Bust A Nut
| TRACK LISTING 1. THE GATE / INVITED. 2. SOLUTION. 3. SHINE AWAY. 4. TRY SO HARD. 5. SHE WANT SHE WANT. 6. NEED YOUR LOVIN'. 7. ACTION TALKS. 8. MAMA'S FOOL. 9. CRY. 10. EARTHMOVER. 11. ALOT TO LOSE. 12. RUBBERBAND. 13. WONDERFUL WORLD. 14. GAMES PEOPLE PLAY. 1994 GEFFEN RECORDS. |
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| PREVIOUS RELEASES: Psychotic Supper (1991) The Great Radio Controversy (1989) Mechanical Resonance (1986) |
RELATED RELEASES [IN MEMBERS]: Bar 7 - The World Is A Freak [2000] |
| This Tesla's fourth studio album was released in the dark ages for hard rock bands of 1994. Grunge was in full force and bands that were once riding a wave of popularity now found themselves in the bargain bins. Yes the fickle fans had deserted their armies in droves, and unwisely found themselves at the army surplus store ready to get kitted out in the latest garb. Big choruses, well written songs and musicianship were most definitely out, to be replaced by something with no real ability and above all a high percentage of lameness. Yes Grunge had struck. The old style bands either split or tried to adapt, none of which really helped, luckily there were a handful of bands that carried on playing 'their' music and one of those was TESLA. Formed in Sacramento in the mid 80's Tesla gathered quite a following, every album went platinum, they put on a great live show, which scared Def Leppard nightly on the few tours they supported them on and all looked rosy. Indeed the albums were always of a frighteningly high standards and the band looked like they might weather the storm. 'Bust A Nut' released in 1994 was to be the bands swansong, however, what with a one off reunion concert scheduled for October of this year in Sacramento the future looks slightly more rosy that in once did. Anyway, onto the album. |
| If nothing else Tesla are trustworthy. You
can guarantee that every album they release will be brimming with quality and for the most
part 'Bust A Nut' is no exception, when it is good it really is absolutely stunning but
when it is bad it is never any worse than average, and a lot of bands have built whole
careers on average so that also carries some weight. What has been Tesla's secret is
that they have never attempted to entwine their music with something as fleeting as image,
therefore guaranteeing that its the music that gets the attention. This is Tesla in
1994, and that means a slightly harder edge to some of the tracks, remember this is NOT
alternative in anyway but sounds a little more live, luckily Tesla are in truth little
changed from 1991's 'Psychotic Supper'. They still play with immense grit, Jeff
Keith's rasping vocals rub sandpaper into the wounds caused by the blistering guitar
attack of Frank Hannon and Tommy Skeoch and the whole picture is very
impressive. This album has some very heavy songs, it is impossible not to be blown away by such sonic statements as 'Solution' or 'Action Talks' which verge on Power Metal!!, while 'She Want She Want', 'Mama's Fool' and 'Games People Play' are more examples of the friendly accessible Rock for which Tesla are perhaps best known for. Two tracks that need a little more time to sink in are 'Rubberband' and 'Wonderful World'. The former a acoustic-led, lulling you into a false sense of security before biting home with a huge chorus, while the latter is a snide, emotional tale of growing up in a ever changing, ever warlike society. The best track however is 'Shine Away' with its huge changes. Here both sides of the Tesla coin are displayed at once, in a song that is as sensitive in intent as it is in rabble rousing melody, the overall affect is one that is quite simply stunning and it this kind of songwriting that have in my book given them a place as frontrunners in the Hard Rock genre. Not far behind is opener 'The Gate / Invited' which follows a similar path but again floors you. Credit at this point must be given to the producer Terry Thomas who has given the band a BIG BIG sound where the guitars cut, scream, cry and batter while the always tight as a vice rhythm section of Troy Lucketta and Brian Wheat is big and bold. Like Def Leppard with guts Tesla turn simple anthemic melodies into sweeping hard rock. That's not the say the album is all roses, it can lag a little as 'Alot To Lose' is a quite predictable ballad, and 'Need Your Lovin' while a decent enough track is nothing spectacular and 'Earthmover' has a quite weak verse but the chorus improves it. However the balance is quickly restored thanks to 'Cry' which is more Tesla rocking greatness with a strong edge to it while 'Try So Hard' throws in some Beatles-ish melodies to good effect with great vocals from Jeff. Generally the album is very impressive. |
| Yet again Tesla have proved that they can
deliver the goods. 'Bust A Nut' has virtually everything you could ask for in a Hard
Rock album, many of the tracks rank with the best of the bands long career and it only
goes to show how fickle the general public is when the ignore albums of this
calibre. If you have not heard any material by Tesla before then this is a good
place to start, especially the ridiculously low retail price it is going for new on all
the webstores [do I hear $6 anyone!!], while it is not the best of the bands career [for
which 'Mechanical Resonance' takes that honour] it is still an extremely good and
enjoyable album that has stood the test of time and would do your credibility no harm at
all. Hopefully the forthcoming reunion gig date will make another album see the light of
day! RATING |
