One of the best bands you don't know about, Badlands came onto the hard rock/heavy metal scene around 1989. Guitarist Jake E. Lee was fired from Ozzy Osbourne's band by, of course, Ozzy's manager/wife/cunthole Sharon Osbourne. Baffled at this, he decided he should start a little band of his own that would be something totally different from what he did with Ozzy. Lee enlisted former Black Sabbath singer Ray Gillen and, at the time, former Black Sabbath/current Alice Cooper/future KISS drummer Eric Singer, along with bassist Greg Chaisson. This band would be the bluesy, groovin', hard rock band that is Badlands. The band released their debut record in May of 1989. This album is easily one of the best hard rock albums of the 80s. I gave it a listen today as I was doing my cardio workout, and hot damn, was this album a ripper! It really got me going and headbanging along while I was getting all fit and shit. From start to finish, this album is just nonstop hard rock n' roll. The riffs are absolutely killer, especially "Devil's Stomp." That riff is just so fucking greasy and dirty, it makes me want to cleanse myself after listening to it. The melodies are top notch, like on "Dreams in the Dark," the band's most successful single. The singing is very superb from Mr. Gillen, who is a man I would want to check out more of, especially his work in Sabbath. The bass and drums are thunderous, pounding, and heavy, courtesy of Chaisson and Sir Singer, who is a drummer I have a lot of respect for, because he's got fucking chops out his ass! I really dug the whole bluesy hard rock thing the band had going on, because, outside of Cinderella, AC/DC, GN'R, and the Cult, there were not a whole lot of bands doing the whole bluesy-tinged hard rock thing. Badlands had a unique spin on the whole bluesy hard rock genre, and this debut album of theirs is a perfect example of that certain spin they put on the genre. The band would go on to release one more record, "Voodoo Highway," before inner band tensions, death, and band members leaving to bigger and better things split the band apart. It is rather unfortunate the band didn't release a lot of music, because the band was so god damn talented and had killer musicians in the group that brought their thing to the table. But, at least the band did make some music, and some real fucking killer music at that. I HIGHLY recommend you check out this record, because, like I said earlier, it is one of the best albums you probably have not heard.
Album Info:
"Badlands"
Released: May 11, 1989
Recorded: One on One Studios, Los Angeles, CA and the Record Plant, New York City, NY.
Label: Atlantic
Producer: Paul O'Neill
Billboard US Peak: 57
US Record Sales: 400,000
Track Listing:
All songs written by Lee, Gillen, and O'Neill, except where shown.
1. High Wire (Lee, Gillen)
2. Dreams in the Dark
3. Jade's Song (Instrumental) (Lee)
4. Winter's Call (Lee, Gillen)
5. Dancing on the Edge
6. Streets Cry Freedom
7. Hard Driver
8. Rumblin' Train
9. Devil's Stomp
10. Seasons
11. Ball and Chain (Lee, Gillen)
The Band:
Ray Gillen - Lead Vocals, Blues Harp
Jake E. Lee - Guitars, Keyboards
Eric Singer - Drums
Greg Chaisson - Bass
Bonzo Brad's Favorite Tunes:
"High Wire," "Dreams in the Dark," "Rumblin' Train," "Devil's Stomp," and "Ball and Chain."
But, I recommend you check out the whole fucking album bros and broettes!
Seriously fuckers. Check this album out! You will not regret one bit of it. One of the finest hard rock records to come out of the 80s, and there were definitely plenty of them!
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