Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Trixter
Label: Frontiers Records
Release: 2015
Running time: 51:43
Rating: 4.5/5
Three years after the excellent »New Audio Machine«, Trixter, the lost-but-found sons of glam metal’s early-nineties success story, are back in a big way. The new album »Human Era« keeps up the exceptional quality of its predecessor and holds a firm connection to what the band was all about in the nineties. A quick recap: with their debut »Trixter« in 1990 the band went gold, the record spawned three smaller hits, and they hit the road on a joint tour with Scorpions. Two years later came »Hear!«, which opened the door to a joint tour with Kiss. Then the corporations started pouring their money into grunge, and Trixter, like plenty of other bands from the glam metal scene, got washed off the stage.
Trixter keep fighting on with their original lineup on »Human Era« too. The album once again brings 11 tightly packed tracks with the penetrating, predatory catchiness of lead guitar hooks, and the arrangements are impressively varied and lively, which makes this yet another album that doesn’t bore you for a second and boasts a highly dynamic flow. The party-starting opener Rockin’ to the Edge of the Night grabs you right away, and the album doesn’t let up for a moment until the very end. The special edition tacks on two re-recorded classics at the end: Always a Victim from the debut »Trixter«, followed by Road of a Thousand Dreams from its successor »Hear!«. These two bonus tracks are pretty much proof that Trixter’s musical philosophy hasn’t changed all that much over all their years of service in rock ‘n’ roll.
Trixter once again bet everything on a fiery combo: a punchy hook that grabs you instantly, and teasing, contagious melodies. Peter Loran delivers another brilliant vocal performance. His voice keeps the explosive energy the songs demand, as well as passion and sensuality, especially in the verses, where he plays with the tone and dials the raspy, throaty edge up or down just right. Think Jon Bon Jovi-style vocals. From Jon’s better days, of course. The songs are again built so that it’s easy to spot the basic ties to the superstar rock acts that stormed the charts at the turn of the eighties into the nineties, like Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Scorpions, Whitesnake, and comparisons to their contemporaries like Warrant, Kix, Ratt or Skid Row make sense too, while some of the rustic touches in the songs hint at the influence of the seventies arena rock scene, led by Styx. Steve Brown’s soloing remains pure poetry!
I won’t ramble on! Anyone who has experienced »New Audio Machine« will grab »Human Era« without a moment’s hesitation. »Human Era« keeps Trixter’s creativity at a high level well into their mature years, and even though a full 25 years have passed between the debut and the new album, you’d never know it. Except in the production, of course, which now delivers a more organic feel! This is an album tailor-made for all the band’s fans and for fans of melodic rock as well as classic glam metal and its revival, which is currently springing up especially in Scandinavia. Let’s hope Trixter keep this creative momentum going in the years ahead and that they finally make it over to European stages too!
Lineup
Pete Loran – vocals, guitar
Steve Brown – guitar, harmonica, backing vocals
P.J. Farley – bass guitar, backing vocals
Gus Scott – drums, percussion, backing vocals
Production
Trixter
Tracklist
01. Rockin’ To The Edge Of The Night
02. Crash That Party
03. Not Like All The Rest
04. For You
05. Every Second Counts
06. Beats Me Up
07. Good Times Now
08. Midnight In Your Eyes
09. All Night Long
10. Soul Of A Lovin’ Man
11. Human Era
12. Always A Victim (acoustic version – iTunes bonus track)
13. Road Of A Thousand Dreams (re-recorded version – iTunes bonus track)
