WOW, well blow me over with a
feather, I’m shocked. This was not what I was expecting when asked to review
this album. I was going to can it after 1 or 2 listens, but Crash Street Kids
had another idea. The music is so captivating & fresh & the vocals of Ryan McKay
are such a pleasure to listen to. I thought Transatlantic Suicide was going to
be another poor glam album jumping on the band wagon created by Wig Wam,
Hardcore Superstar & Miss Crazy, but I was totally wrong. This is glam, but this
is well played and executed ‘70s glam rock & roll. Think early Bowie, T-Rex,
Slade, Sweet & Moot The Hoople. I can even hear some Queen & Beatles.
After doing some research on
Crash Street Kids I found out that The Supersonic Star Show Part 3:
Transatlantic Suicide (to give this it's full title) is actually the third and
final installment in the band's trilogy of albums about a rock star named “The
Kid” (Let's Rock and Roll Tonite part 1 & Chemical Dogs part 2 ) These a both on
there way to me as I write this & I hope they are half as good as this one!!!!
The first track “The Engineers”
starts off with a real psychedelic organ & acoustic guitar, you think, this is a
weird opener for an album. Then after 2 minutes in rips into a real glam rocker
almost punk like. “Do You Still Believe in Rock & Roll?” is what Crash Street
Kids is all about, ‘70s glam rock & roll all the way baby, excellent track.
“Cigarettes & Starf*ckers” has to be a single, this fucking rocks your ass off.
Love the lyrics in this song all about getting busted for drugs and stuff (The
Fall of “The Kid”). Very well written track. “I Disappear” & “Destroyer” are in
my opinion two of the best glam rock tracks I have heard since “Ziggy Stardust”.
The last half of the album (Or
side 2 if we were in the ‘70s & still listening to vinyl) is where Transatlantic
Suicide takes off into the theatrical side of the album, which I think, is the
best half of the album. A lot of influence comes into the music in this half of
the album. “Berlin” is a monster track and I can The Beatles-Sgt Pepper’s Lonely
Hearts Club Band all over it. “Dressed In White” is a 4 part (“Termination”,
“Dressed In White”, “The Front Row” and "30 Seconds to Window") 9 minute song.
Again a very well written glam rock & roll track. Starts out full throttle
before pulling things back to a ballad & then finishing again with some awesome
Bowie influence organ & vocals. This track is worth the price of the CD itself.
“The Kid Is Dead?” finishes off this great musical carpet ride. I swear you will
be singing the chorus in your head for days.
This is an album that sticks the
big middle finger up to the record companies that think that glam rock & roll is
dead. The only sad thing about this is, if this was 1975 Crash Street Kids would
be a band the whole world would have heard about.
Taken from the bands web site - Included with the album
is a DVD containing live footage from the legendary Whiskey A Go-Go in LA along
with a performance from Alice Cooperstown in the bands Phoenix hometown. There's
also a documentary on the making of the album featuring interviews with the band
members. It's an interesting and welcome addition to the album and makes the
whole package even more worthwhile giving you the perfect insight into how the
album was put together.
