In For The Kill

I'm not really a big fan of cover songs, especially when an entire album consists of them and they are all performed by same artist. However, after listening to "In For The Kill" by ex Quiet Riot vocalist Kevin Dubrow, I can make an exception. Dubrow's choice of songs consists of twelve covers, mostly from the early 70's. They include: 01. Burn On the Flame - SWEET 02. Good Rocking Tonight - MONTROSE 03. Black Sheep Of The Family - QUARTERMASS/RAINBOW 04. Speed King - DEEP PURPLE 05. Stay With Me - THE FACES 06. Red Light Mama, Red Hot - HUMBLE PIE 07. Gonna Have A Good Time - THE EASYBEATS 08. Modern Times Rock N Roll - QUEEN 09. Drivin' Sister - MOTT THE HOOPLE 10. Razzamanaz - NAZARETH 11. 20th Century Boy - T- REX 12. Rolling With My Baby - SILVERHEAD I have heard the original versions of some of these songs and must say Dubrow has done them justice. He has stayed true to the originals for the most part, succeeding in making them his own by injecting new life into these classics. It's a nice change to hear songs from over 30 years ago updated with today's style of musicianship and recording technology. Helping Dubrow out are Kevin Curry (guitars), Gunter Nezhoda (bass), Jeff Martin (drums), and Michael Lardie (keyboards and harp). The Rainbow cover, "Black Sheep Of The Family", is a little slower than the original and the keyboard runs during the Deep Purple cover, "Speed King", sound a bit more distorted, seeming like they are trying to re-create the original John Lord keyboard sound. "Stay With Me" is probably the best done cover versions, complete with slide guitars and wurli keyboards. I could even tell (without ever hearing the original) that the up beat "Burn On The Flame" was a Sweet cover based on the style of the song . It is also reminiscent of how Quiet Riot formulated many of their songs after. This is my favorite track on the album. Dubrow's voice has held up well over the years. Sure, his voice can sound like he strains at times but he can still belt out a tune with much control and power. Based on the album cover (half of Dubrow's face, half of the Quiet Riot mask), I get the impression that Dubrow is trying to put the Quiet Riot side of his career behind him. This cover even reminds me of the one Peter Criss did for his solo album, "Criss Cat #1", where Criss painted his face with half of his cat persona from KISS. My only real disappointment with this CD is that he didn't release a solo album of all original material. The next logical step for him would be to do a solo album of all original material. Dubrow has a tight and talented band behind him and he should take advantage of this. Dubrow plans to tour this summer in support of "In For The Kill".