Thunderstick was the namesake of the ex-Samson drummer who formed this band in the early eighties whilst his former band was on a rapid downhill decline following the departure of Bruce Dickinson to Iron Maiden. This CD release is a combination of the ‘Feel Like Rock n Roll?’ EP and the ‘Beauty and the Beasts’ album that were originally released in 1983 and 1984 respectively.
Whilst initial excitement reigned supreme, as this is heralded as NWOBHM, I have to report having listened to the disc, it most certainly is not. It is actually like an 80’s pop and Rocky Horror Show soundtrack, it’s really ridiculous and not very “middle finger to the 80’s music business” it is said to be in the liner notes. What makes this more unappealing is the terrible vocal sound and delivery of Anna Marie Carmella Borg on the EP preceded by Jodee Valentine on the album. Admittedly, Valentine’s vocals are a touch better, but they are backed by a weird musical formula that simply has no backbone. As an acclaimed drummer one would have thought that Thunderstick the person would totally overbear the mix, he does not and it does bode well when is sounds so dated, this CD doesn’t appear to have been re-mixed or re-mastered in any way. ‘Feel Like Rock n Roll’ (original mix) and ‘Rich Girls Don’t Cry’ aren’t that bad, although the latter has a funny chorus backing vocal, one assumes Thunderstick is involved here. Essentially ‘Echoes from the Analogue Asylum’ is a combination of throwaway Girlschool boogie rock n roll tunes and a lot of cliché, some of the solos are pleasurable, some of the work is in fact rather tasty, but the vocals on both original releases let the side down dramatically. I have nothing against female vocals, but in this band they lack authority and ooze cheesy horror that does nothing to enhance the basic simple song arrangements. The unreleased material brings another mix of ‘Feel Like Rock n Roll’ and a few other tracks, but nothing of any significant difference is worthy of mention, what they really need is to find someone else to redo the vocals and beef up the mix a little bit.
Considered below par in 83-84 and this has pretty much the same status today and further forward in the future. This is a must avoid CD; unless you like some humour and ridicule to entertain a group drinking a lot of beer (you will need a shed load too). Or perhaps you are one of those sorts who pays stupid money for crap old releases on a well-known auction site, but for me this rating merely justifies the artwork of which is the most redeeming feature of this compilation album that should really and truly remain a lost relic.
(2/10 Paul Maddison)
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