M.A.D. - review added 18th January 2010
Album Review: For Crown And Ring (2009)
For fans of: Heavy Metal... and Tina Turner covers
M.A.D. (Maniacal Area Damage) hail from Ingolstadt in Germany. The line-up is Jochen S. Bach on vocals, Robert Mayer on guitar, Andreas Laubmeier on bass, and Martin Pöndl on drums. The cover artwork probably gives you a good clue what this music is like. However it doesn't tell the whole story.
What they've produced on For Crown And Ring is one of the most boisterous albums I've heard in a good while. As the big sword and flames suggest, this is a heavy pounding album full of monstrous riffs and battle-spec rhythms.
The first thing that hits you when opening track 'Don't Sell Your Soul' starts is the AC/DC-ness of it all. Singer Jochen sounds like he has a voice built for Bon Scott impersonations, and the musicianship follows plenty of familiar cues.. However, as the album progresses it becomes clear M.A.D. draw their influences from far and wide. 'Crown And Ring' is a perfect example. Has any band ever sounded more like Manowar? Hell, even Manowar don't sound this much like Manowar anymore. It's a cracking track, although you'd have to question the originality of its vibe.
'Mr Wannabe' sounds like Ratt impersonating Venom, 'Bad Boy Boogie' is a fine cover of the AC/DC track, whilst 'Nutbush City Limits' is, you've guessed it, a cover of the Tina Turner track. It features cool saxophone work from Chris Holler. The song really shouldn't work - it should sound bloody awful - but it comes across stupidly well. Final track, the slower blues-led 'Let The Days Go By' is an fine way to end the album.
For Crown And Ring is a surprisingly decent release. It isn't technically brilliant, refined or genre defining, but it does have a certain something. Maybe it's the size of its balls, or the sheer volume of it all. Whatever...at the end of the day, I like what M.A.D. have produced and sometimes that's all that counts.
Check out... That Tina Turner cover.
Track List:
1. Don't Sell Your Soul
2. Night Crawler
3. Crown And Ring
4. Movin' On (Through Time)
5. Mr. Wannabe
6. The Warrior
7. A Long Hard Road
8. Bad Boy Boogie
9. Nutbush City Limits
10. Let The Days Go By
Label: 7Hard
Artist's website(s): M.A.D. , MySpace
