I don’t know what kinda gutter these guys have been hanging out in, but based on their music, I guarantee it has room service.

For the masses (me) eagerly awaiting a reunion album from the forgotten 80’s footnote SLEEZE BEEZ you’ll have to make do with, and be disappointed by, this record. While they share the Beez’s penchant for overblown backing vocals, anthemic hooks, and over-production, DOGPOUND just can’t bring the dirt that this genre demands.

With a album title like “A Night in the Gutter” and the opening four-on-the-floor stomp of the first track “Captain Hook and Jesus,” I was ready to be rocked back to ’87, but the dopey lyrics and sugary sweet harmonies on the chorus had me reaching for the nearest available open container to vomit in. In fact, all the songs on here start with varying degrees of promise, but quickly descend into flaccid relationship-rock. “Not by Choice” storms out of the gate with some up-tempo riffing that’ll have ya ready to defend the faith like a motherfucker. But vocalist Henrik Andersson’s woeful, whiny tale of unfulfilled superhero fantasy brings the momentum to a grinding halt.

Surprisingly, the best track is the prerequisite power ballad, “Worries of Yesterday.” Yeah, it has all the fruity over-indulgences you’d expect (acoustic guitars, flutes, etc...) but this time, their grandiose harmonies and background vocals work for them. They harbor no illusions of rocking in this track, and that, in context with the rest of the record, is like a breath of fresh air. Play this for that single MILF you’ve been chatting up at the bar from time to time, and you will totally seal the deal.

Overall, the production is super-polished, and the musicianship is razor sharp. I’m sure these cats could clean up with session work when this whole band thing doesn’t pan out for them. Until then, they should get their asses on Ebay and find a copy of “Screwed, Blued and Tattooed” by the SLEEZE BEEZ cheap, and hear how it’s done.

- Broadbent

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