In case you haven’t figured out by now, I’m a huge Dokken fan. I own nearly every album, have an original Back for the Attack era poster taped on my wall, and even had the honor of interviewing the man himself. So whenever a member of the classic lineup releases new music, I dive head first and check it out.
Today’s album in review features not one, but two Dokken members: George Lynch and Jeff Pilson. Both have collaborated together throughout their post-Dokken years, in bands like T&N and The End Machine. However, the last time we got a proper Lynch / Pilson release was Wicked Underground (2003). This King’s X flavored modern rock album is considered a cult classic by many. It never did much for me, but hey, I’ll take any opportunity I get to check out new music from either of these two.
Their latest album, Heavy Hitters, is a collection of covers that continues in the vein of Wicked Underground. Its accompanying press release describes it as “a set of new studio recordings that turn pop music classics into powerful metal anthems”. Now when I think of metal, I think of the blistering riffs and solos that make up Tooth and Nail. There’s none to be found on here. A more accurate description would be “powerful rock anthems” or even “powerful hard rock anthems”. Which raises the next issue: These songs definitely aren’t metal. Are they as powerful as promised?
The answer to that question is yes and no. There’s a handful of cuts that truly rock. The boys lay it down for a groovy rendition of Rufus’s “You Got the Love”, featuring Marq Torien of BulletBoys infamy on vocals. Carole King gets the Lynch Mob treatment on “I Feel the Earth Move”, and a modern hard rock tackling of the early 60s classic, “Nowhere to Run”, surprisingly works.
Another track which I’m not sure I’d necessarily call a “highlight”, but is worth pointing out, is “Apologize”. Originally performed by 2000s mom rockers OneRepublic, I vividly remember when this was the biggest song on the planet. Yes, back in late 2007, you literally could not turn on the radio without hearing it. Perhaps I give it a pass due to the nostalgia factor, although Lynch’s extended solo at the end makes it worth checking out.
The rest of Heavy Hitters misses the mark in the “powerful” department and then some. Their renditions of Joan Osborne’s “One of Us”, Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World”, and Oasis’s “Champagne Supernova” are as inoffensive as the original recordings. I didn’t think any cover could be as questionable as Mötley Crüe’s “Like a Virgin”, but Lynch and Pilson’s take on another Madonna song, “Music”, gives Sixx and the gang a run for their money. Perhaps most depressing is the neutered rendition of Prince’s “Kiss”, which continues to prove my point that nobody should cover the Purple One. Prince himself despised covers, but that’s another story for another day.
In keeping with most Dokken related releases of the last couple decades, Heavy Hitters is recommended for only the most diehard of diehards. It’s enjoyable for a spin or two, but suffers from more misses than hits.
5 out of 10
Label: Deadline Music
Genre: Hard Rock
For fans of: Lynch Mob, King’s X, Lenny Kravitz