STEEL RIDER
"Eat the Monster" (Victor
Victor Music; 1988? / 2005)
Reviewed by Jeff Rogers
If I were to say that you’ve heard this one before, I’m
lying. Unless you were huddled in the corner of the basement this was recorded in twenty years ago. Rik Harley is the master mind behind this outdated buried gem, and it sounds like a twenty year old album.
At first listen, the memories of 1980 flooded back to me: heavy metal faces, twin guitars, nasty solos and a heavy metal
sneer. Gone are those days, so why bring them back? Apparently Rik trusted a record company with his master tapes and they got leaked to MTV. A few songs were given to the show
"Road Rules" and kids who never knew that there were heavy metal solos started hammering for this “vintage” sound.
My kids won’t ever know a world without the Internet and cell phones but guitar solos
seem to be long gone. This at least brought back a time I knew about. The only problem is the
production here - it stinks. It’s thin and the drums sound weak. Perhaps I could ask cockroach number 2,743 what he
thought; chances are he’s still around ... unlike Rik Harley, who's been MIA since 1999.
Labeled as biker metal, "Eat the Monster" has that strip club vibe and after a while you just want to turn it off because nostalgia becomes “lostalgia.” The glory days are
gone. Still, if there were some way to update the production, this CD would sound like classic Judas Priest and Thin Lizzy.
There are audio samples on their website so you can listen and bang your head, or scratch it while wondering if you have some lost master tapes you forgot about.
Steel Rider: No one knows for sure but most people think it's guitar and studio wiz Rik Harley,
but who really knows. Calling Rik Harley! Anybody know where he is?
For more information, check out http://www.eathtemosnter.com.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2008 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 16 Dec 2024 12:46:37 -0500.
