Album Review: The Pretty Reckless – ‘Death By Rock And Roll’

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A powerhouse, their new record is emotive, bleak, and nostalgic, with a burning light at the end of the tunnel. American rockers The Pretty Reckless sophomore studio album Go To Hell (2014) is perhaps their most noteworthy, but with clear vocals and perfect production, Death By Rock And Roll has to be one of the strongest music releases this year thus far. ^{Show Source Texts}

Titular opener Their fourth studio album channels THE PRETTY RECKLES inclination towards post-grunge in the mid-nineties, in a manner similar to the lengthy-standing influences of, and touring partner, SOUNDGARDEN, sliding between the blisteringly warped riffs of Ben Phillips and the mighty pipes of Taylor Momsen. Armed with her gravelly growls and mighty pipes, Momsen and co. take on the music industrys misogyny THE PRETTY Reckles made a name for themselves in Witch Burn, empowerment and sexual peril (25) and idolisation of rock & roll, fixating on infamous Club27 throughout the entire length of their fourth studio album. ^{Show Source Texts}

New Yorkers The Pretty Recklesss start off on familiar ground, with sleaze-metal staples of a titular track, but Death By Rock And Roll quickly leaves forks. Kicking things off with a bang is title track Death By Rock And Roll, which reminded us all of just how amazing frontwoman Taylor Momsens vocals are, and how American rockers The Pretty Reckless managed to get their tracks into this metallic groove in the most engaging ways. ^{Show Source Texts}

Death is never far from mind on their new album, as it inspires singer Taylor Momsen to effortlessly bring out eminently listenable music in an unfussy manner. Channeling his own pain and desperation, singer Taylor Momsen is on point throughout every aspect of the album, his natural throaty rock-edginess balanced out with controlled, measured vocal performances that drip with intention throughout. So It Goes, the raw, energetic collaboration with guitar god Tom Morello, is delivered with blistering intensity; semi-autobiographical 25–a blistering number exploring vocalist Taylor Momsens lifelong idolization of angsty rock heroes–amplifies the drama of her elastic voice. ^{Show Source Texts}

The track features blistering guitar solos from guitarist Ben Phillips, along with Taylor Momsens commanding vocal intensity, with moments that veer from hypnotic, snarling croons to shrill, shrill moments. My Bones is one of the albums more energetic songs, featuring tempos and tone changes that recall the bands sophomore album, Go to Hell. ^{Show Source Texts}

Standing At The Wall is undoubtedly how the band pays tribute to its stoner rock ancestors, with everything from the vocals to instrumentals, drums, guitar, and bass delivering on making it an unforgettable, outstanding song on the album. Musically, the bands latest effort is a return to form from Go To Hells contemporary hard rock sound and classic grunge, whilst bringing the maturity and musical growth from bluesy Who You Sold For. The band rocks hard and brilliantly on the scattergun power of My Bones and the supremely dynamic Turning Gold, both highlight Death By Rock and Roll, but there is much more than just the thumping guitars and soaring vocals to take in. ^{Show Source Texts}

The results are no subtle, as their new album is a theater-like hard rock presentation that deals with hard moments and very little introspection. Yet, they have powerfully channeled all of this pain and anguish in making fourth album Death By Rock And Roll, a slam-dunk record combining the best parts of albums past, all the while paying homage to those who died. The Pretty Reckless rose and fell on an entirely unnatural basis, and while there is been similar amounts of hype built up to their new record Death By Rock And Roll, as a band, they have not moved or changed in any way that would warrant it. ^{Show Source Texts}

Case in point, The Pretty Reckless released their fourth studio album, Death By Rock And Roll, (Fearless Records) this month, and it is clear that the band is not only accepting the shift, they are giving it a big, ole bear hug. Beyond that, the playing is solid, the vocals are too, and aiming for something a little bit more compelling than simply comfort food with one big chorus eventually implies The Pretty Reckless may have a little bit more staying power than their past work. On top of that, the playing is solid, as is the sound, and aiming for something a bit more gripping than just comfort food with a big chorus ultimately implies that The Pretty Reckless might have more staying power than their work has in the past. Harley Darling, though billed as a way of honoring Kato, who has been a longtime producer of the band, could be something of a dreary post-album filler, but overall, it is great to see The Pretty Reckless growing and evolving as a band, revealing a little more about themselves as individuals. ^{Show Source Texts}

From the grunge-laden, thrash-heavy riffs to classic-rock hooks, the theater-rock elements to an almost country-rock feel, this album has The Pretty Reckless wearing their hearts on their sleeves. I unfortunately felt things were actually feeling a little bit more predictable as I got more into their new endeavor, and would say that the more country-inspired tracks were actually feeling a little more typical in terms of their compositions compared to the heavier tracks, but perhaps this could simply be my personal tastes throwing in a little subconscious bias to this review. Fortunately, for anyone not so into heavier music, their new effort does come with a fairly generous handful of tracks that do seem considerably more mellow and drowsy, falling more in the country-music camp. The slower, but no less essential, Standing At The Wall once again offers a glimpse of the mature, vulnerable songwriting on Taylor Momsens album, which is, to me, a truly lovely touch that makes Death By Rock And Roll the full package. ^{Show Source Texts}

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