MARK AND TODD PRESENT: THE ROCKPIT RETROSPECTIVES

ISSUE ONE: LIZZY BORDEN

 

At Rock N America 2010

 

Hi guys it's not brain surgery and we know it's been done before (and probably much better!) but what the heck! Sitting in my lair rugged up against an unseasonally cold Australian Winter (that's two band t-shirts rather than one) I was listening to a bit of Lizzy Borden, and was pretty disappointed that I couldn't make it over to catch their Summer of Blood Tour (this was made worse by the fact that our US crew were all going).

 

Suddenly I thought: what about a series of full retrospectives of all the recorded output of our favourite bands? So as I had Lizzy Borden on at the time, and because they are probably one of my favourite Metal bands I thought what better a place to start? I got talking to Todd who knows some of the guys and he jumped on board. And here it is: our review of the recorded history of one of our favourites who you should all be rushing out to see: LIZZY BORDEN!

 

Let us know what you think and who else you would like us to cover!

 

Mark Rockpit

 

 

LIZZY BORDEN - RETROSPECTIVE

 

A good friend of mine put me on to Lizzy Borden right at the start. I was never a huge metal fan, but these guys had something about them, even before, many, many years later I got to see them live and it added a whole other dimension to the experience. Here is our first of a new series of retrospectives where the Rockpit crew looks at the entire recorded history of some of our favourite bands.

 

 

 

 

LOVE YOU TO PIECES (1985)

All I can say is wow! I still come back to this album today.  Lizzy Borden somehow managed to distil all that was good with heavy metal without the boring bits! With great songs like "Psychopath", "Love You to Pieces", and "American Metal", Lizzy managed to bring to LA the excitement of the bands I grew up with like Iron Maiden.

The album is a real gem with no weak links and original guitarists Tony Matuzak and Gene Allen stand out as does the incredible voice of Lizzy himself. Listening now to the vinyl I can honestly say that the reissued CD is so much better production-wise. Made to shock like WASP they perhaps didn’t get all the attention they deserved.

For me “Red Rum” is still one of my favourite LB tunes. The reissued CD contains the “Give ‘Em The Axe EP” that kick-started it all with a cool enough cover of Rainbow’s classic “Long Live Rock N Roll”. You may laugh at the overblown nature of the lyrics but the songs are solid as rock and tracks like "Save Me" proved they could tone it down and still sound great.  

Personally though I love the catalogue, this is perhaps still my favourite release. A minor masterpiece. – Mark

 

What an introduction to Lizzy Borden.  This album summed it up for those of us who wanted something a little edgier during the 80’s hair metal scene.  If you were looking for a visual show after Kiss took off the make-up and before Alice Cooper realized that maybe New Wave wasn’t the way to go, you latched onto Lizzy… and with good reason. - Todd

 

 

 

MENACE TO SOCIETY (1986)

Lizzy Borden's 2nd album is a lot of people’s favourite. Songs like "Notorious", "Terror On The Town" and my favourite the glorious "Love Kills" make it an essential eighties metal document. New guitarist Alex Nelson fitted in well and the theatrics that dominate the album make the band come across like Alice Cooper’s dysfunctional younger brother.

If you don’t mind the slightly tacky cover (it put me off at the time) the music is excellent, let’s not forget that eighties fashion was a bit dubious at best! Maybe not as solid as their first but still a great album: opener "Generation Aliens" lays down the law with blood pumping from the off.

My personal pick has to be "Notorious" which still manages to raise a shiver, but there is a lot to recommend here "Bloody Mary" is another great song and "Stiletto (Voice of Command)" is chilling, metal as it should be hard and aggressive. Power Metal before the phrase was coined and probably the heaviest album in the catalogue! – Mark

 

This album was and is so strong, it has stood the test of time and still finds its way into my rotation of CDs I listen to on a regular basis. - Todd

 

 

 

THE MURDRESS METAL ROADSHOW (1986)

Live is where Lizzy takes on another dimension and while we couldn’t se it back in the UK this is a document to a moment in time. You can almost feel the sweat spilling down the walls of the venue and the crowd is completely engrossed in the show.

Great vocals and a great show but without the visuals you are still missing out on a vital part of the equation. Powerful vocals and killer shredding make it an excellent live representation of the band.  (Better still check out the DVD).

Sonically coming across like the best of early Maiden; this recording stacks up to this day and shows that LB were probably and still are one of the most underrated metal bands ever. Scorching guitar and horror movie lyrics are only part of the story and yes their version of “Live and let Die” is just so much better than what Axl later did with it. – Mark

 

I have never had a great love for live albums, but if you haven’t seen Lizzy live and had that rush of energy from his performance, this is a great primer. - Todd

 

 

 

VISUAL LIES (1987)

A great album up there with their debut, Visual Lies has some of LB’s most memorable songs, and again it’s hard to spot a weakness. Vocally Lizzy soars on songs like "Me Against the World" but there’s just so much to love here.

"Lord of the Flies" has a darkness about it that elevates it from the pack, but "Outcast" is the stand-out here heavy and slow it pounds your senses.  Title track “Visual Lies" is also a compelling slower number that broods and beats you. Vocally Lizzy seems most powerful on songs like "Visions" where he simply kicks ass!

There’s an added maturity to this release that points to a slight change in direction and it works though the cover art is still tacky (I always grimace slightly when I look back at the covers and wonder if that is part of the reason why they are not as big as Maiden. (A little too much cheese?) 

