When blindsided and forced to face death and loss, you have two options: you can choose to let it destroy you from the inside out, or you can rise from the ashes of debris and let it shape you into a stronger and wiser being. The Pretty Reckless are no strangers to controversy or unorthodox situations, vocalist Taylor Momsen’s first claim to fame being her portrayal of Cindy Lou in How the Grinch Stole Christmas as an adolescent, as well as being thrown into the deep end of Hollywood’s blinding lights.
The tragic and sudden deaths of two of their hero’s, Soundgarden’s frontman Chris Cornell and the bands long time producer and friend Kato Khandwala, had the ingredients to self-destruct any other band, and it nearly did. Death By Rock And Roll however is a heartfelt and deeply emotional tribute to the life-changing and personality-defining genre, and all those that walk in it’s shadow as Momsen echoes: “It’s cliché, but rock and roll saved our lives.”
Title track’s have a standard to live up to, and Kato’s footsteps that open ‘Death By Rock And Roll’ sets the tone for the record as Ben Phillips’ wrecking-ball guitar riffs conjure flashbacks to that first moment a spark ignited within your soul, and rock n’ roll became your first love. An anthem of the appetites for destruction that come part and parcel of the rock n’ roll lifestyle, and lyrics that pay homage to the risk you take dominate the track; “I wanna go with a motorcycle crash…out on my own I don’t need to be saved. I want to go out my way.”
‘Only Love Can Save Me Now’ is awash with Soundgarden and grunge influences, which is no surprise considering the tune was permeated by Matt Cameron and Kim Thayil at the same studio they’d last stepped foot in when Soundgarden’s Louder Than Love was previously recorded. Utilising the same doomsday, apocalyptic melancholy that pierced Soundgarden’s sound, Momsen’s deep and moody vocals exacerbate the black dog that crawls throughout; “Chained to sickness, the dogs are free.”
Another guest contribution appears in the form of Rage Against the Machine’s and Audioslave’s Tom Morello on the track ‘And So It Went.’ Focusing on the future of the planet and todays children who will one day inhabit the world we leave behind, this political piece rings with the bands’ previous hit ‘Heaven Knows,’ a children’s choir harking back to the Going to Hell days that have resulted in Jamie Perkins’ drums having to hit the message home harder.
The materiel that penetrates ‘My Bones’ and ‘Got So High’ both trudge along with retrospection and hindsight as ‘My Bones’ takes the aggressive route and ‘Got So High’ wallows in it’s own self-pity; a hole in which we have all dug and found ourselves in. Grabbing her femininity by the balls, ‘Witches Burn’ commemorates the innocent lives that were taken as a result of accused witchcraft “back in the days of old, where the men were men and the women were sold,” as Mark Damon’s bass acts as the dragged footfall on bloodstained cobblestones.
Flipping the record over, ‘Rock And Roll Heaven’ employs country guitar riffs, bright chords and buoyant melodies as the band reminisce on the music that gave them purpose, and the musicians that gave that purpose a life. Riddled with musical references and hidden easter eggs, there are lines that are relatable for anybody, resulting in many tears being shed: “Freedom found me when I first heard the Beatles sing,” “stole my daddy’s vinyl, and burnt that needle out,” “Jimi, Janice and Morrison, a garden full of sound,” and “the great gig in the sky, gotta make it to 27 before I die.”
If that track doesn’t pull at your heart strings enough, ‘Harley Darling’ brings the whole record full circle from Kato’s footsteps, to an open letter about the Harley Davidson motorcycle crash that “took my friend, you took everything from me and now I’m alone again.” The harmonica intro, fluffy chords and brushed drums however lay the record down with a soft close, and the sound of revving motorcycles signal a biker’s send off, proving that there is always life after death.
The album may be titled Death By Rock And Roll, but The Pretty Reckless are taking emotional turmoil and hardships, breathing a new lease of life into their art, and are quiet literally turning gold.
Album out now, for more band information and touring updates follow their socials below, or click here.
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