Formed in late 1996 by ex.
Jetboy guitarist Billy Rowe, bass player Mike Butler and singer Lance Boone
American Heartbreak has grown to be one of America's premier underground Rock 'n' Roll bands.
American Heartbreak is guitar driven Rock 'n' Roll with hooks of pop. Most of
American Heartbreaks material sounds modern and cut for US indie radio
This limited edition of "Postcards from Hell" marks
American Heartbreak's new deal within
Europe with a double disc. Disc one is the band's debut full length album from 2000 "Postcards from Hell", while disc 2 contains 16 song disc with 5 live tracks from their last
European tour, 5 acoustic tracks and a remixed version of their first EP "What You Deserve". So there is definitely value for money.
American Heartbreak is a full blast Rock 'n' Roll. The songs are all well crafted songs with
American Heartbreak playing old kick ass rock with an updated sound and lots of hooks. Some riffs will never die and the song
Postcards from Hell is a variation of a classic Rock 'n' Roll riff which never gets worn out. The title track is definitely among the album highlights.
Overall
American Heartbreak is built on the simple means guitar, bass and drums. Even though the band sounds modern they are obviously inspired by 60's and especially 70's band. The melodic
Too Beautiful stands as strongest track on "Postcards from Hell".
The live tracks on the second disc have a raw live sound, almost a bootleg sound to them. The disc gives a great impression of
American Heartbreak as live band. Lance Boone's voice is a bit hoarser and not as polished, but the songs from "Postcards to Hell" sounds excellent performed live. I recently witnessed
American Heartbreak in concert and they actually sounded better than on this live recording. Lance Boone's vocals were very clear and the band very tight. They had a great attitude with Billy Rowe as the obvious band leader, bass player Mike Butler and Lance Boone as the showmen. Casey Crenshaw was in the background looking like Izzy Stradlin playing a low hanging guitar with a cigarette in his mouth. The only thing against the album live tracks is the audience, which sounds a bit superimpose or otherwise it's a bad mix.
Dead at Seventeen and the title track from "Postcards From Hell" are both amazing acoustic, while the charming
Outfit is the best acoustic performance with really cool double vocals and a thick acoustic guitar sound.
American Heartbreak has really progressed in their song writing, which makes the songs from "What you Deserve" stand a little weaker on this disc. However, it's a bonus thing and I take it as full value for money with all the extra material.
Nobody Likes Me is cool track though.
If you like your Rock 'n' Roll straight ahead, played with lots of energy and a modern touch - then check out
American Heartbreak and what better way than to buy this huge combo compressed onto 2 CD's.
Written by
Michael Friday, March 4, 2005
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