For those who have been attending Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard’s long anticipated Stadium Tour, the name “Classless Act” has been gracing the lips of those fortunate to show up early enough for their unadvertised 15 minute opening set. I’d call them an “up and coming” band, but that would imply they’ve released some demos beforehand or have been kicking around on the club circuit, working their way up to open a mega jaunt like this. No, Classless Act seemed to materialize out of thin air. Now as much as I’d like to, I won’t speculate how they landed such a gig with such anonymity. I will, however, review their debut full length, Welcome to the Show, for all you readers wondering if it’s worthwhile to show up to a stadium at 4 in the afternoon.
Unlike most retro rock bands, Classless Act are no one trick pony. They have a lot going on in their sound, so much so that at times it comes off as a tad too much. Yes, variety is the spice of life and the last thing I need to hear is another album of pretentious Zeppelin worship (not firing shots at anybody…I promise), but at times Welcome to the Show is less a cohesive body of work and more the sound of a young band finding their style in real time. Which mind you, there’s nothing wrong with in moderation. Take albums like Judas Priest’s Rocka Rolla (1974) and Scorpions’ Lonesome Crow (1972) for example. While both are mediocre at best, you couldn’t have the rest of their catalog without them.
Will Classless Act go on to reach the creative and commercial glory of these aforementioned legends? Time will tell, but based on about half of Welcome to the Show, they certainly have the chops to one day do so. The album opens with the rough and rowdy namesake track: a scorcher that boasts sleazy riffage and nonstop drive, not to mention, a guest verse from Crüe frontman Vince Neil, who mysteriously sounds the same as he did on Too Fast for Love (1981). I won’t ask any questions. “This Is for You” is dripping with glam swagger, and not just because of an appearance from The Darkness’s Justin Hawkins, while “Time to Bleed” and “On My Phone” nail the breezy car ride and anthemic power ballad aesthetics of the 80s respectively.
As the album progresses, things start to get a bit shaky in terms of songwriting, although the band never truly loses their way. It’s more likely a matter of my picky musical taste. I can’t get enough of the gnarly blues n’ boogie rocker that is “All That We Are”, or the mid 2000s emo band trying Cheap Trick power pop of “Haunting Love”. I can, however, do without cuts like “Made in Hell”, “Storm Before the Calm”, and “Circles”, which come off as disposable modern rock. These latter half duds are redeemed by the party metal muscle of “Give It to Me”, and psychedelic Beatlesesque balladry of “Thoughts from a Dying Man”.
For album #2, Classless Act oughta focus on what they do best: rowdy hard rock with glimmers of glam and pop. Leave the modern rock trappings at the door. There’s a reason the bands who choose to play that miserable post-grunge garbage are resigned to selling tickets to see them at a sports bar in Bumfuck, Ohio. Despite their name, Classless Act is FAR above this. I feel it in my heart and look forward to when they can further deliver on such feelings.
6 out of 10
Label: Better Noise Music
Genre: Hard Rock
For fans of: Aerosmith, The Darkness, Sweet