Crazy Lixx-Riot Avenue

Frontiers
2012

This is the third album from Sweden's Crazy Lixx. I remember when their debut received quite a bit of hype as have a lot of recent glam bands from Sweden. Although I don't think any of these bands have quite exploded like many people predicted they would four or five years ago. Back to Crazy Lixx. They have a definite Def Leppard mixed with sleaze rock sound. This time around they have definitely made an effort to put some rock into their approach. Now this album is at times more subtle than I wish it were. However they do manage to cut loose to some extent with tracks like the AC/DC inspired "In the night" and the punchy "Be Gone". Mostly you get more mid-tempo rockers with simple yet catchy choruses. The album definitely heats up as it goes along. When they finished the album with the slow "Only the dead know" I was shaking my head because I prefer an album to end on a more powerful note, but the vocals helped this song to be strong. There is some definite growth in their writing this time around. Not everything clicks, but overall they take some chances and most of them work out. This isn't quite the explosion I was hoping for and like most younger glam bands they still have not quite formed their own identity, but it's a fun album that I felt myself warming up to a little more each time I played it.