Bonfire,
Firehouse,
Def Leppard, Jaded Heart, Gotthard... all great bands by themselves. Mix them together and what would you get? I would imagine it would be something like this. So
"Devil in Disguise" is nothing new under the sun, but it does deliver a hefty slab of German born hard rock. This is Hotwire's second disc with singer Andy Urbeck, and the five year break between "The Middle of Nowhere" and now has seen him refine his singing style quite a bit. Chris Laumann (ex-
Bonfire) was hauled aboard as producer and the resulting product sounds great. Nice big, fat sound that fits the musical content like a glove.
A cool mix of rockers and ballads are presented. The album gets off in high fashion with
"Waterfalls", an energetic bit that explodes on the chorus.
"Hot Love", the Mark Bolan cover could have been a
Def Leppard B-side from the "Hysteria" sessions but with a vocal reminiscent of
Bret Michaels from Poison.
"Wonderland" is ultra melodic and takes an easy mid pacing twist with just a dash of spice to spritz up the background.
"Ride the Night Away" lurks with another mid pacing style but this time around has a little more bounce in its step. Overall, very nicely done.
"Skytrain" pulls out the heavier stops and lays the guitar on sizzling and thick, licks coming hot, straight off the fire. The chorus fizzles out but all else is rockin in a Jaded Heart/Gotthard mixed manner.
The title track is just as slick as the rest. There are quieter moments to emphasize the situation, making for a rather clear musical illustration, then the switch is flipped and its all systems go again. Emotion is captured in all its steaminess and helps this one really stand out. In fact, the entire cd is one highly enjoyable melodic rock ride. Even lesser pieces like
"Escape" and the closer
"Everytime You Want It", which most resembles the
Firehouse likening mentioned earlier, have worthwhile segments that beg for closer inspection.
"Devil in Disguise" brings nothing particularly new to the table, but for what the band is shooting for, they aim and hit the bullseye with relative ease. Those disenchanted with the last few
Bonfire efforts will especially be enamoured with Hotwire, since they are filling the void left behind for German hard rock that is seasoned in AOR-esque flavoring. The one ingredient this album is sorely lacking is an "it" song that just reaches out, grabs you and doesn't let go. No such track is to be found here unfortunately. Otherwise, this
"Devil" is an entertaining disc chock full of fun, disposable tunes, that carry alot of instant appeal but misses the mark at being essential and long lasting. The issue of missing that special magic has haunted them throughout their decade-plus career and they still haven't quite managed to find it yet. Maybe next time...
Written by
Alanna Sunday, September 10, 2006
Show all reviews by AlannaRatingsAlanna: 6/10Members: No members have rated this album yet.
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