with
by
antiGUY
Fozzy
– Happenstance
Label: Metal
Blade
Rating: 
If you have heard
of the band Fozzy then chances are that you know the whole PR story behind
them. The actual band was conceived by WWE’s Chris Jericho and Rich Ward
of Stuck Mojo fame but when they hit the scene a Spinal Tap like cover
story was concocted to give the group some attention. For those who don’t
know the cover story, here is a brief summery.
The Legend of
Fozzy
 The
band Fozzy was founded around 1980 by a group of teenagers in Delaware,
who in a backlash against disco and new wave conceived of a new heavier
type of music that built upon the metal of bands like Black Sabbath.
The group put together
a demo of some of their songs and the demo somehow ended up in the hands
of Masami “Sammy” Tomami, the president of Big Happy Rock Mountain Records,
once of Japan’s largest record labels. Tomami liked what he heard
and flew the Delaware youngsters to Japan and seduced them into signing
an exclusive 20-year contract that limited their music to release only
in Japan and kept the members from leaving the country.
Four fateful days
after Fozzy had signed on the dotted line, the record label went under
due to Tomami’s mismanagement and questionable investments. The record
exec went into hiding and the band was stuck in Japan for the next twenty
years. Legend has it that Tomami sent Ninja’s to threaten the band and
their loved ones to keep them from leaving the country before their contract
was up.
The members of the
group were stuck having to work in menial labor jobs to keep a roof over
their heads but they didn’t let it keep them from rocking! They managed
to record an album in one of the worst studios in Japan. About a year later
they had discovered that their music had leaked out of Japan and landed
in the US. They heard that the music was becoming hugely popular back home
and they excitedly look forward to returning to America to play their new
hit songs. But something more sinister was in store for Fozzy. When they
happened to hear a music sampler included in a Japanese music magazine,
to their horror they discovered that groups like Iron Maiden, Dio, Judas
Priest and Twisted Sister had stolen their songs and were ridding them
to the top of the charts and kicking off the 80’s metal explosion with
Fozzy’s songs!
The band became determined
to return home and claim their rightful spot as the kings of metal! But
they didn’t have the money so they had to save what little they could from
their meager minimum wage paychecks in hopes of one day having enough money
to get out of Japan and back on US soil. After twenty years they finally
had enough money to make the trip, returned home and introduced the world
to the original versions of songs that had become classic by other metal
bands who stole Fozzy’s thunder and claimed the music as their own.
Ok we know about
the gimmick but is the music any good?
Surprisingly, yes!
Not to doubt a pro-wrestler who envisions himself a metal vocalist, but
with a cover story like Fozzy’s you might expect the music to sound a bit
amateurish like the music of Spinal Tap but leaving the silly story behind
Fozzy did put real effort into the music and it shows.
Now the group has
released a new CD called “Happenstance” which includes several covers (oops
we mean original Fozzy versions of songs that were ripped off by other
bands) as well as four original tracks.
If you can get beyond
the groups bogus bio and listen to the music you will find some solid metal
that actually stacks up against many of yesterday and today’s most respected
“real” metal bands (nu-metal doesn’t apply).
Once you’re into the disc you forget all about the ridiculous band bio
and start rockin out. The covers are a lot of fun and do the original’s
proud, Fozzy took the task of presenting their songs seriously and in some
instances brought more metal to the mix, like their brain churning cover
of “Freewheel Burning” which if you look at from a Spinal Tap perspective,
the original Judas Priest version was delivered at 10 and Fozzy took things
up to 11, for that extra push over the cliff.
Their heavier than
the original practice continues with their version of the Black Sabbath
classic, “The Mob Rules” and their version of the Scorpions “Big City Nights”
is faithful to the original but a with a lot more crunch and well just
plain old metal flavor.
By far the best track
on this disc is the balls to the wall cover of Accept’s “Balls To Wall”,
how could you not love this one? It actually songs a little like Motorhead
covering Accept. It simply kicks ass.
The provide an insane
cover of Iron Maiden’s “Where Eagles Dare” where they really showcase their
instrumental talents and Jericho’s voice gives the song an interesting
new spin but it’s the music that steals the limelight with it’s slightly
heavier approach to the instrumentation.
The Fozzy remake
of the W.A.S.P. classic “L.O.V.E. Machine” works musically but this is
one song where Jericho’s vocals fall flat, Blackie Lawless has a distinctive
metal voice that can’t be mimicked. The song still works but the vocals
keep it from being a great cover.
Fozzy prove themselves
to be more than a great cover band with their original tracks as well.
The music is quality and if you can get past the silly “fiction” of the
band and give the music an honest listen most metalheads should love what
they hear and bang their heads furiously to Fozzy’s high octane metal.
The bottom line is
this CD is a lot of fun and who could have ever imagined a pro-wrestler
could actually deliver the metal! Simply ignore the gimmick and concentrate
on the music.
tell
a friend about this article
antiGUY
is the editor in doubt of antiMUSIC
Photos
courtesy Metal Blade
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