Unruly Child - Big Blue World

[AlphaMale]

5 hours ago, Stefan said:

New song 'Will We Give Up Today'.

 

 

Probably the best of the 3 singles released. Still not really feeling it though.

Oddly enough, that almost looks like Mark Free.....

[AlphaMale]

Japan copy in my hands.

This is a very good disc. Still missing the bite in the guitars.

Production still lacking.

First spin through and rated, I gave it a 75%

[AlphaMale]

The best tracks for me were "Down And Dirty", "The Harder They Will Fall", and "Breaking The Chains".

[melodicrock]

For me the production is immaculate. Clean, not too loud, mixed perfectly. The style could be heavier, but this is a class record.

[AlphaMale]

I had a lengthy conversation with Guy Allison earlier today. Really cool dude. I apologized for my snide remark above about possibly pissing off Guy when I said they guitars were too soft on their last few records. That it needed more balls. Guy was not pissed at all and has heard his fair share of "too soft" comments. Guy says they just write what they feel. They weren't a hair band and weren't even trying to sound like one. 

Guy said the band started with three songs that most fans wouldn't consider metal or rocking in "Let's Talk About Love", "To Be Your Everything", and "Take Me Down Nasty". Everything they've done since then has been a natural evolution in whatever direction inspired them. And that they still operate the same way. They record the music they "feel".

They try to produce the most balanced and full sound that they can. Knows they are never going to please everybody. But they are also not trying to copy themselves. He said they could though. He jokingly asked Bruce "wanna make a metal album?". Partially joking, partially not. They choose to go where the creative music takes them.

I asked about the production on "Can't Go Home". Guy states that they accidentally short-changed the mix because of time constraints. He was leaving for a tour and the due date for the record was fixed. Says they didn't rush this new one out. It was due earlier but they learned valuable lessons from "Can't Go Home".

I told Guy some of the new tracks would sit nicely on their debut. Guy said he thinks that too and that it wasn't strictly an intention. It just worked out that way.

He says UC might have hit the scene with all those other hair bands, but the truth is, that's not who they were or who they necessarily liked. He said UC was a product of their collective influences. And trust him, it wasn't metal or hair bands or that genre. He says timing was the reason the debut wasn't huge. It was where they were in 1991 and that they were into Led Zeppelin, Elton John, The Beatles, Motown, Steely Dan, and Yes. 

Guy said that there are a subset of racists out there who give them grief because of Marcie. He said that they are lucky they don't say that to her face because she's as tough as nails.

In closing, Guy told be to let the other UC fans know that they don't chase Unruly Child formulas and that there's not enough money in the process to even cover their electric bills. They make this music because they love it and want to share it with the fans. He said a tour would only happen if it makes sense. Costs covered and some profit to stop them from taking other work.

And that's it. I found him to be a great dude. Thanks Guy!

Edited August 6, 2019 by AlphaMale

[Darkstone]

39 minutes ago, AlphaMale said:

I had a lengthy conversation with Guy Allison earlier today. Really cool dude. I apologized for my snide remark above about possibly pissing off Guy when I said they guitars were too soft on their last few records. That it needed more balls. Guy was not pissed at all and has heard his fair share of "too soft" comments. Guy says they just write what they feel. They weren't a hair band and weren't even trying to sound like one. 

Guy said the band started with three songs that most fans wouldn't consider metal or rocking in "Let's Talk About Love", "To Be Your Everything", and "Take Me Down Nasty". Everything they've done since then has been a natural evolution in whatever direction inspired them. And that they still operate the same way. They record the music they "feel".

They try to produce the most balanced and full sound that they can. Knows they are never going to please everybody. But they are also not trying to copy themselves. He said they could though. He jokingly asked Bruce "wanna make a metal album?". Partially joking, partially not. They choose to go where the creative music takes them.

I asked about the production on "Can't Go Home". Guy states that they accidentally short-changed the mix because of time constraints. He was leaving for a tour and the due date for the record was fixed. Says they didn't rush this new one out. It was due earlier but they learned valuable lessons from "Can't Go Home".

