We’re not sure there’s going to be another record that captures the spirit of the RAWK as much as Super 8 from Boston’s The Amplifier Heads does this Summer. One listen through Super 8 and Cheap Trick comes to mind. As does The Boss. And early Bryan Adams as well. If you want closer to home then contemporaries like Girl With A Hawk, ahem, Rawk the same boat. And if you want a throwback then The Del Fuegos would be one where we could hear some similarities. But, comparisons aside, at the end of the day what you have from multi-instrumentalist Sal Baglio (The Stompers) and company is a record that’s filled with anthem after anthem of genuine no frills Rawk and/or Roll.
Speaking of the Rawk and/or Roll, “Rock N Roll Riot” is how you start off an album on the right foot with Baglio’s presence immediately felt and some great gang vox that are sure to spur on some even greater sing-a-long moments. “Hot Stars” reins it in ever so slightly and gives some shine to Kevin “King” Rapillo and Brad Hallen’s respective Drum and Bass rhythm section lovefest while “A Song Called Sha La La” is infectious and an immaculate listening experience featuring some sweet soloin’ out of Jeff “G-Man” Giacomelli on Tenor Sax.
“They Don’t Dance Anymore” sports an Old School vibe with Baglio’s storytelling front and center on a song that we could see showing up in an Eddie and The Cruisers movie and “A Girl Named Chop Suey” is a fun one that channels The Kingsmen at times. “Can’t Put My Finger On It” is some straight Blues Rawk with a nice side of twang that benefits from the inclusion of “The Jambalaya Horns” (Carlos Menenzes Jr on Trombone, Matthew Naeger on Trumpet) and Henley Douglas Jr. with a sweet Bari Sax solo, “Superstar” is a driving ditty that delivers both decibels and dynamic guitar licks and “Hot Wax” gets some Acoustic Guitar action along with some more smooth Sax sounds.
Sort of related (We’ll get there with a point, we promise!) but we always stay through the credits of a given movie we see in theaters to acknowledge the artists who made a particular film. Sometimes we luck out with some extra footage to boot… which brings us to The Amplifier Heads! You see it’s always a good idea to hang through an artist’s entire album because you never know what you might fins at the end. In the case of Super 8, there’s TWO bonus tracks beginning with “Deuce Machine” which is the perfect over-the-credits kind of song that’s loud and in-your-face as you see who did what in the flick (Think the “Jailhouse Rock” seen in The Blues Brothers). Finishing everything for now is “Hot Wax 1957 (Babylon Mix)” which takes the original, flips it on its’ head and presents an even bigger version of the original as the Super 8 final bow.
Super 8 is out digitally from Rum Bar Records NOW and you can make sure you’re the first in your city and/or town to get it by heading here or to the stream below. For more from The Amplifier Heads, head towards the information superhighway and the socials located here or here.