Artist: Big Ball
Title: Hotter Then Hell
Type: Album
Label: AFM

Well, this was a toughie to review. Everything about this album wanted me to hate it and do my most eloquent best to destroy it. And with good reason, being the most derivative act I’ve heard in a long time. From note one the album sounds like an undiscovered and discarded AC/DC album, complete with agonised Brian Johnson vocal squeals, Young brother’s riffs, and the thudding bass and drums of Williams and Rudd. Even the chanted group vocals of ‘Big Balls Crew’ were lifted straight from ‘Balls to the Wall’, as was every guitar solo and lyrical innuendo.

What redeemed this album was the fact that the band has the good grace to admit that if you don’t like AC/DC you won’t like them, and they don’t pretend to be anything that they aren’t. Another good feature was the comedy value inherent in lyrics from tracks like ‘Porno Lisa’ and ‘Hell Whores & High Heels’; yep, they’re misogynistic rubbish, but in the overly masculine but ultimately camp ‘Carry On’ style rather then the dark and worrying way of some black metal bands. The line from title track, ‘Hotter the Hell’ sums up the near parody of hard rock macho posturing that the band pumps out. To quote, “she sits on me, riding fast, until she feels, my mighty blast!” Not Shakespeare, barely even Spinal Tap, but silly fun nevertheless.

Well played as it is, I don’t know the longevity of what is essentially an AC/DC tribute act hailing from Germany, no matter how well played. That said, they’re opening for Saxon across Europe rather then being tied to the occasional Friday night down at their local pub, so maybe they know something I don’t.

http://www.bigballrocks.com
http://www.myspace.com/bigballrocks

Spenny Bullen

MTUK HOME