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In the new dawn of millennials, snowflakes, and the general sensation of someone, somewhere is being offended by the slightest thing. Could Buckcherry release ‘Crazy Bitch’ today? Yeah, they probably could, but it would no doubt offend someone. Buckcherry vocalist, Josh Todd, probably gives zero fucks though. Charismatic, with an incredible stage presence, Todd is a bonafide “rock god”, the living embodiment of what Axl might have looked like had he looked after himself. Taking a timeout from Buckcherry, he is back with a new band, Josh Todd & The Conflict, ‘Year Of The Tiger’ being the debut album. Short, sharp, and snotty, ‘Year Of The Tiger’ cuts you up on the road and raises the middle finger in the rear view mirror. Four of the eleven tracks featured don’t pass the three minute mark. Punk-fuelled adrenaline, but with better guitars. The opening pair of ‘Year Of The Tiger and the Motörhead inspired ‘Inside’ pulverise. The drumming on the latter (from Sean Winchester) is top quality. Remember the video for ‘Smack My Bitch Up’?, the drink and drug fuelled 100mph what-the-hell-did-I-just-watch video?.. this pair of beauties would be the perfect soundtrack for the sequel. No hanging around at all, straight into Todd rapping/spitting the lyrics out over a breakneck-speed guitar sound from Buckcherry bandmate, Stevie D. As far away from the day job for these two as you could imagine. No time to catch the breath though, as ‘Fucked Up’ spews forth with the nastiest guitar groove imaginable. The bass licks from Gregg Cash are fat and beefy, and one simply must headbang. A breather is offered up by ‘Rain’ with it’s hypnotic, infectious handclaps, before Josh Todd warns us that we better lock our doors as “I got a sinister mind and a really dark side and I’m rotten to the fucking core”. Don’t worry if the cussing offends you, there is also a clean version of the song later on. The riffs from Stevie D are gigantic, and this one will surely crush on stage. Continuing with the softer side of Josh Todd & The Conflict is ‘Good Enough’. Acoustic driven, with a trippy vibe, it showcases the depth within the band. ‘Story Of My Life’ begins with one of those simple guitar riffs that are the beginning of so many hard rock gems. Chugging guitar licks and thumping tribal drums fill up the breakdowns on one of the more commercial tracks on the album. More akin to Buckcherry than the majority of the album, it has many earworm moments. The band funk it up on ‘Erotic City’, which unless I had known who was playing, I would have thought it was Dan Reed Network. Funky and filthy… what’s not to like? The only unanswered question after multiple spins of ‘Year Of The Tiger’ is: Where are the tour dates, dude? Available now through Century Media, more information here. Review: Dave Stott]]>