I told Guy some of the new tracks would sit nicely on their debut. Guy said he thinks that too and that it wasn't strictly an intention. It just worked out that way.

He says UC might have hit the scene with all those other hair bands, but the truth is, that's not who they were or who they necessarily liked. He said UC was a product of their collective influences. And trust him, it wasn't metal or hair bands or that genre. He says timing was the reason the debut wasn't huge. It was where they were in 1991 and that they were into Led Zeppelin, Elton John, The Beatles, Motown, Steely Dan, and Yes. 

Guy said that there are a subset of racists out there who give them grief because of Marcie. He said that they are lucky they don't say that to her face because she's as tough as nails.

In closing, Guy told be to let the other UC fans know that they don't chase Unruly Child formulas and that there's not enough money in the process to even cover their electric bills. They make this music because they love it and want to share it with the fans. He said a tour would only happen if it makes sense. Costs covered and some profit to stop them from taking other work.

And that's it. I found him to be a great dude. Thanks Guy!

Nice one. Thanks for sharing.

[Eric3]

2 hours ago, AlphaMale said:

I had a lengthy conversation with Guy Allison earlier today. Really cool dude. I apologized for my snide remark above about possibly pissing off Guy when I said they guitars were too soft on their last few records. That it needed more balls. Guy was not pissed at all and has heard his fair share of "too soft" comments. Guy says they just write what they feel. They weren't a hair band and weren't even trying to sound like one. 

Guy said the band started with three songs that most fans wouldn't consider metal or rocking in "Let's Talk About Love", "To Be Your Everything", and "Take Me Down Nasty". Everything they've done since then has been a natural evolution in whatever direction inspired them. And that they still operate the same way. They record the music they "feel".

They try to produce the most balanced and full sound that they can. Knows they are never going to please everybody. But they are also not trying to copy themselves. He said they could though. He jokingly asked Bruce "wanna make a metal album?". Partially joking, partially not. They choose to go where the creative music takes them.

I asked about the production on "Can't Go Home". Guy states that they accidentally short-changed the mix because of time constraints. He was leaving for a tour and the due date for the record was fixed. Says they didn't rush this new one out. It was due earlier but they learned valuable lessons from "Can't Go Home".

I told Guy some of the new tracks would sit nicely on their debut. Guy said he thinks that too and that it wasn't strictly an intention. It just worked out that way.

He says UC might have hit the scene with all those other hair bands, but the truth is, that's not who they were or who they necessarily liked. He said UC was a product of their collective influences. And trust him, it wasn't metal or hair bands or that genre. He says timing was the reason the debut wasn't huge. It was where they were in 1991 and that they were into Led Zeppelin, Elton John, The Beatles, Motown, Steely Dan, and Yes. 

Guy said that there are a subset of racists out there who give them grief because of Marcie. He said that they are lucky they don't say that to her face because she's as tough as nails.

In closing, Guy told be to let the other UC fans know that they don't chase Unruly Child formulas and that there's not enough money in the process to even cover their electric bills. They make this music because they love it and want to share it with the fans. He said a tour would only happen if it makes sense. Costs covered and some profit to stop them from taking other work.

And that's it. I found him to be a great dude. Thanks Guy!

 

Great post. Thanks for the information.

The production on Can't Go Home was absolutely unacceptable but sounds fine here to me. The songs aren't really my thing unfortunately but maybe I'll check it out anyway just because of Marcie.

[Crazysam]

Thanks for posting and sharing the comments from Guy.   I can appreciate the lighter sound if the melodies are there.  I'd much rather bands take that route than go in a completely different direction with their musical style.  That said, I feel like it's a bit of a slap in the face to fans of 80's melodic/hard rock when musicians from that era try to distance themselves by saying they weren't a "hair" band.  Mark/Marcie had been with King Kobra, Jay was in Hurricane, and Bruce was in Stone Fury, so there was a clear connection with the melodic/hard rock scene.  And I didn't hear much of an Elton John or Motown influence on the UC debut.  It was a great balance between AOR and guitar driven, melodic rock that appealed to a wide range of rock/metal fans.

