Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Krokus
Label: Century Media
Release: 2017
Length: 50:45
Rating: 4/5
Krokus, one of the oldest Swiss hard rock bands still going (formed, believe it or not, back in 1975), dropped its eighteenth official album this January. It’s not really a proper studio album of new original material, though, but a collection of covers of other artists.
The band, rejoined in 2012 by the outstanding guitarist Mandy Meyer, put out its last album, »Dirty Dynamite«, in 2013. So? The old warhorses are still kicking. A bit slower, and a bit more careful as befits their years, but still. To soothe their fans (mostly thin on top and gray these days) at least a little during the agonizing wait for a new (real) studio album, the guys in Krokus have put together a set of covers of songs by the artists who had a huge influence on the band’s very beginnings. When they showed up on the rock map, they were a massive inspiration for the members of Krokus, and they shaped the band’s later musical development and maturing in a big way.
So, the song selection is very predictable. Frankly, even boring. These are songs that practically every teenager plays while figuring out their first chords on the guitar. At the same time, they’re not only the commercial high points of artists who were already on the scene in the sixties, but also tracks where those artists, with their witty talent, pioneering spark of vision and unbridled imagination, boldly helped shape rock’n’roll and, really, put it on its feet.
Krokus, an incredibly seasoned and experienced crew of musicians, have no trouble approaching a reinterpretation of these classics, deftly dressing them, of course, in their own original message of a honed brand of hard rock, always famous for its direct approach and the incredible punch and conviction of its guitar lines. The band is a team that has worked together for years and knows each other’s quirks down to the last detail. No secrets among the members. Von Arb, von Rohr and Storace were already great buddies back in the seventies, while Kohler and Meyer joined the crew right at the start of the eighties. A truly old gang of comrades. Only drummer Mezzodi is a newer name, having joined the band just for the album »Dirty Dynamite«.
So? Storace and his vocal form are, once again, the biggest question mark in all of this. You can tell his voice has picked up a light coating of rust and thinness (maybe some pronounced nasality too). Still, Storace gets through every task decently and with confidence. Okay, some of that is down to the studio, which can polish up anything you can dream of, so the real test of Storace’s vocal form will only come when we catch the band on concert stages.
»Big Rocks« is seasoned with a heap of excellent guitar tricks, which Kohler, Meyer and von Arb slip almost invisibly into a bunch of carefully chosen, tempting covers. Even though the selection is hugely predictable and purists will just wave it off with an »an original is an original«, this compilation will surely satisfy the band’s fans and followers. That was also its basic purpose, after hours of unbridled fun in the studio, nostalgically hanging out with the legacy of the rock and roll pioneers that Krokus spent together. Big Rocks is a solid, fun stopgap on the way to a new studio album.
Krokus – Rockin’ In A Free World:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZUga0wQzOs
Lineup
Marc Storace – vocals
Mandy Meyer – guitar
Fernando von Arb – backing vocals
Mark Kohler – guitar
Chris von Rohr – bass, backing vocals
Flavio Mezzodi – drums
Production
Chris von Rohr
Track list
1.N.I.B.
2.Tie Your Mother Down
3.My Generation
4.Wild Thing
5.The House of the Rising Sun
6.Rockin’ in the Free World
7.Gimme Some Lovin’
8.Whole Lotta Love
9.Summertime Blues
10.Born to Be Wild
11.Quinn the Eskimo
12.Jumpin’ Jack Flash
13.Back Seat Rock’n Roll
