Originally released in 1980,
Stiv Bators' first solo album was re-released in 1993 by
Bomp, which added eight extra tracks not available on the original version (all recorded live at
the Berkeley Square in May of 1980). Like his other
Bomp solo release, the
L.A., L.A. compilation, the music is more similar to '60s
power pop than the vicious
punk rock that
Bators was originally known for as a member of
the Dead Boys. Although the bonus tracks are comparable in approach to his former band (they even manage to cover a pair of
Dead Boys classics --
"Sonic Reducer" and
"I Need Lunch"),
Bators plays it more pedestrian elsewhere. Surprisingly, he pulls off this different direction convincingly; after all, this music was his favorite when he was growing up. You'll get a pretty good idea of what the rest of the album sounds like by giving a listen to the album's melodic opener,
"Evil Boy," followed by the near-
ballad "A Million Miles Away" and the full-length version of
"The Last Year" (available on
L.A., L.A. in an edited single version). ~ Greg Prato
