Extreme – Six
Extreme – Six
earMUSIC
Release Date: 09/06/23
Running Time: 53:00
Review by Rory Bentley
4/10
Hi there boomers and Gen-Xers, I assume this will be the entire audience I’m addressing for this one, my name’s Rory and I usually review the Death Metal and Hardcore releases on Ever Metal so some of you won’t be familiar with my schtick. Those that are will perhaps be surprised to see my name above this review, but despite being a skinhead with an aversion to anything even loosely associated with hairspray and spandex I love Extreme’s first three records, with “Pornograffitti” being an all-time favourite of mine. With Gary Cherone’s inimitable charisma and Nuno Bettencourt’s melding of peerless technicality with a boundless sense of fun on the guitar, and one of the tightest rhythm sections in the game, they write joyful, often silly but incredibly satisfying Rock bangers played with panache and no small amount of talent. Please bear this paragraph in mind because from here on out I will be reluctantly sharpening the hatchet.
How appropriate that the album cover for “Six” is adorned by a big old gorilla, cos Extreme have just dropped a giant King Kong’s Finger in the toilet bowl of my ears. Through the bent coat hanger of critical thinking and the plunger of unflinching honesty I must, with a heavy heart, flush this audio turd, starting with the abhorrent trio that kicks this thing off. Maybe I wasn’t paying attention, but at what point did Extreme become a wrestling soundtrack Butt-Rock burger and fries band? ‘Rise’, ‘Banshee’ and ‘#Rebel’ (come on lads, that’s the most ‘Hello, fellow kids’ title I’ve heard in a long time), all sound like something Fozzy would write, though admittedly with better vocals. The shredding is still there and there’s still a musical flair, but these are some of the most cringy military-wife pickup truck anthems this side of Shinedown. Of course, if you like that kind of thing then more power to you but Cherone’s phoned-in performances and cliché-riddled lyrics add a joylessness that makes the Bad Wolves and Salivas of this world sound positively vibrant. It’s a style that is ill-fitting for the band and unfortunately makes up a huge chunk of the rest of the album.
It is only on the admittedly magnificent power ballad ‘Other Side of the Rainbow’ that we see glimpses of the Extreme we know and love. The band are great at ballads and always have been and this is no exception, Cherone sounds in his element vocally, the harmonies are beautiful and the soloing pristine and tasteful. Actually having a memorable chorus is a big help as well, and while the rocking side of things lets the album down, the band remains in imperious form when it comes to getting lighters in the air. ‘Small Town Beautiful’ is also a pretty damn good ballad with more of a country feel, despite some slightly on the nose lyrics. Having said that, I find it utterly bizarre that it comes straight after the previous ballad. Unless the band were trying to spite me by making me listen to as many Mountain Dew plodders in a row as possible it’s a maddening sequencing decision.
On the positive end of things, I have to admit that the Glam/Electronic fusion of ‘X-Out’ is genuinely a really good song that I’d like to see in the setlist. It feels like the only time the band is able to balance their classic sound with something resembling a modern approach successfully, and Nuno’s guitar work is breath-taking. However just as I was about to brace myself for more Active Rock mediocrity, something amazing happened. Objectively terrible but morbidly fascinating like a slow-motion car wreck, except both vehicles involved are clown cars- Extreme serve us a reggae song.
Is ”Beautiful Girls” fucking terrible? Absolutely. Did I enjoy it more than albums I’ve given a perfect score to this year? Ab-so-lute-ly! Don’t get me wrong, there have been plenty of examples of reggae being fused successfully with Rock by white musicians- the Police, The Specials, Rancid and The Clash are living proof that it can be done. But it’s a tough landing to stick without coming across as David Brent on the ‘Equality Street’ video, and this is the kind of glorious failure that makes Mike Reid’s bigot anthem ‘UKIP Calypso’ sound like Lee Scratch Perry. Throw in the most ill-fitting Van Halen solo you could possibly imagine, and a dad-at-a-wedding semi rapped section that made a little bit of wee come out when I first heard it, and you have a beautiful trainwreck that cheered me right up!
Obviously I hated the majority of this album and I’d much rather be saying nice things about Extreme because they are a great band, however “Six” for me is a proper turkey redeemed slightly by a sprinkling of the old magic here and there and a song that made me lose bladder control for a bit. Extreme, I love you lads, but this latest album can get the funk out of here.
Biddly Biddly Biddly,
Rory
‘Other Side of the Rainbow’ Official Video
Mike Reid- UKIP Calypso (Gammon Floor-Filler)
TRACKLISTING:
01. Rise
02. #Rebel
03. Banshee
04. Other Side of the Rainbow
05. Small Town Beautiful
06. The Mask
07. Thicker Than Blood
08. Save Me
09. Hurricane
10. X Out
11. Beautiful Girls
12. Here’s To the Losers
LINE-UP:
Gary Cherone- vocals
Nuno Bettencourt- guitar/vocals
Pad Badger- Bass
Kevin Figueiredo- Drums
LINKS:
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