What ever happened to Bob Fedderson?

While it may not be the riddle of the sphinx for everybody, fans of the hugely overlooked 1999 LOUDMOUTH record would certainly like to know. What happened to the metal-obsessed Chicago madman, dropping such a barnstorming record upon the populous and then pulling a Howard Hughes disappearing act?

This METALHEAD disc may provide at least part of the answer. It features a four-piece band built around Fedderson's songwriting and vocal talent, providing plenty of Bob's crunching riffs, soaring melodies, and grunge-crusted vocals to satisfy the discerning metal fan. "Speedball" blasts away on a SAVAGE-style NWOBHM riff, Fedderson's gritty shrieks and wah-drenched licks muscling their way to the front of the mix for a dashboard-thumping good time. "Let's Get High" is a simple high-octane rocker buried under crash-and-rattle drums, recalling "Fly" from the LOUDMOUTH record, and both "Gone for Good" and "Brownburg" illustrate Fedderson's penchant for insanely catchy ZEP/CULT-style campfire fodder.

Although not as mind-blowing as LOUDMOUTH's 1999 classic, "Metal Bands Only" is stacked with great hard rock tunes; a disc that will stay in your car next to "Let There Be Rock" and "Badmotorfinger" for countless months. Unfortunately, the band seems to have broken up already. Here's hoping we don't have to wait eight more years for another killer Fedderson project. At any rate, "Metal Bands Only" should satisfy until his next one drops.

- Marchman

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