If you’re a regular Pencil Storm reader, you can skip the history lesson – you’ve had this drilled into your head a few times by now.
Cheap Trick is known to most people as a late ‘70s/early ‘80s band, largely on the success of a couple of mega-hits and an import-only live-album that caught some steam state-side and carried them from clubs to arenas in a couple short years. They were able to transition successfully into the MTV-era thanks to some great personalities, a couple good-looking dudes, and the occasional extra blast of Aqua-Net. Their ability to craft a brilliant pop-rock tune or pick a clever cover song never hurt either.
The early-mid ‘90s weren’t kind to Cheap Trick, until the release of their (second) self-titled album in 1997, which not only included their strongest material and production in a decade and a half, but coincided with a new “cool” factor led by tour dates with Pearl Jam and a SUB•POP single. That momentum hasn’t ceased, propelled by an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and their ongoing, relentless work ethic. The quality of subsequent albums varied, and uber-fans debate the merits of each release regularly on message boards and social media threads. One thing is not debatable – that Cheap Trick has never gone away. They’ve got scores of incredible songs, and they never disappoint when they hit the stage – whether it’s at a casino, a county fair, a food-fest, a rock club, a metal bar, a zoo, a grand-prix race, a historic theater, a Hard Rock Café grand opening, a shed, or a support-slot in a packed area or baseball stadium. (Yes, I’ve seen them in every one of those settings.)
In Another World is Cheap Trick’s 20th studio album. It was released last week, but has been in the making for at least three years, taking advantage of the few, short breaks in touring that they’ve had.
The first single “The Summer Looks Good On You,” released in 2018, is a great tune, but I struggle with the title and lyrics a bit, reminded of Kid Rock’s nauseating, easy hit “All Summer Long” a decade prior. The Beatlesque/Wings, heavy-harmonied Cheap Trick song runs circles around the Kid Rock song, so I need to get over it. “Here’s Looking At You” is my initial favorite, a spirited, rockin’, power-pop tune with heavy back and forth chords. “So it Goes” is really strong and wouldn’t have been out of place on that `97 album, and “Another World (Reprise)” – a second, punked-up and more inspired version of the title track – flat out kicks. “Quit Waking Me Up” is a creeper – initially it didn’t resonate, but after repeated listens the nuances reveal a perfectly crafted pop-rock song – typical of a lot of Cheap Trick deep-cuts. Might not be a single…but in a few years it’ll still be great.
The title track feels a bit restrained and pedestrian, but it blends with the flow and would have fit in well with, and above, some of their early ‘90s material. The “(reprise)” version more than makes up for it. For those craving the darker, more rockin’ side of the band, “Boys & Girls & Rock & Roll” should fill the gap, and “The Party” is a bit of a mash-up of “The Ballad of TV Violence” from their `77 debut and “You’re All Talk” from It’s follow up In Color. While the closer – a version of John Lennon’s “Gimme Some Truth” is great, with Sex Pistol Steve Jones lending guitar work, I think the album would have been better-suited had it ended on the previous track “I’ll See You Again,” a sparse, spacey ballad.
Besides my own, personal hang-up about the Summer song, I’d be remiss to let the terrible cover art slip by. I wasn’t thrilled with the cover (or title) of 2017’s We’re All All Right – photos dating back across the band’s nearly 50 years, and the title lifted from their most iconic song, because it felt like a disservice to the material, like it was a greatest hits package, a nostalgic look back, rather than a solid collection of new songs that it was. I thought it was an opportunity missed…but be careful what you ask for kids, because the cover of In Another World is a warped black & white checkerboard with the classic Trick logo and the album title lifted straight off a Wayne’s World poster. I know first-hand that naming a record and coming up with artwork is a bitch, but this is just lazy. Like last time, the material deserves better.
I always say; I’m hyper-critical because I’m a hyper-fan, and a couple minor gripes aside, this record is really great. If their peers are bands who’ve been around about as long, then Cheap Trick is setting the bar, because this knocks the socks off anything other classic-rock bands still making records have done in the last decade. (Though last year’s BöC record wasn’t half bad and AC/DC are holding their own.) Hell, it knocks the socks off most albums released by bands a third their age! The production is fresh, the playing is inspired, and the most important thing about Cheap Trick – THE SONGS – are there. Hardcore fans should be happy with the effort, and casual fans should give it a shot – it might just provide that song that ends up as the soundtrack of the summer!
Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
www.thetucos.com
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Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic
