Alleycat Scratch formed back in 1988, when Glam metal was huge. The band was based in San Francisco, but after playing the bay area a few years the obvious career move was to head south to the Sunset strip, where the scene was happening.
When the band moved to the Hollywood area they also replaced their original singer with Eddie Robinson. The band was now ready to take on the world.
"Deadboys in Trash City" was the first and only album by the band. The recordings took place in 1992. The album lyrical side is dominated by one topic and that's sex.
The album opens cocky with Eddie Robinson screaming "
Check this out Mother fucker." which emphasizes
Alleycat Scratch stands for swaggering Glam with lots of attitude. Their style can be described as
Poison but with a harder edge - especially
Sexual Addiction reminds a bit of
Poison. However, there is no wimpy stuff on the album and especially Devin Lovelace's guitar is a bit rawer than the archetypal Glam band. Devin Lovelace blows some great solos -
Stilletto Strut is a great example. The album is wrapped up in a crunchy guitar sound.
Singer Eddie Robinson has a great glam voice. His voice is very piercing and dominant in the production. Eddie Robinson has a perfect Glam voice, but with a special tone that helps
Alleycat Scratch differentiate them.
The musicians are skilled and tight. Drummer Robbi Black probably just got a new cowbell prior to this record. He certainly isn't afraid to use it -
Cats Got your Tongue ends with Robbi Black beating the cowbell and goes directly into album highlight
Soul Suvivor, which starts with cowbell.
The songwriting is consistent. The songs sound fresh and have lots of energy. Along with
Soul Survivor the power ballad
Roses on my Grave is the finest moments on "Deadboys in trash city"
The album has a unique Sleaze/Glam attitude and vibe similar to the first
Faster Pussycat and
Vain album. This CD benefits from being released in 1993, because it still sounds up-dated. Of course it helps that the reissue has been re-mastered, but its tragic comic that the CD released in 1993 actually benefits the CD today, because it probably was the timing that ruined their promising career. If "Deadboys in trash City" had been out in the late 80s
Alleycat Scratch would have gotten a longer run.
The reissue comes with 2 bonus tracks.
Love Song with obscure lyrics and a cover of Boomtown Rats'
I don't Like Monday, which is captured live but suffers from bootleg sound
The story of
Alleycat Scratch is similar to several other Glam bands. The band was a regular on the Hollywood club scene and was starting to make an impact when Glam metal was banned from all labels. The band broke up in 1994 only a year after the release of this record.
The re-issue from Regeneration Records has a bonus DVD with a live show from the Troubadour (July 1993) and a tour of the bands apartment in L.A. Unfortunately my promo version lacks the DVD and also lacks the artwork, so unfortunately I cannot comment on the package whether it's the original artwork and possible liner notes etc.
Written by
Michael Tuesday, November 7, 2006
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