You can trust Louder
A cursory glance at Marco Mendoza’s CV reveals a man so busy over the past quarter-century or so – most recently with the Dead Daisies – it’s something of a miracle he’s found time to record this, his first collection of new tunes in seven years.
Unsurprisingly, he doesn’t stray from the classic rock blueprint he’s been pursuing for much of his career, and this album is all the better for it, rather than providing a vehicle for pretentious experimentation. The title track is a straightforward celebration of rock in all its glory, while Sweetest Emotion and Love 2 U bring the funk, and the Soundgarden-tinged Burned is perfectly balanced between light and shade. Ultimately, though, it’s the covers of Thin Lizzy’s Chinatown and Ted Nugent’s Hey Baby that speak volumes about where Mendoza is coming from.
All together an easy-going blast from beginning to end.
Whether it’s magazines, books or online, Essi has been writing about rock ’n’ metal for around thirty years. He has been reviews editor for Classic Rock and Metal Hammer, rock reviews editor for lads mag Front and worked for Kerrang!. He has also written the Rough Guide to Heavy Metal and contributed to the Rough Guide to Rock and Rough Guide Book of Playlists, and the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles (13th edition). Most fun interview? Tenacious D – Jack Black and Kyle Gass – for The Pick of Destiny movie book. An avid record/CD/tape collector, he’s amassed more music than he could ever possibly listen to, which annoys his wife no end.