Alien Alright/The Exodus Is Here
Alien Alright is alien alright as The Exodus Is Here really doesn’t sound like anything being hyped by the U.K. press at the moment. Although the Darkness plumbs virtually the same classic-rock and heavy metal influences that Alright plugs into here, he takes them into a different, more experimental direction. Alright seems to be steeped into the “anything goes” philosophy of the late Frank Zappa, whom he does resemble vocally at times, especially on “Vintage Music,” which stitches together rough-edged guitars, speaker-spinning vocal effects, and an almost Beastie Boys-ish interplay at times. It’s quite strange at first, but then it grows on you, especially when it hits you that Alright is simply having fun.
“Underdog Appeal” is soaked in glam-era flamboyant riffola; I haven’t heard guitars this big since Spinal Tap. However, it’s all unpolished, the rawness giving a true mule kick to your ear. The layers of fuzz and explosive singing on “Make Some Noise” are definitely in the caveman spirit of Iggy and the Stooges. The best cut, the singalong anthem “Unsigned and Proud,” relishes in its garage-rock stomp with a delirious psychedelic pull. It’s not for everyone, and Alright won’t be winning over the short attention span crowd with the nine-minute closer “Record Store Blues,” but Alright’s uncompromising nature and the unpredictability of his songs has me in his corner.
