Takin' A Ride

I don’t usually accept album submissions for review because I only want to write when I’m inspired and I actually have something to say. I don’t want to feel forced to have to write something. And what if I don’t like it? This whole site is about promoting and celebrating all types of rock, not to put any of it down. But it’s real. If I don’t like it, I’m just not going to write about it. So when I got the chance to get ahold of an advance of the new Mistress 77 album, there was no way I could resist. I had to have it. And I got it. Their new album, their second, is called “Disorder By Design”.

For a band that started out for the hell of it and just to have fun, they’re not taking any prisoners. This is a band of veteran San Diego musicians (No Knife, Shake Before Us, and two fifths of Lucy’s Fur Coat) with the exception of the singer Jeff Strukel who just happens to be a longtime friend of the guys. And despite this being his first and only band, Jeff really comes into form on this album. He’s a total natural.

Perfectly produced and perfectly mixed by John Reis, this album rips from start to finish. John had a heavy hand in producing this record, doing what great producers do: Getting the tones of the instruments, aiding in song arrangements, and even participating in some percussion and background vocals. The guitars are nice and loud and at the forefront (as they always should be), but you can still hear everything else. Great backing vocals, handclaps, and some “yeah yeahs” and “GO!”‘s thrown in here and there to add to the energetic pace of the album.

The songs are all fun, but there’s nothing cute about this. This is real punk rockin’ rock. Dead Boys meets The Dictators meets Rocket From The Crypt. Favorites are “Vinyl Junkies” (about a local record store), “Spare Change”, “Party”, “French Toast”, “Guest List”, “Rocket To Ruin”, and “Needle In You”. I’ve almost named all of them. They’re all great. Every song has a catchy chorus, loud guitars, and great energy. You can’t ask for anything more than that.

I loved their first album and certainly wasn’t expecting anything to come close to that, but damn, this is just an amazing release. Super energetic, loud, and well, just FUN!

🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺

Sorry, no sound samples as of yet, because this is still too new of a release. It will be out on October 14th. But trust me, this is a must have!