Tokyo Motor Fist - Lions

[tts42572]

5 hours ago, Glen said:

what a weird album. 

The first 4 tracks are all great and exactly what I want to hear from TMF.

then 2 gigantic fillers absolutely kills it imo. 

the album in the second half loses momentum - 2 or 3 solid songs at best before a strong end in winner takes all.

overall I think the Defiants is much better and teds last solo offering was awesome.

I do like those first 4 tracks tho 

 

That's how I felt initially.  No doubt those first 4 track are the meat of the album.  But have to say the second half has grown on me a bit.  I kinda like some of the variety going on in that second half.

That Lions tune in the middle definitely is a momentum killer though.  That song needed to pick up the tempo or something as it moved along.  I know they tried to make an epic type tune but for me it just goes nowhere and never really gets off the ground. 

I like the album a lot overall though.  Definitely appreciate the additional effort they put into improving the sound on this over the debut.

Heck, I wish Def Leppard would make an album these days that sounds like this 

 

[Eric3]

Of course The Defiants is better, that's a pretty high bar 

[Eric3]

OK, listened to this album a few times now and I think I prefer the songs on the debut, but the production of this one. Is that fair? I agree with those who say Lions loses some momentum halfway through.

[zacharyamelie]

57 minutes ago, Eric3 said:

OK, listened to this album a few times now and I think I prefer the songs on the debut, but the production of this one. Is that fair? I agree with those who say Lions loses some momentum halfway through.

Totally agree

The first 4 tracks are great...Lions is dreadfully boring. Decadence On 10th Street reminds me of Extreme for some reason...it’s ok. Sedona is another snoozer. The tracks around those are good...the closer Winner Takes It All is excellent. 
 

The Defiants have taken the clear lead now after 2 full releases for each band. 

Edited July 11, 2020 by zacharyamelie

[Crazysam]

I might be in the minority, but as good as the Defiant's albums are I enjoyed the TMF debut more than either of those. That said, I prefer their debut to this one too.  But overall it's pretty even between the two projects, for me anyway.  As far as individual tracks on Lions, one of the things that appeals to me is the fact that they changed up the style on some tracks this time.  Third time through and I find myself listening more to the songs on the second half of the album rather than the singles.

[AlphaMale]

Those first 4 songs are probably the best 4 in a row to start an album of 2020. Too bad it grinds to a halt in the middle. Also agree the last track is awesome.

[The Rocker]

Yes the first 4 and the last one are GREAT, and I also like Dream Your Heart Out, and Blow Your Mind and Look Into Me are decent enough. Enjoying the album a lot.

[Mr. M]

Alright here is my review after a few spins:

I think this album is fantastic and easily the best this year (there won't be anything like it the rest of the year or years to come). Ted sounds fantastic as always and Steve really gets the opportunity to shine and knocks it out of the park. One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is the lyrics or the lyrical quality which I think is absolutely top notch. The title track "Lions" hits home as I live five blocks north of what was the "CHAZ/CHOP" in Seattle and we literally had streets on fire (plus other things which can be a whole discussion in of itself). I love music that is uplifting while also being relatable and this album nails it (Lions and Dream Your Heart Out as examples). "Mean It" is my favorite song of the album and really hits home in terms of sounding like a song straight out of the 80s. "Sedona", which is a catchy song, brings in the saxophone which I think is awesome and help rounds out the album's sound. All the instruments are layered very nicely and helps create this "warmth" of the album that is very hard to find. Obviously, Frontiers launched this album on 7/10 which is in heart of summer in the US and I can see why. It's perfect for those summer nights with the windows down, driving next to the beach in a loud V8. TMF is an incredibly unique band (we should all feel very lucky to have their sound in 2020, seriously!!!!!!!!) and just like the first album, I will enjoy for years to come (or till the third one in 2023).

Of note: it's really too bad Frontiers didn't release this or the first album (or The Defiant's albums) on vinyl. TMF's sound is exactly what I want to hear on vinyl. To told one or both of their albums in my hand (not CD, bleh) would be amazing.

Overall: 10 / 10 (an amazing effort by the guys that I will share with everyone I know)

[Glen]

On 7/12/2020 at 12:02 AM, The Rocker said:

Yes the first 4 and the last one are GREAT, and I also like Dream Your Heart Out, and Blow Your Mind and Look Into Me are decent enough. Enjoying the album a lot.

my favs too. Forget the rest.

