Anguish, frustration, lack of patience and loads of anger serve only as a portion of the feelings going through a band's founder that in this particular case, it has been year after year watching a band take the tumble right into the gutter. I pretty much know these feelings as I once felt that as well, yet hopefully I won't be reaching the gutters anytime soon. However, I am fortunate to know a person that shared his vision with me and basically all he wanted to do was to create his 80s Metal / Hard Rock experience in Israel with his own band named LOUD N' CLEAR. You might recognize the name Tomer "Tommy-Foxx" Darmon as he is also a writer on Metal Temple, yet I don't think that anyone of you Metalheads actually knew that he has been a guitarist / composer / founder of this band. Finally after so many years of waiting, kicking, screaming out loud, getting pissed off so easily, wishing and hoping, Tommy-Foxx's journey with the LOUD N' CLEAR emblem took a different turn with the release of long overdue material, along with partial new stuff, of a self-financed album called "Playing With Thunder". I have to admit that ever since I have known Darmon, which is for almost seven years, I learned to look passion in the eye, learn from it and to find out that dreams can come true even after long time suffering and endless waiting.

As far as "Playing With Thunder" goes, it turned out to be one of the many paved roads back in time to the glorious 80s years of both the American and European scenes. Though I stumbled on an album that suffered from several inconsistencies production wise, and also rather weak skins' sound, I enjoyed what I listened to over here. LOUD N' CLEAR are certainly not that original with their fusion of Hard Rock and traditional Heavy Metal, and I think that nobody even or ever cared about it in the band, yet I could sense the decisiveness and passion for the music through the riffing, soaring vocals, basic yet fit drumming, explosive lead guitars, and zealous bass work. LOUD N' CLEAR, with "Playing With Thunder", gave their older fans, and possibly potential fans, to experience their own vision of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal. Some of it might be slightly banal while reprising old classics as I mentioned earlier, yet there are showcases of creativity on achieving to formulate catchy tracks, partly commercialized, with great music that isn't necessarily fundamental and effortless, and with a lot of heart.

After a couple of rounds with "Playing With Thunder", I almost rocked like a hurricane, but not quite in the way SCORPIONS would have wanted. Other than "Hold On", which didn't present the band in such a good light especially with the cheap BON JOVI direction, there have been more wonders. "Poison Love", the album's greatest track and should be considered as the golden single, for some reason had me thinking of Speed Metal with that opening rhythm section and main riff that nearly cut me down. Though it didn't have the piles of aggression and sleaziness of the jagged "New Solution", which proved to be quite a compelling opener for this kind of album, I couldn't let myself stop thumping the table or limit my excitement from "Poison Love"'s riffing. It was like a cool direction within the 80s DOKKEN world, plus additional groups from the US, along with a wild lead fretwork as an appetizer. "Rise" and "Breath" might not be in the same line as the previous songs, yet these songs musically are in a different level in comparison to the rest of the tracklist. LOUD N' CLEAR well mixed Hard Rock / AOR and Heavy Metal in a less straightforward manner while not fearing on being emotional rather than rough and tough. On the other hand, there have been times where I felt that "Rise" was a little bit stretched and "Breath" has been losing its flow right before every pre chorus.

"Playing With Thunder" is the cause effect of despair, rage and disappointments, yet it is also a fulfilment for Tommy-Foxx and his band, loyal friends that did what it has to be done to finally release material that they have been feeling and hearing about for years. In addition, this album is also a small story that emulates older stories of 80s band wishing to have their breakthrough to the big venues and stages. Who knows, if Israel wasn't open enough to give LOUD N' CLEAR a chance in the past, maybe the world will in the future.