Valarius
Dio, Scorpions, Iron Maiden, Twisted Sister. All these bands have one thing in common: They’re thieves!
After twenty years stranded in Japan, the true pioneers of Heavy Metal have returned, Fozzy!
It was a careless contract-signing that left Moongoose McQueen and the rest of Fozzy stuck in Japan, and with demo tapes finding their way all over the world, bands like Iron Maiden and Motley Crue were more than happy to steal Fozzy’s songs and claim them as their own, thus, stealing the very genre Fozzy created from under their noses.
Okay, comedy aside, Fozzy is a fantastic band, and for those who aren’t familiar with the group, they are really a Metal band formed by wrestling superstar Chris Jericho and Stuck Mojo mastermind Rich Ward, mostly playing covers but using their humorous back story as a way of separating themselves from other cover bands. And of course, with new names and personas, Moongoose McQueen has even claimed that he wishes Chris Jericho would stop following him around. Genius!
As a huge fan of Chris Jericho, and Heavy Metal, it was only natural that when this album was released I had to snap it up, and what an impressive debut album. Jericho has a great voice, though at times it does feel a bit weak, but he definitely shows a lot of confidence on the two Fozzy originals, where he obviously gets to sing his own style with a voice he is comfortable with.
Unfortunately, I personally find the choice of cover songs a bit hit-or-miss. Songs like ‘Blackout’, ‘The Prisoner’ and ‘Riding on the Wind’ are all great songs that in my opinion far surpass the originals, and whilst all the other covers completely dominate the originals material, the choices are quite lackluster. I have to be honest, but songs like ‘Stay Hungry’, ‘Eat the Rich’ and ‘Live Wire’ are not the first songs I’d choose to cover.
The two Fozzy originals are great as well. ‘End of Days’ and ‘Feel the Burn’ are amazing samples of what this band are capable of, and a sure sign of things to come.
For a band that looks as though they have every reason imaginable to be terrible, Fozzy have risen to the challenge to release a good, fun album.