Is 2008 the year of Quireboys? The band has just released a brilliant Best of compilation on EMI. It's a 2 disc release covering their first two records with lots of rare live and unreleased material. Singer
Spike has also wrapped up a solo album "So Called Friends". Quireboys' latest studio release dates back to 2004, so "Homewreckers and Heartbreakers" is the first studio album with 11 fresh new songs and I must admit that expectations are sky high.
Album opener
I love This Dirty Town is built around a classic Rock N' Roll riff - basically
Sex Party riff slowed down. The piano from Keith Weir gives it a true Rock N' Roll feeling and
Spike's hoarse voice is the trademark of Quireboys.
I love this Dirty Town puts a big smile on my face. Quireboys is BACK.
The album really starts strongly.
Mona Lisa Smiled ranks among album highlights. Quireboys has gone back to basics on several songs and even though
the
acoustic guitar is low in the mix it adds a great layer to
Mona Lisa Smiled. The band also uses mandolin.
Sadly "Homewreckers and Heartbreakers" is a bit disappointing though. It's a good record, but the line "
We're the Quireboys and this is Rock N' Roll" obligates. The band has slowed down on several songs.
One for the Road is a mid-tempo tune that easily could have been on a Status Quo or Smokie record. Overall the band is more rootsy going back to the traditional with fiddle and so on. Personally I miss some wildness and a bit more bite in the songs. A song like
Late Night Saturday Call is a good example of this record. A fantastic guitar and piano solo cannot save the song from being a bit dull.
Some of the up-beat songs like
Louder never really takes off.
Louder is swinging and bouncing, but still there is so much to wish for compared to
Lorraine Lorraine,
This is Rock N' Roll etc. The up-tempo
Josephine sounds like something Quireboys could write in five minutes. It's a rocking tune and it hard to dislike Quireboys and Griff's great guitar work on this one, but it's a standard tune.
The production hampers the songs. The sound is dark and doesn't suit the band. However, a good tip is put on your headphones since the record and especially Griffs guitar comes more alive.
Beware that yours truly is a huge Quireboys fan and therefore my expectations were sky high. "Homewreckers and Heartbreakers" sure has its moments. The best song is the breathtaking
Fear Within The Lie, which captures a special emotion. A true gem.
Guitarists Guy
Griffin and Paul Guerin complement each other perfectly. The two guitarists riff away on the swampy
Blackwater.
Blackwater has a special emotion with an underlying Hammond and bluesy harmonica. I wondered howcome Quireboys sang about Lynchberg Tennessee since I wasn't familiar with the place being a Rock N' Roll landmark nor a tourist attraction! Well, at Vauxhall tavern on a Friday night it finally made sense. Lynchberg is the home of Jack Daniel distillery and now the word
Blackwater makes sense - ha ha. Excellent!
To quote
Spike from the booklet of the new brilliant "Best of" compilation "
Our fifth studio album comes out this year and Homewreckers and Heartbreakers is our best yet. It's the record which outs us back in the big league" Unfortunately "Homewreckers and Heartbreakers" doesn't live up to that statement. The album is not as strong as any of the other Quireboys studio albums. Anyway it is Quireboys and you cannot go wrong with them, so even though I have mixed emotions about this record you should check it out for yourselves.
Written by
Michael Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Show all reviews by MichaelRatingsMichael: 6.5/10Members: No members have rated this album yet.
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