Silent Rage – Four Letter Work
Frontiers Records
www.frontiers.it

Rating: C-

Silent Rage damn near made it back in 1989 when they seemed they were going to crawl from the slime of the LA Strip and be the next big thing.  As close as they came, it never came to be.  Instead, the band retreated into obscurity. 

Fast forward to 2009 and the band has been signed to Frontiers Records and is attempting a comeback.  They enlisted former Guns N’ Roses axe master Gilby Clarke to produce and mix the CD and even play on a track.  Gilby made a nice sounding CD.  Silent Rage comes across exactly as they should.  The issue with the CD is the songs.  While they are talented, they really push the 80’s thing too hard.  I am totally against a band not being who they are.  To often bands seem to push themselves into thinking the thing to do is to sound modern.  They end up making a mockery of themselves.  Silent Rage does not do that but they do sort of do it a bit in reverse.  The album sounds a bit forced.  From the opening notes of “You Could Be The One” to the last of “Trouble” the album seems to have a bit of desperation to it that seems to be saying, “This is our last chance.”   

It is a good album but not a great album.  It does harken back to the 80’s when hair bands ruled the world.  So, if Sunset Strip era Dokken and Crue is your thing then you will love this band.  If you demand a little more out of your music then you will be disappointed.  

By Jeb Wright