Second album from Swiss band, Maxwell, another strong link in an unending chain of talented rock bands dating back to the seventies, bands that include Gotthard,
Shakra and Krokus. A less gracious person might call them wannabes, but what
'All In' lacks in originality, it makes up for in passion and strutting, swaggering hard rock sonics and musicianship.
Dismiss the highly derivative opener,
'Dead End Street', and cue second track
'Heads Or Tails'. Driven by a smouldering, bone dry riff, the sheer energy and spirit of this track push it into pole position. It typifies the band's "if it ain't broke don't fix it" attitude.
And so, rumbling bass lines, locked down rhythms and blistering twin guitar attacks, grafted onto the roar of lyrical machismo, rule the day.
The chest beating clichés may become just a bit too tiresome by the end of the album, but you can't help but admire the formula perfection of tracks like
'Outlaw', 'Black Widow' and '
Hellride'. All three contain trace elements of
AC/DC DNA as cloned and cultivated by many of
Maxxwell's European contemporaries, but let's be clear here, there is no copywrite on goodtime hard rock.
That said, it's good to note that an occasional standout emerges from this otherwise familiar landscape, towering head and shoulders above the others.
Those songs
- 'Still Alive' and
'Take Me Away' - not only show a welcome ambition but clear evidence that even when their abilities are stretched, this band's grasp is the equal of its reach.
With
'All In' Maxxwell show that they can mine a narrow hard rock seam with just as much skill and effectiveness as many of their contemporaries.
I'll be disappointed if they don't take some risks and strike out for the motherlode with album number three.
Written by
Brian Thursday, May 12, 2011
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