When Tokyo Motor Fist released their self-titled debut back in 2017, it turned out as one of the biggest positive surprises of that year. Looked upon as yet another Frontiers project, that wasn’t exactly the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The involvement from the record company, this time, was minimal and the whole shebang was written and produced by guitarist Steve Brown alone. With Trixter on hiatus, Brown wanted a project to keep him busy and he got in touch with Danger Danger singer Ted Poley and bassist Greg Smith (Alice Cooper, Rainbow) and drummer Chuck Bürgi (Rainbow) and formed what was, I guess, supposed to be a side project.
But the band got off to very good and promising start with good sales and a whole lot of raving reviews – and the band even played on some occasions, something that’s not very common when it comes to these Frontiers all-star projects. The fact that we would be treated with a sequel soon became a no-brainer. “Positive surprise”, I wrote above. I mean, I think that the two latest Trixter albums New Audio Machine (2012) and Human Era (2015) are both awesome records so I had no doubts about Brown as a song-writer. But since I didn’t know beforehand how involved in the song-writing process the rest of the band would be, I had really no clue how the record would turn out. Now the sequel is here and it is with sky-high expectations and intrigue I sink my teeth into their brand new effort.
The guys open the album with the leading single “Youngblood” and f**k me sideways – is this a total hit or what? This upbeat yet mid-paced Melodic Rock stomper slams away with hooks everywhere, pop-vibes and catchiness enough to sell. There are traces of both modern-day Trixter, Danger Danger and a nice chunk of Def Leppard for good measure. With a huge chorus that’s superglued to the brain after just one listen, this isn’t just one of the best Melodic Rock/AOR songs I have heard this year, it’s also a hit if there ever was one. Brilliant! “Monster In Me” is a pop-rocker with an 80’s swing with a continuing hook-fest, addictive melodies all over and “whoa-whoa-whoa”‘s that will make any festival-crowd chant their lungs out. With a monster Def Lep-riff and an even more monstrously huge chorus, this is another bull’s eye track – and it needs to be a single as well. Awesome.
Latest single “Around Midnight” is an upbeat, party-groovy and in-your-face Melodic Rock stomper with a big live-feel even though it’s both smooth, slick and easy on the ear. The tune brings on a bit of a power-pop twist together with a Tyketto meets Trixter main-melody. As a single, it’s a no-brainer as the refrain is enormously contagious with more of those striking gang-vocals. I love this. “Mean It” brings on more of groovy Rock beat in the verses and is a bit crunchier than the previous tracks. Still, with these guys, the 80’s are never far away and more “whoa”‘s, strong and massive chorus-melodies takes this one upfront as a tribute to what they love about 80’s melodic Hard Rock. This is late 80’s Arena Rock at its best and I find some big hit-potential in here as well. Great stuff.
Next up is the album’s title-track “Lions” and it is the most progressive song this band has ever recorded – and it really stands out style-wise here no matter what you think of it. It’s a big, grandiose ballad, quite bombastic and even though it contains smooth melodies and synth-strings with more nods towards Def Leppard with an 80’s structure, there are inserted influences and inspiration from bands such as Styx and Queen which brings a whole other dynamic to this tune. Speaking of Styx, Dennis DeYoung guests on the track with pompous keyboard-solo as well. This is an almost seven minute, epic monster-ballad with a massive refrain that surely breaks new ground for the band. Fabulous stuff.
As a contrast the rowdy Hard Rock driven rocker “Decadence On 10th Street” is up next. This tune is edgier and rougher than all the previous songs and brings on a big, fat late 80’s/early 90’s guitar based outlook with a clear Extreme influence albeit with a more Melodic Rock laden refrain. On a solid beat, a whole lotta hooks and catchiness, the tune is another high-light of the album. “Dream Your Heart Out” comes on with some more laid-back and quiet verses but when the chorus is getting closer, some chunky and crispier guitars comes along bringing with some smooth melodies and a good beat. The song holds a memorable enough chorus but as a whole, it’s not as strong as the previous tracks.
With “Blow Your Mind”, the pace is slowed down to the point where it’s on the threshold to a ballad. It’s a somewhat sullen tune yet quite smooth with slick and silky vocal-melodies. That said, it’s not a cheesy tune and not overly sugary either. It’s hooky all over the, once again, highly catchy chorus which gets stuck in my mind right from hello. Really good. One of the absolute high-lights is “Sedona”, an arena-rocker with an insert of Classic Rock with a big groove, crispy and crunchy guitars and even a horn-section (well, it’s synth-horns, to be frank) with an accompanying saxophone solo which makes the tune a future live-killer without a doubt. And the chorus kills, of course. Style-wise it’s a mixture of early 90’s American Arena Rock, Extreme and Aerosmith’s Permanent Vacation days. This is brilliant.
Late 80’s Melodic Rock/AOR is the template for “Look Into Me”, a mid-paced and softer yet groove-laden pop-rock-AOR tune where they band go smooth deluxe on us. It’s not bad at all but it’s a bit too saccharine and even mawkish with not enough crunch around the edges. It’s a pretty good tune but it doesn’t stand out the way most of the other songs do. As a closer we get “Winner Takes All”, an uptempo, Hard Rock driven Melodic Rock stomper – pretty straight-forward and in-your-face which also brings along a string-section for good measure. It’s a smooth yet rocking tune which also brings a live-feel to the table. I’m pretty sure Steve Brown is clueless about them but the big, hook-infested and massively catchy chorus reminds of Swedish rockers Crazy Lixx. Very good indeed.
Just like the debut album, there’s nothing really new under the sun here and Brown has no issues with wearing his influences on his sleeve – he loves the 80’s and he shows it. I have no problem with that – as long as we’re being served a good production, good musicians and great songs then I’m all in. And on Tokyo Motor Fist’s second album that’s exactly what we’re given – just like we were with their debut album. Listen, TMF isn’t here to break new ground or getting deep and dark, they’re here to have fun and entertain and that exactly what they’re doing – and I’m enjoying the hell out of it. I’m not sure if they have bettered the debut here but it’s without a doubt easily as good and that’s good enough for me. Man, I would love to see this band live when the Covid garbage is over and out.
8/10
More Tokyo Motor Fist reviews:
Tracklist:
1. Youngblood
2. Monster In Me
3. Around Midnight
4. Mean It
5. Lions
6. Decadence On 10th Street
7. Dream Your Heart Out
8. Blow Your Mind
9. Sedona
10. Look Into Me
11. Winner Takes All
CD & Festival reviews 