Michael Monroe- Blackout States (2015)

Michael Monroe- Blackout States (2015)

“If you want to stop AIDS, let Polygram distribute it.”

Michael Monroe

By: Ghost Writer

Finland's Michael Monroe former band Hanoi Rocks should have ruled the world in the 90s, only they came out in the 80s, and as we know true pioneers rarely have the success of those who come after them, bad luck has also played a major role and the dream never came truth, but Monroe is made of steel and stone in the manner of great proto punk singers like Iggy Pop, David Johansen or shock rock king Alice Cooper, time seems to be meaningless to him and now well into his fourth decade as a rock n roller, Monroe seems unstoppable, this time I should say little more generic than on previous records, but still with an energy that lack today's bands.

The problem with Blackout States is that Monroe's approach is perhaps more formulaic than ever, his fierce rock tunes lack the proper singular identity of say the classic Not Fakin It songs had, opener This Ain't a Love Song is an immediate winner, fast, loud and snotty, although a little more guitar bite might have helped more, still Monroe's music is a runaway train, unstoppable and powerful, with a natural talent for melody still impeccable and intact, Old Kings's Roads sounds a little bad dated, like the kind of stuff Hanoi Rocks did in the eighties to great effect, with Johnny Thunders' like guitars and great sing along.

Monroe has great ear for creating aching ballads but Keep An Eye on You simply sounds unfinished, lacking the emotional power only Michael is capable of creating, but is on The Bastard's Bash where Monroe applies full guitar fire, an irresistible vocal line and even touches of his rock n rolling sax, getting a perfect rock n roll song before getting really punk on the Motorhead sound alike Good Old Bad Days, with Ace of Spades guitars and Dead Jail or Rock n Roll attitude.

The title track is another great song, the kind if stuff The Stones should be doing these days and showing a curious link between the rebellious music of the Stones and the rebellion if the 80s carried by great bands like The Replacements and the Hanoi Rocks, while Permanent Youth might be Monroe's self study about his capability of keep in rocking with youthful energy after all these years, another one of those great emotive songs that Monroe knows how to write, and nearly at the end comes the marauding attack of the hard hitting Dead Hearts on Denmark Street.

It seems that Monroe keep the best for the closing of this consistent although not perfect record as the playful Walk Away rocks with grace and cadence, while Six Feet In the Ground sound classic street swagger proving again Monroe's value as one of the great rock n roll figures, one who should be already given his proper place as a legend between the great rock n roll figures who keep going on making great music after all these years.