Solid high energy rock n roll that takes you back to the eighties is what you will find from the TAZ. Their cd release, “Razor’s Edge”, contains songs from their ‘88 and ‘89 demos. The first five are from eighty eight, the second five from eighty nine. These songs are definitely late eighties hard rock sound and fit right in for the time in which they were written. The eighties sound and feel of these songs is not a bad thing. Filled with songs of lust, desire and lost love, “Razor’s Edge” gives you catchy pop metal riffs, and high vocals. There are two line-ups of the band featured on “Razor’s Edge”, with Karl “Taz Von Holm” Peck on vocals and George Dimitri on bass remaining consistent on both versions of the band.

“Dream Like This”, a song about finding the girl of his dreams, literally, leads off the album. It starts with a simple upbeat rhythm. Then the lead guitars come in with a catchy melodic hook. The lyrics, overall, are simple enough for a song about looking for a girl. However the chorus gets a bit complicated and could be simplified, with a few more repetitive lines. That’s the kind of writing that sticks in a listener’s head. The solo, coming after the first chorus, runs through a lot of fast licks before returning to the same lead used in the intro, a nice way to come full circle. The song, however, ends too abruptly, as if the band wasn’t sure how to end. “Somebody To Love”, is an amped up cover of the song by Jefferson Airplane. It starts with a heavy power riff, based off the chorus, then a quick call and response with lead guitar. This must be TAZ’s way of updating the song and making it their own. This interesting intro does work. They have also added a wild guitar solo and a little interaction between vocals and guitar, before jumping back into the chorus. Sounds like they try to create the interplay of a live performance in the studio, and this little bit could make the song fun in a live setting.

“Hell Without You”, appears twice on the album, though it’s confusing as to why.  The only real difference that is noticeable between the two versions is better production on the second. “Hell Without You” is also an over complicated fast paced song with too many lead fills, unless you are into Yngwie Malmsteen. Any space not filled by vocals is filled with blazing leads. This could work in moderation, but here it is overdone.  “Razor’s Edge” and “Streets of Fire” start to show progression and maturity in the writing. The lyrics go beyond the usual lust and love sugar type lyrics. The music is more simply structured in a good catchy way. “Streets of Fire” is also a good fast high energy song. For an album of songs demoed in two differing years, the ‘89 years show the band getting better.