Inject this glitter in our veins and take us back to the glory days of guitar-led glam rock and the mid 1980s. LIPZ have released their second album Changing The Melody and having had it on repeat for more than two weeks, we can confirm this is a certified banger.
Formed back in 2011 by the Klintberg brothers, vocalist/guitarist Alexander and drummer Koffe, and their best friend guitarist Conny Svärd, the band have never strayed from the sound and inspirations for both their musical style and their look. Last year the band penned a deal with Frontiers Records, and their new collaboration with the much respected label bared early fruit both with their single Bye Bye Beautiful, and now this new album.
Changing The Melody is a record that wouldn’t feel out of place in the Cathouse at the height of the era, where spandex, teased permed hair and leopard print were among the three staples of both the men and the women.
The record begins with I’m Going Under, featuring a riff which sounds like it would be right at home on Kickstart My Heart, before the title track rolls in with a slower pace, but a fist pumping chorus where Alexander sings “we are the darkness in your voice, the shadow within you life.”
‘Bang Bang’ sees the boys stomp on the gas again for a faster pace while Stop Talk About – a Steel Panther tempo song which seems to take aim at people talking too much about shit – and the recent single Bye Bye Beautiful follow next, with the latter nailed on to be a live favourite. Bye Bye Beautiful is a song with all the fun and over the topness we have come to expect from LIPZ, but one that veers into themes of self-destruction and self-awareness.
The record’s anthematic moment arrives and fills the room and our ears with I’m Alive, which has an infectious opening groove, nesting ear worms for the rest of the day. This is a track we can imagine a venue full of make-up clad LIPZ fans roaring back and stomping a mud hole in the ground.
Freak is a sugary sweet ballad style track and what 80s glam record would ever drop without a ballad? This is one album which won’t break that glorious tradition as one of two ballads, with the record’s penultimate track I Would Die For You ticking all the boxes for repeat MTV airplay back in the day, with its delicate piano intro before a building drum beat and tempo change brings in the guitars. Secret Lover has a catchy chorus which edges us towards the end, where the curtain comes down with Monsterz.
7/10
Standout Tracks: I Would Die For You, Bye Bye Beautiful, Freak
For Fans Of: KISS, Motley Crue, Cinderella, Crashdiet
Written by: Eric Mackinnon
