Lynch Mob, the brainchild of guitarist George Lynch (ex-Dokken,
ex-Ozzy Osbourne), return once more with studio-album no. 5 since the band’s
first incarnation. Akin a handful of surviving bands from the U.S.A., such as
Night Ranger, Winger and Dokken, Lynch Mob proffer quality and technically adept
Hard Rock. On this level, “Smoke And Mirrors” doesn’t disappoint.
The album sounds particularly convincing in the more bluesy
songs such as the infectious ‘My Kind of Healing’ - a far cry from the misguided
rap-metal of 1999’s “Smoke This” album (Hmmm…I wonder if the similarity between
the album titles is purely a co-incidence…). The impact of “Smoke and Mirrors”
might not be too strong in today’s highly diverse music panorama. Lynch Mob,
however, do seem to have positively evolved in aspects such as sound-recording
quality.
Old time fans will be happy to hear the voice of Oni Logan in
Lynch Mob’s fold. (Before “S.&M.” the last recording Oni had done with the band
was “Syzygy”, which dated back to 1998.) Songs such as ‘Where Do You Sleep At
Night’ prove that his voice is still in strong form. His singing often reminds
me of the late great Ray Gillen, albeit certainly not on par with latter’s
genius. With George and Oni are drummer Scott Coogan (Ace Frehley, Brides Of
Destruction) and bassist Marco Mendoza (Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy). Indeed an
impressive line-up which generally delivers to its expectations.
“Smoke and Mirrors” wouldn’t, so to speak, challenge the
intellectually discerning listener. On the other hand, if it’s no-bullshit, good
old Hard Rock that makes your day, look no further than “Smoke and Mirrors”.
