E.E.R.

Riot Act: Maniacal Disastrophe Tour (CD 57:07), Neurosis Record, 2000
Neurosis Records
2557 Madison Ave.
Painesville, OH 44077
(440) 350-9477
E-mail: hobbelshnimp@hotmail.com
Cyberhome: http://communities.msn.com/GuitaristRickRay

I really wanted to like Riot Act... any band that thanks the people that
stole their equipment from them in the liner notes is OK with me. They even are
photographed hanging out by a chain-link fence on the back cover - how much
more "rock and roll" can you get? Their latest release Maniacal
Disastrophe Tour (the NAME's even cool!), contains music that matches
the attitudes conveyed by the cover - straight up hard rock and roll
complete with flashy guitar pyrotechnics and growly vocals. Unfortunately,
the release suffers from low production values that keeps the music from
really ever hitting full stride - and that's a shame because there's some
really nice guitar playing on this CD that is all but muffled by the poor
recording levels.

While Rick Ray's guitar playing is fine, the other members of the band don't
seem to be in the same musical league as Ray. Ambrose's bass playing is
pretty standard, and the John Cek's drumming never sounds quite right
(although I think this may be more due to the production of the CD than any
lack of talent). The vocals and lyrics on Maniacal Disastrophe Tour
are not very good either; Ray's strong point seems to lie more in his
instrumental prowess and not in his vocal talents. There are some definite
nice spots on the CD - some excellent guitar solos crop up towards the end
of the CD and the track "A Time in Space," is a pretty darn solid rock and
roll song. Also, the song "One More Line" is sort of a "21st Century
Schizoid Man" on acid - and I mean that in a good way. However, given the
poor production values it's hard to determine whether the rest of the CD
would've sounded any better with more professional mixing. For all I know,
if Alan Parsons was stuck behind the mixing board Riot Act could come out
sounding like Led Zeppelin - but on this release they simply never get that
chance.

In my opinion, Riot Act should have worked a little longer on the production
end of things before releasing this CD - I think that some of the emotions
that these songs were meant to convey didn't make the transition from the
studio sessions to the CD. Rick Ray is a very good guitarist, and I would be
interested to hear what either he or his band could do if he hired another
vocalist and farmed out some of the production duties. Unfortunately for
Riot Act, Maniacal Diastrophe Tour is too rough around the edges
quality-wise to be considered a top-level rock and roll release.

- Michael Askounes

CREDITS:
Rick Ray: Guitar, Guitar Synth, Vocals
Jack Ambrose: Bass, Vocals
John Cek: Drums, Vocals

TRACKLIST:
1. Red Tape (Ray) 3:08
2. She Could Win An Award (Ray, Ambrose) 3:38
3. Bonnie The Clyde (Ray, Ambrose) 3:14
4. Thinking About You (Ray, F. Chesnes) 5:50
5. The K.G.B. is After Me (Ray) 3:17
6. Just a Boy (Ray) 4:31
7. Giver of Life (Jay, Ambrose) 5:33
8. Good to be Here (Ray) 3:22
9. They're Only Words (Ray) 5:17
10. One More Line (Ray) 3:53
11. Dial Nine (Ray) 3:37
12. A Time in Space (Ray, Cek) 4:26
13. State of Decay (Ray) 5:21
14. Untitled "Secret" Track 2:00



Riot Act: Approach with Extreme Caution(CD, 62:01); Neurosis Records, 2000 
(see above for contact info)

10 words or less: Low budget, 3 piece AOR style Rock

Elaboration: I don't know what else to say... there are changes in tempo 
within the compositions but this is not ProgRock by anyone's definition. I 
don't like cutting down anyone's art but I can't find any reference points 
for this since I do not listen to this style of music. Perhaps this could be 
summed up as a poor man's Thin Lizzy? This just does nothing for me, I'm 
sorry. I will say, that when there is no one singing, (which is rare), there is 
some pretty good hard Rock guitar playing in there. Perhaps with a production 
budget, (this sounds like it was recorded in their garage), and no vocals, this 
would be stylistically comparable to Joe Satriani though it falls quite short 
of the artistic level of Satch. ~ L. Perez





Editor's note: I have had phone conversation with Rick Ray, the guitarist
and lead vox for Riot Act. Rick is an extremely talented axe-man with riffs to die
for. He's releasing SOLO CDs now that are impressive. Though
the Riot Act CDs are flawed, Rick Ray on his own, is incredibly
prolific and has the skills of Frank Marino and Robin Trower rolled into one
package. His solo releases clearly show this. His vox on his solo CDs reminds
me of John Lennon and his apocalyptic visions inspire.

(RE: The limited edition compilation CD of Riot Act called APPROACH WITH
EXTREME CAUTION -- Though it was rough around the edges in spots, the overall
CD performance is strong 70s-styled rock with solid leads and vox. Only one
the track where Riot Act attempts harmony vox does the off-key thing grate
on one's nerve. Otherwise, I'd recommend this CD to any fans of Marino,
Mahoghany Rush, Trower, or Jimi.)





To purchase this recording and get more info, soundclips, etc.
CLICK ON ARTIST'S NAME ABOVE
OR . . .
Please visit my BUY IT E.E.R. NOW INDEX PAGE
OR...

Please try my brand spankin' new 
EER and AMAZON.com QUIK-LINKs
buyer's guide to recommended music.
OR ...
 go to my LINKS page and find the vendors' section. 
Happy hunting!