LILLIAN AXE can as well be the case of the band you should give second thought, in regards, while complaining for all this Hair Metal shit form the U.S.A.. LILLIAN AXE is the band you should take special care of, while blubbering for these lame 'cherrypie' party songs. LILLIAN AXE should be the lethal weapon for a 'glam' Metal (sic) fanatic in defense of his rights to enjoy melodic yet 'heavy-plus-mature' tunes. Most of all, LILLIAN AXE - the way their latest album, the first normal studio release after 14(!) years, is too - exposes the punishing colors of quality, even if their hair are still(?) somehow 'fluffy'. LILLIAN AXE (re)rising, in other words?...
An unlucky band? Think fast and say 'yes'! I was too worried taking the time to assume how the hell this band's new songs would sound w/o 'trademark' singer Ron Taylor participating in the fold. OK, the guy may left the camp prior to the recordings of the herein review CD, but - in any case - missing a fluent 'part' of your motor is not an easy task. New Orleans, Louisiana-based LILLIAN AXE replaced Taylor with co-native Derrick LeFevre and...
...if you can't teach an old dog new tricks, well don't do it. Hmmm, this is partially true, because this doggie is smart enough to learn the shit it wants/needs to. I loooooove all of the band's 'old' studio albums; the blaze of 1988's Lillian Axe, the promises of next year's Love & War, the maturity of 1992's Poetic Justice, the perfectionism of next year's Psychoschizophrenia...R U familiar with the 'identity' terminology? Well, listening to the hooks of Waters Rising's tracklist you'll either i) smile wide (hold your fire for the production/sound), if you're into LILLIAN AXE in general, or ii) feel kinky enough to take a deep breath and dive in the whole magic of this anti-mainstream (but bulletproof) quintet.
Not a word for Steve Blaze yet? Mercy me...the man's gifted with denoting what's over-the-edge for acclaimed/mature/cultural American (Hard) Rock songwriting. These 'bridges'/'singing' slots are considered the LILLIAN AXE trademark, huh?  Is he the only 'original' member left right now (I try to remember)? Anyway, having to hear a 'new' thing from him for many years now (1999's Fields Of Yesterday CD stood as a collection of high-class non-released material, kicking major ass again...), the anticipation was as high as LeFevre's singing duties. Now, outraged, let's raise the flag of reception for a really nice album, eventually.
Evidence #1: if you don't know that Taylor is 'out' and LeFevre is 'in', you may not notice the difference (right, my dear old pal Anastasis?). LeFevre stands proud in the Taylor-ian path and he succeeds in delivering some similar-yet-not-copied singing. His voice has enough of dejection (how would he fit into LILLIAN AXE in the first place, right?) while he turns up to be ample enough when it comes to the 'heavier' stuff. Yes, he is a fine replacement for Taylor; nuff said.
Evidence #2: Steve Blaze is the man you'll chat bout everything while having your beer(s) in the neighborhood's pub. The songs he (I assume) has composed again are mature, 'prog'-thought and confident. For everyone 'into' LILLIAN AXE, you do not have to be afraid of a single thing (except from reading the paragraph below, maybe...). I love the dynamics of Waters Rising and I Have To Die, Goodbye, the 'message' of The 2nd Of May, the atmosphere of Fields Of Yesterday, the volume of Thirst and Fear Of Time plus the shock of the 5 4:33 instrumental 'outro' (the best tune off the whole album?). And there's not even a tiny taste of lyrics so far...
Evidence #3: Remember the transcendence of WINGER from 1993's Pull to 2006's IV? Assume the same here, in terms of manipulation of sound. The band - or Steve, in particular - has made some rearrangements regarding the way he'd like LILLIAN AXE to sound anno 2007. Naive enough: the guitars mix/production is up-to-American-date with velvet darkness all around and, oddly stated, this does not bother a total old-school scum like me. The man's aiming at an 'added' new audience? As far as the songs are good, that's fine...
Evidence #4: Don't like the cover artwork much. Sorry...
OK, singers are the band's 'brand' usually, but (thankfully) LILLIAN AXE is Steve Blaze. Waters Rising is your next beloved album by this majestic outfit (...'d like to know which one you'd left 'out' of the list...) and I feel free this album was worth waiting for, at last. The gloom of LILLIAN AXE is here. Buy or hide! 67 minutes of total value awaits you.