Chuck Norris Experiment – This Will Leave a Mark
Chuck Norris Experiment – This Will Leave a Mark
Transubstans Records
Release Date: 18/09/22
Running Time: 35:00
Review by Paul Hutchings
7/10
It’s Nicolas Cagefighter that takes the best or worst band name of 2022. Running them a close second is Chuck Norris Experiment. But dear reader, don’t be confused by action heroes, for this Chuck Norris is not the lone wolf martial arts expert, but the legendary American blues guitarist Charles “Chuck” Norris. Having cleared that up there is hell of a history to explore with the Swedish outfit, for the band have a discography that reads like my wife’s shopping list. Yep, it’s pages long, although there is less wine on it.
CNE formed eighteen years ago and have released numerous singles and nine full-length albums. I confess they’ve not crossed my radar, so we’re going in blind on album number ten. With a tour record that reads like a festival line-up, it’s evident that they have something about them.
It’s a short release, twelve songs shoehorned into thirty-five minutes, and it opens with a banger. ‘Dirtshot’, all swagger and sleaze, gets the toes tapping. It’s a raucous mix of Glam and Hair Metal with an undercurrent of Punk and Motörhead giving it a bit of heft. Ironically the band photos that accompanied this release belie their sound, albeit the dominant factor of dual guitars which grab the attention from the opening riff.
You can pogo your arse off to ‘Landslide’, which features members of Sator. It’s vibrant, punchy, and ideal for a night out. The riffs keep flying, the pace is maintained and although the delivery is rudimentary, there is a certain appeal to the no-bull attitude that flows through the band.
Most tracks are viciously short, at around two minutes each, so there isn’t time to mess around. Longer tracks do exist, such as ‘Spin it Round’, with its choppy guitar riff and driving bass line pushing the song along. It’s anthemic, bubble-gum Hard Rock with catchy hooks and choruses that refuse to leave hours later. It’s impossible not to nod along to this band.
Leaving with a curved ball in the shape of the ballad ‘New Day Rising’, for me one of the weakest tracks here, there’s a lingering enjoyment left hanging. The sheer exuberance of a band after eighteen years certainly is impressive. Live, I’d imagine they are a scream. Beers and sweat a plenty. And that’s probably where they would work best.
TRACKLISTING:
01. Dirtshot
02. Landslide
03. Kill The Night
04. In For the Kill
05. Turning Me Inside Out
06. Benefit Of the Doubt
07. Hand Grenade
08. This Will Leave a Mark
09. Spin It Round
10. Devils Lake
11 Bad Blood
12 New Day Rising
LINE-UP:
Chuck Ransom – Vocals
Chuck The Ripper – Guitar
Chuck Dakota – Bass
Chuck Buzz – Drums
Chuck Rooster – Guitar
LINKS:
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