That aside "Me Against The World" is another stand out track: one of the most fist pumping anthems they recorded. – Mark

 

I love “Me Against The World.”  Definitely a song that gets the blood flowing and fist pumping as witnessed at Lizzy’s live show. - Todd

 

 

MASTER OF DISGUISE (1989)

Not my particular favourite but a decent album none the less, this has metal cred writ large. Again there seems to be a progression with an added maturity hinted at on “Visual Lies”

Traditional metal fans will love this one as it’s a bit more ‘Screaming for Vengeance’ than Maiden. The remastered CD that I have gives it a boost sonically too. Still the same solid performances and with some great songs LB didn’t show signs of slowing with the nineties approaching.

"Master of Disguise" to some was LB’s crowning glory but not mine, however with tracks like "Master of Disguise" and "Phantoms" you get some real gems. It’s "Phantoms" though that is probably my favourite. There are some missteps though "Psychodrama" is a little too ‘staged’ for my liking and "We Got the Power" ends the album on a low point.

And that was that for now. It would be almost ten years before the band put out something new. – Mark

 

Master of Disguise was a bit of a left turn for Lizzy and his band, but sonically a great album and well written.  This album was seemingly his way of showing critics and fans alike that he could be a serious musician and write songs with major structure.  This fan still loves this album – not daily, but when I do put it on, it is such a treat! - Todd

 

 

TERROR RISING (1987)

This release encompassed a few newly recorded tracks and the GIVE ‘EM THE AXE EP (1984).  The tracks from the original EP are strong – including his ambitious cover of “Long Live Rock ‘N Roll.”  Original title track and “Kiss Of Death” stand on their own and give a good indication of what one could expect from Lizzy over the next 25+ years.

The newly recorded tracks released as TERROR RISING are good, but a huge deviation from what you might expect from Lizzy.  Well, that being said, I guess now you will never quite know what to expect from Lizzy.  His two covers are good, but I still prefer his covers of the previously mentioned “Long Live Rock ‘N Roll” and “Live And Let Die.”  White Rabbit was never one of my favs – I still don’t get most of the psychedelic rock that was released late 1960’s-early 1970’s.  “Don’t Touch Me There” was perfectly good the way Fee and the Tubes did it – the bonus here is Metal Blade artist Betsy/Bitch joining Lizzy here on this duet. - Todd

 

 

 

DEAL WITH THE DEVIL (2000)

“Deal with the Devil” the return album sort of started where LB left off and all that changed was the modern touches that allowed the band to ease into the new millennium after sleeping through the nineties.  It also saw the return of guitarist Alex Nelson. I must admit to being pleasantly surprised when my old mate Steve put this in the mail to me.

Stylistically the album with tracks like the opener 'There Will Be Blood Tonight' is a pleasing throwback to the early sound. But there’s something new too on “We Only Come out at Night” which brings an industrial aspect to the mix (it was after all the sound of the decade they skipped).

The cover of Alice’s “Generation Landslide” though, even though it’s a credible cover is a little too obvious for me. “Hell is For Heroes" though is cool enough and "Zanzibar is interesting, almost Zeppelin. Both "Lovin' You is Murder" and "State of Pain" are also quite nice. – Mark

 

This is probably one of my favourite Lizzy releases… so far!!! I love the way “There Will Be Blood Tonight” takes you back to early Lizzy tunes both lyrically and sonically, but then you have “We Only Come Out At Night” and “Hell Is For Heroes” welcome you to Lizzy Borden version 2K. - Todd

 

 

 

 

IF IT AIN’T BROKE (STARWOOD) (2004)

 

This is interesting to say the least! A real departure and very good! Solid rock and roll along the lines of strip bands like L.A. Guns or the Gunners. "Subculture"; "All My Girlfriends Have Boyfriends"; "You're So Real" and "Bad Machine" are my favourites. - Mark

 

If you are looking for a great hard rock CD, look no further – this Lizzy side project is just what the doctor ordered in 2004 for those of us who cut our teeth on straight ahead rock tunes in the 1980’s.  I love opener “Subculture” and title track, “If It Ain’t Broke, Break It.”  This CD features ¾ of Lizzy's core band from DWTD and the next album – Lizzy, drummer Joey Scott (the only other original member of the band) and bassist Marten Andersson.  If you like Lizzy, solid rock tunes, and a good time, be sure to find this one and buy it! – Todd

 

 

APPOINTMENT WITH DEATH (2007)

The final chapter so far in the Lizzy saga.  To quote Mark on this one, “The guitars are heavier.”  This is courtesy of new guitarist Ira Black.  This CD finally turned the commercial corner for Lizzy with the success of two videos at MTV – “Tomorrow Never Comes” and “Under Your Skin.”

I love this CD front to back – and who wouldn’t love an album that features guest players George Lynch and Dave Meniketti, and Michael T. Ross?

Opening with “Abnormal,” you are being prepared for a musical journey that will take you through the bowels of human existence on tracks like the aforementioned “Under Your Skin,” “Somethin’s Crawlin’,” “Perfect  World,” and “The Darker Side.”

Kudos Lizzy… I cannot wait to see what you immerse us into next. - Todd

 

 

By Mark Diggins & Todd Rockpit

Original Photos by Mark Diggins and Steve Lamb

 

Lizzy at Rock N America 2010