[Geoff]

9 hours ago, Crazysam said:

That said, I feel like it's a bit of a slap in the face to fans of 80's melodic/hard rock when musicians from that era try to distance themselves by saying they weren't a "hair" band.  Mark/Marcie had been with King Kobra, Jay was in Hurricane, and Bruce was in Stone Fury, so there was a clear connection with the melodic/hard rock scene.  And I didn't hear much of an Elton John or Motown influence on the UC debut.  It was a great balance between AOR and guitar driven, melodic rock that appealed to a wide range of rock/metal fans.

Yep, that's the bit that stuck out like a sore thumb to me. It's exactly who they were, as per their past projects and the album they produced as UC. No sense trying to hide from that. 

[gener8tr]

3 hours ago, Geoff said:

Yep, that's the bit that stuck out like a sore thumb to me. It's exactly who they were, as per their past projects and the album they produced as UC. No sense trying to hide from that. 

 

I recently read an interview with Rob Lowe (of all people) and he stated "Claiming not to be vain is actually the most vain thing anyone can say."

Same premise here in my opinion... Don't try and pretend you weren't part of the 80's "Hair Metal" scene when you clearly were.  Embrace it... it was fantastic!

[The Rocker]

I wouldn't say they were a "Hair Band", more like Bad English/The Storm/Alias. That being said, no harm in them making the  guitars crunchier(sorry, but that is all they really need to do to make their albums better). For me anyway.

[Geoff]

Yeah, it doesn't matter what you call it. "Hair metal," hard rock, 80's rock, metal... whatever it was. That's completely irrelevant, but whatever it all was, they were part of it. And I think it's so pathetic to try and distance oneself from it. And it makes them look stupid too, because they're not fooling anyone either. It's all there in plain history for anyone interested to see. 

[lettard]

Mine arrived today,a day early,and after some trepidation before and after purchase,mainly due to not being big on their last few releases Im glad that I did take the chance on this,its the best stuff ive heard from them since the debut apart from the the pre debut  basement demos release,a real nice surprise.

[PeterS]

Not loving this a much as I wanted to. Agree , sadly, that it's missing a little crunch. Songs are good but just a little more edge and this could be really quite excellent. Pretty good though. 

[Guy Allison]

Just because we were released within a musical climate of hair bands doesn’t make us specifically a hair band. I’m not distancing myself from that era, but honestly, it’s not the final word on my output or influences. Maybe Jay played with Hurricane, but I know he’s a dyed-in-the-wool prog fan. Marcie was in King Kobra, but a lot of her favorite music growing up was Motown. Bruce is a Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Yes fan. Larry was in Ambrosia and Air Supply. And me, I didn’t listen to stuff during that era that intently. I’d was very impressed with Def Leppard, I was also a huge Boston fan, and I saw the writing parallels. My general tastes run the gamut from Debussy to Van Halen. A band may very well sound one way on one album, but it doesn’t mean that that’s the sum total of their influences or musical identity. 

We were writing music, we were putting sounds together, we were doing what we wanted to do at “that point in time” - you know, 1991  

Cheers,

Guy Allison

 

[Darkstone]

3 hours ago, Guy Allison said:

Just because we were released within a musical climate of hair bands doesn’t make us specifically a hair band. I’m not distancing myself from that era, but honestly, it’s not the final word on my output or influences. Maybe Jay played with Hurricane, but I know he’s a dyed-in-the-wool prog fan. Marcie was in King Kobra, but a lot of her favorite music growing up was Motown. Bruce is a Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Yes fan. Larry was in Ambrosia and Air Supply. And me, I didn’t listen to stuff during that era that intently. I’d was very impressed with Def Leppard, I was also a huge Boston fan, and I saw the writing parallels. My general tastes run the gamut from Debussy to Van Halen. A band may very well sound one way on one album, but it doesn’t mean that that’s the sum total of their influences or musical identity. 

We were writing music, we were putting sounds together, we were doing what we wanted to do at “that point in time” - you know, 1991  

Cheers,

Guy Allison

 

Nice response. Keep doin' what you're doin' mate.

