Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Coney Hatch
Label: Frontiers Records
Release: 2013
Duration: 48:06
Rating: 4/5
Canadian hard rock veterans Coney Hatch, once considered the loudest rock band in Toronto in the eighties, have been active since 2010, reunited in the original lineup of Andy Curran (bass, backing vocals), Carl Dixon (vocals, guitar), Dave Ketchum (drums) and Steve Shelski (guitar). What makes them so special? So far in their career, Coney Hatch have released three studio albums for the Canadian label Anthem Records. That was back in the eighties. At the height of their rise, they opened shows for the likes of Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Cheap Trick, Accept and Ted Nugent, among others. Between 1985 and 1986, Coney Hatch’s singer was a talented 22-year-old Canadian kid by the name of James LaBrie. Ring a bell? Five years later he would get a call from John Petrucci and sing on the legendary Dream Theater album »Images And Words« (1992), writing himself into the history of progressive metal forever. Coney Hatch fell apart in 1986. Nothing out of the ordinary, you’d say. They’re not the first, and they won’t be the last. And yet….
Recently, the wheel of fate brought the band back together in a very special situation. After Carl Dixon was returning from a recording session in Australia in 2008, he was in a near-fatal head-on collision in his car. While the guy was still in a deep coma and his life hung by a thread for a long time, his wife called his former Coney Hatch buddies so they could ring him up with encouraging, rallying words. Every time one of them called Carl, his wife held the receiver up to the poor guy’s ear. Andy Curran had an especially interesting message for him: he told him to get better quick, because the two of them still had some unfinished business with Coney Hatch. Andy later said he wasn’t seriously thinking about a reunion or gigs when he said it. Carl was eventually patched up, reinforced with titanium rods, had all his bolts tightened good and snug, and Coney Hatch really did get back together. Carl played on stage with his old buddies for the first time in August 2010, when Coney Hatch played in front of a crowd of 7,500 in Ontario. The news quickly spread around the world, and a year later, in October 2011, Coney Hatch played on British soil for the very first time in their career. It was at the Firefest festival in Nottingham. None of this went unnoticed by Frontiers Records, who started courting Coney Hatch with offers.
After 27 years, the band’s new studio album has finally crawled into the world. Simply titled »Four«. It’s like time stood still. Spin it and you’re instantly dropped into the middle of the eighties. Adrenaline-fueled rock ‘n’ roll that bites and hits you right out of the gate. Picture a slightly more sophisticated AC/DC, capable of even the occasional vocal harmony in a catchy, singalong format built around the lead motifs within the songs. Rose Tattoo are obviously close, and then there’s Rhino Buckett too. But out of the ones mentioned, Coney Hatch are a touch more refined. Still, don’t go looking for any deep philosophy on »Four«. A guitar riff with real character that the song is built around. That’s the basic formula. Backed by a deep, booming, rattling, voluminous bass line, rocky, cannon-like drum blows and a simple rhythmic dictate, the mission of Coney Hatch comes across as unbreakably cocky even in the new millennium! At points you could say it’s weighed down with more melodic catchiness (Holding On, Boys Club), which gives them that dash of recognizability they need. At the same time, it’s crystal clear every second of this album that Coney Hartch are stubbornly staying in the cogs of a raging rock ‘n’ roll machine that doesn’t let up in its adrenaline rush. It’s a pleasure to listen to guys in their mature years of creativity who, with such smooth and skillful routine, stuff the infamous modern-day “young bulls” like Airbourne into their pocket in a heartbeat.
Want the truth about rock ‘n’ roll? Take a bite out of Coney Hatch. »Four« is a fantastic rock ‘n’ roll record that, with songs like Blown Away, Do It Again, Down & Drty, Keep Driving and The Devil You, strips you out of your skin in an instant, causes some serious hormonal disorders, coaxes out your inner punk hooligan and calls you to limitless debauchery. You can’t get any deeper into the heart of rock ‘n’ roll. Booze, horny fillies in skin-tight leather, the smell of burnt motor oil and fried car tires… Let the race begin! If there are no obstacles for Coney Hatch, there are even fewer for you. Welcome home, boys, and please get yourselves on a European tour as soon as possible, before the world ends!
Lineup
Carl Dixon – vocals, guitar
Andy Curran – vocals, backing vocals
Steve Shelski – guitar
Dave Ketchum – drums
Production
Coney Hatch
Tracklist
01. Blown Away
02. Boys Club
03. Down & Dirty
04. Do It Again
05. Connected
06. Revive
07. We Want More
08. Devil U Know
09. Marseille
10. Keep Drivin’
11. Holdin’ On
