Album Review by EDF
I just don’t know what to think about this one. In the past, I have heard many demos a guitarist friend of mine used to make with one of his bands. Most of the time the music was good and the cheap recording would sound all right, for what it was, but every now and then a track would come up where my friend’s enthusiasm just would not rub off me. This CD highlights this exact feeling.
Bert has been playing drums since 1977 and has put together a collection of performances of which the sound quality is average. Bert quit drumming in 1993 but picked up his sticks late 2001. The two more recently recorded tracks OUTSIDE REALITY sounds like drummer and guitarist warming themselves up while OUT OF THE STRAIGHT JACKET finds Bert doing his best Animal from the Muppets impersonation are impressive enough, for a drummer. Other gems included a boom box recording of Ozzy Osborne’s Crazy Train recorded in 1985 with a 13 year-old guitarist. All this is starting to sound a bit deja vu to me. Next up is a performance with Joe Rainbow on a track that sounds like it’s rooted to the 1960’s flower power era.
Following on are a set of tracks recorded between 1977-1979 on cassette by The Destroyed who apparently were locally despised by both club owners and fans, who would end up throwing bottles at the group. Oh dear. If they had ever played the UK during the punk period, where they would have fitted in quite nicely, they would have had a lot worse flying in their direction. The earliest recording here is with Monster Island in 1977, who sound like a progressive jazz-rock group where each member of the group is playing their own thing.
Not too sure who will buy this. While it is mildly interesting, only those who actually remember The Destroyed might purchase this, if only to remember their youth.