[Crazysam]

4 hours ago, Guy Allison said:

Just because we were released within a musical climate of hair bands doesn’t make us specifically a hair band. I’m not distancing myself from that era, but honestly, it’s not the final word on my output or influences. Maybe Jay played with Hurricane, but I know he’s a dyed-in-the-wool prog fan. Marcie was in King Kobra, but a lot of her favorite music growing up was Motown. Bruce is a Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Yes fan. Larry was in Ambrosia and Air Supply. And me, I didn’t listen to stuff during that era that intently. I’d was very impressed with Def Leppard, I was also a huge Boston fan, and I saw the writing parallels. My general tastes run the gamut from Debussy to Van Halen. A band may very well sound one way on one album, but it doesn’t mean that that’s the sum total of their influences or musical identity. 

We were writing music, we were putting sounds together, we were doing what we wanted to do at “that point in time” - you know, 1991  

Cheers,

Guy Allison

 

I appreciate you taking the time to expand on things.  It helps with better understanding where you're coming from.   Over the years, I've heard artists deny they were part of the scene because of others' negative opinions.   As with most of the forum members, I've supported melodic/hard rock and AOR regardless of the trends.  And hopefully you can relate to fans not wanting to hear someone whose music they've enjoyed try to distance themselves from the genre the fans associate with and are still passionate about.   

[PeterS]

The challenge is as fans we usually want something like what we've heard before. For me Worlds Collide is the best rock album released in the last 20 years. There's something magical about it. Perhaps it's unreasonable to expect something similar , as pointed out, because musicians are in a different place when each album is recorded. 

Of course us consumers are in a different place when we hear new music as well. 

Edited August 11, 2019 by PeterS

[Geoff]

Sadly, I feel the elephant in the room needs to be addressed. I personally find this album to be far and away - by miles - the worst thing this band has ever released. It kind of took me by surprise how much I disliked it. I can't cop the production again and it just makes me wonder if they've ever played this album alongside any other album released this year, or ever. Light music is light music, but the production to me is so weak. Just makes a weak album sound infinitely weaker. 

But the main issue here is just how much I dislike the actual songs. Unruly Child are generally a pretty solid mob, but stuff like 'Dirty little girl' or 'Down and dirty' (or 'Beneath A Steady Rain' and 'The Harder They Will Fall') to me, are easily the weakest songs they've ever written. 

Sorry to be harsh, but this was such a huge disappointment for me. The production/sound would kill the vibe for me if I liked the songs, but almost mercifully, the songs kind of match the quality of the sound/production.

This all said, I still think the opening song is pretty good. Only nice melody on whole disc, imo, of course. 

 

 

I wish it had just been a single release.  

[AlphaMale]

On 8/28/2019 at 8:16 AM, Geoff said:

Sadly, I feel the elephant in the room needs to be addressed. I personally find this album to be far and away - by miles - the worst thing this band has ever released. It kind of took me by surprise how much I disliked it. I can't cop the production again and it just makes me wonder if they've ever played this album alongside any other album released this year, or ever. Light music is light music, but the production to me is so weak. Just makes a weak album sound infinitely weaker. 

But the main issue here is just how much I dislike the actual songs. Unruly Child are generally a pretty solid mob, but stuff like 'Dirty little girl' or 'Down and dirty' (or 'Beneath A Steady Rain' and 'The Harder They Will Fall') to me, are easily the weakest songs they've ever written. 

Sorry to be harsh, but this was such a huge disappointment for me. The production/sound would kill the vibe for me if I liked the songs, but almost mercifully, the songs kind of match the quality of the sound/production.

This all said, I still think the opening song is pretty good. Only nice melody on whole disc, imo, of course. 

 

 

I wish it had just been a single release.  

Harsh Geoffrey

[Geoff]

On 10/9/2020 at 11:40 AM, AlphaMale said:

Harsh Geoffrey

Perhaps, but do you disagree? I'd guess probably not.

[AlphaMale]

8 hours ago, Geoff said:

Perhaps, but do you disagree? I'd guess probably not.

I don't think it's that bad. Production sucks but some of the songs sound good.