Ladies and gentlemen of Metal Injection, I present to you on of the greatest rock and roll albums of the year, one of the hardest hitting, world shaking, mind breaking records to ever cross my path. This is an album that takes all of the demented magic of rock and roll and shows us that there is so much more to come from Chuck Berry's music. You see, Tower are Brooklyn's rock and roll saviors. From that first incredible cry of "In the deadly winter!" Sarabeth Linden holds you captive, a blazing queen guiding forth a rock and roll army. This band is hands down one of the most talented acts to hit the scene in the last twenty years and their debut proves it. Few groups are truly as exciting and dynamic as Tower and almost none have the same top notch songwriting sensibilities, it may sound like I'm raving, but seriously, jam this shit and try not to fall in love. This is a band who borrow from every side of the rock and roll spectrum to create something incredibly bombastic and endlessly addictive.
Everything about this band seems perfectly calibrated to flat out rock. Obviously Sarabeth Linden's fiery vocals are a highlight, but there's so much beyond that. The guitar solos are impeccable, every single one is perfectly written, telling a story and communicating the magic of pure rock and roll with every devastating note. Toss in rhythms that borrow heavily from traditional thrash metal and you start to get a sense for the high speed magic of Tower. They refuse to compromise, instead they get wilder and more ferocious with every passing song. There are a surprising amount of layers here too, making this far more than just a rock record. The vocal harmonies, courtesy of Philippe Arman are absolutely stunning, they add a lot of meat to an already very well produced record. See, Tower are like something out of a movie, hyper-polished, over the top and willing to offer just about everything you would ever want from a rock and roll band. It's perfect to the point that you think it might be a joke, but then you get a sense for their devastating dedication to their craft and you have to take a step back and honor their genuine power.
There is an energy here almost reminiscent of Judas Priest or even The Donnas. They get the power of heavy metal, but are unafraid to inject more than their fair share of punk rock, despite the obvious talent of the musicians involved. Listening to Tower is like listening to a group of rock and roll superheroes who came to earth to blast away the posers. Every track is high energy and almost overwhelming, but maintains just enough dynamic interest to keep you wanting to come back time and time again. This band is impossible to truly pin down, simply because they have so goddamn much going for them. I'm genuinely convinced there is nothing that Tower can not do. They have the swagger and the sheer balls it takes to push everything to the next level and then some. So dive on in with me and taste the sweet liqueur, as the song says, "We've been having a party and we're all just ready to rock!"
Score: 10/10
