Hydrogyn-"Deadly Passions"-2008
Hydrogyn were somewhat dogged by
controversy early on in their career, as some felt that the band didn..t
live up to the initial hype surrounding the release of their debut,
"Bombshell". Unfairly or not, maybe that was the reason I didn..t really
check into the band. Well, after catching the band live at the Flight
Of The Valkyries festival, all I can say is "What the HELL was I
thinking??"! After that, performance, I ran to the back of the venue,
snapped up a copy of "Deadly Passions" and proceeded to do some
much-needed catching up. The nucleus of Hydrogyn is vocalist Julie
Westlake and guitarist/producer Jeff Westlake. The band sound straddles
the fence between Blues-inflected [always wanted to use that term in a
review!;)] Heavy Rock and the Hellbent-for-leather stylings of their
more Metallic contemporaries. It..s a formula that has worked in their
favor, especially on "Deadly Passions". Unlike "Bombshell", which was
produced by the legendary Michael Wagener, Jeff Westlake assumed
knob-turning duties this time out, and he obviously took notes. The
sound here is not TOO polished but very in-your-face, with just the
right amount of crunch, punch and clarity. Guitars are big and loud,
choruses are HUGE, and of course there..s the iron lunged vocals of
Julie Westlake. With a name like Hydrogyn, what ELSE would you expect,
a squaredance? Among my personal favorites are "Rejection", the title
track, "Over U", "Candles Light Your Face", "Silent Animation" and the
closing ballad "Shadow". The surprise here is a cover of "You Oughta
Know", yep, the very same "You Oughta Know" originally recorded by The
Angst Queen Of 1995, Alanis Morissette! And while I never had the right
time of day for the original, I definitely like the Hydrogyn-fuelled
version much better! All in all, Hydrogyn managed to avoid the
"Sophomore Jinx",crafting an album that provides another stepping stone
to the massive success that is surely on it..s way!