock great – good, but could be much better.  “Escape” continues the glam-rock guitar work and sees the first entrance of keys, and a bit of that schizophrenic problem I mentioned earlier – this one bounces back and forth between rock crunch and synths that sound like the Cure.  “The Good Ole Boys” actually works pretty well as a moodier rocker with some tasty blues riffing, and the title track “Gone Wild” is probably the best track yet – this is one where GW make it happen with dirty, sleazy riffing, catchy gang vocals, and all topped off with a ripping solo.  “Heavens Above” brings to mind slower material by The Cure, but this song works simply because it sticks to one genre long enough to actually expand on ideas, and the saxophone solo is a nice touch.  “Achilles” throws an almost punk-rock twist into the mix, and “War of Words” brings back the sleaze in fine fashion.  “Don’t Need Them Blues” sounds exactly as you think it would – it’s the good old 12-bar blues, and “Montage” brings things right back to 80’s keyboard-driven power ballad territory.  “El Pronto Mofo” definitely not only takes the cake for coolest song title on here (hands down), but is also a pretty darn enjoyable good-time song to boot.  “Ditto” brings back an introspective, melancholy edge, but not for long, as “Comfort Within” recalls the heyday of good-time 70’s rock.  That leaves us with “Introspective/Outrospective”, which gives us one last kick of the blues, and “Turn Out the Lights” ends the album on a nothing-but-a-good-time note.  Good stuff, that last track.  I dig it..

CONCLUSION

There’s some good stuff going on with this band, especially considering that they fall into a genre not many people think is cool anymore.  As of right now, what they really need is a real, live drummer and some way to meld their influences more seamlessly into their sound, cause right now it sounds choppy.  Certainly a decent first effort, but Gone Wild is a band that’s got a lot of untapped potential, and this CD shows it..