Cornerstone
Jesus Rides Harley Too
Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt
I'm impressed with the band's evolution since its last release. Remember how Motorhead's Lemmy had a vocal sound that transcended the whole classic metal realm to attract punks? Cornerstone's vocalist, Kent Franklin, sounds like a cross between Paul Di'anno and Sir Lemmy. The music, while faster than biker rock, maintains a phat low end that links the music to the blues. It's kinda like the rhythms of early British metal, minus the ripping metal guitar solos. Some of the songs, like "Moover," sound a ton like pre '75 Kiss. This song could've easily been on Hotter Than Hell or Dressed To Kill. The vocals, the guitars, the rhythms, everything. Now, if that wasn't enough, just close your eyes. Imagine you're listening to your old copy of Kiss Alive and you hear a hidden track that you've never heard before. Paul Stanley comes up to the microphone and wails, "Ya know . . . We all have to get ready - Jesus is coming soon!" Then the band romps into a rousing rock version of the Blind Willie Johnson classic, "Jesus Is Coming Soon." This song, right here, is worth the price of the CD. I think both Darrell Mansfield and Gene Simmons would be proud (evangelistic lyrics and all!) - somebody give them a copy. While some of the songs tread familiar territory, which make it easy to think cliche, these guys play it so well that you can't dismiss this as cheap imitation. These Swedes have discovered the blues and made it their own. You'll get a glimpse of the band's sound by listening to the title track on this issue's Hard Music Sampler CD, but you'll want to venture beyond the first three tracks here if you get ahold of this album. Like a concert setting, Cornerstone seems to settle in after a couple and just get better as they go along.\