[Nightrain]

my 5 picks from this album :

Blow Your Mind

Dream Your Heart Out

Look Into Me

Winner Takes All

Youngblood

[Aordave89]

Think I’m in the minority on this one - Really don’t think it’s anything special. Couple of good rockers, fun but safe. Even with those the novelty wears off pretty quick. 
 

If the whole TMF v The Defiants is a topic of discussion I think the fans win having both. But for me The Defiants top it by a country mile. 

[Glen]

1 hour ago, Aordave89 said:

Think I’m in the minority on this one - Really don’t think it’s anything special. Couple of good rockers, fun but safe. Even with those the novelty wears off pretty quick. 
 

If the whole TMF v The Defiants is a topic of discussion I think the fans win having both. But for me The Defiants top it by a country mile. 

me too re Defiants. Streets ahead.

The first 4 tracks on this are good but after that it's a pretty solid but unspectacular affair 

[Ponen]

It's a good album. As mentioned by everyone, a good run of 4 songs and one two good ones in the second half. But its not just TMF, none of the heavyweights has blown me away with their new releases. I know we should be happy in this day and age that we are getting to enjoy our kind of songs that we grew up listening to, but how I wish these great bands would once again recreate the magic of their earlier albums. Speaking of which, I think HEAT was about as closest as possible but was ultimately letdown by a few fillers. If I have to rate all the albums from the heavyweights this year then it would be somewhat like this -

Harem Scarem>HEAT>TMF>Vega>One Desire.

Haven't heard Revolution Saints yet.

 

Edited July 14, 2020 by Ponen

[Aordave89]

2 hours ago, Glen said:

me too re Defiants. Streets ahead.

The first 4 tracks on this are good but after that it's a pretty solid but unspectacular affair 

Hard to disagree with that one Glen. Around Midnight is the best of the bunch for me. 
 

I find the novelty wore off pretty quick - despite me being a big fan of both Ted’s music and Trixter. 
 

On a side note I thought that album Ted did with the boys from Degreed ‘Modern Art’ was excellent. 

[Glen]

8 hours ago, Aordave89 said:

Hard to disagree with that one Glen. Around Midnight is the best of the bunch for me. 
 

I find the novelty wore off pretty quick - despite me being a big fan of both Ted’s music and Trixter. 
 

On a side note I thought that album Ted did with the boys from Degreed ‘Modern Art’ was excellent. 

yep that was a really good album but truth be told I would have preferred it as a full Degreed album - didn't really suit Ted's vocals for me 

[CureTheSane]

Wouldn't it be different if TMF and The Defiants got togetehr and each picked the top 6 songs of respective upcming albums and combined them into one disc, alternating song by song

[AlphaMale]

10 hours ago, Glen said:

yep that was a really good album but truth be told I would have preferred it as a full Degreed album - didn't really suit Ted's vocals for me 

Agreed. That music with Ted's vocals seemed out of place. 

[zacharyamelie]

4 hours ago, CureTheSane said:

Wouldn't it be different if TMF and The Defiants got togetehr and each picked the top 6 songs of respective upcming albums and combined them into one disc, alternating song by song

I actually like that 2 vocalist release. 
 

Just like Allen/Lande....Laine/Poley would be awesome. Call the album Danger Meets Danger. 

[Aordave89]

31 minutes ago, AlphaMale said:

Agreed. That music with Ted's vocals seemed out of place. 

Fantastic album for me but the music does cry out for some grittier/harder vocals absolutely 

[AlphaMale]

If I had a choice, it would be a new Danger Danger album with Paul. As much as I loved Ted's D2 albums, my fandom of the band quadrupled when Paul joined. 

[Nightrain]

Paul surely somehow 'beefed' up the band but Danger Danger for me is about the sugary flavor of the debut which really suited Ted's soaring vocal. Love both singers though, it's fun to see both takes on Cockroach

[CureTheSane]

Had a couple of spins of this now, just tonight and I went i not expecting much.
I was one of the few who thought the first album was only good, where most others frothed it.
But this new one I really like so far.
All great songs, love the sax, love that not every song has the same basic tempo and vibe (listen up Revolution Saints)
look forward to more listens

[The Rocker]

On 7/15/2020 at 11:10 AM, AlphaMale said:

If I had a choice, it would be a new Danger Danger album with Paul. As much as I loved Ted's D2 albums, my fandom of the band quadrupled when Paul joined. 

Isn't the 2nd Defiants album a "Paul D2" album with a different name?!