Review Summary: Rebel yell almost feels separate from Rebel yell.
In the Midnight hour!, She cried more more more; With Rebel Yell!, She Cried more more more. Who can forget the lyrics of Billy idol's smash hit. It had always been such a fun and energetic song. With the previous success of
White wedding Pt. 1 Things seemed to be going pretty well.
Rebel Yell dropped and became a smash hit in the early 80's. The real question to all of this is, outside the infamous title track, does
Rebel Yell Stack up as an album? Well yes, and at the same time, no.
The title track itself is the biggest problem in the album. Not because of the title track itself, but due to the fact that it feels somewhat separate from the rest of the album.
Rebel yell is the opening track, and it is an energetic starter. However, when the album goes into
Daytime drama, the energy slows down and drains away. The rest of the album goes together outside of Rebel Yell as the starting track. It sounds like a fun 80's pop-rock album. In a way, almost too fun.
Rebel Yell leans towards being slightly generic in terms of sounding like something fresh and different. Considering the time period, pop was running rampant. The album does have enough rock influence to make the sound feel less generic than other acts at the time.
The structure would be very consistent if
Rebel Yell was the last track of the album. Considering how the record goes from being a little slow and pop-ish (
Eyes without a face, Flesh for fantasy) and builds momentum into the rock-influenced songs (
Catch my fall, Crank call, (Do not) Stand in the shadows). From Daytime Drama to Stand in the Shadows sounds how the album should flow, It builds up hype. The only misplaced songs are the first and last track.
The Dead next Door is a very mellow song, however it doesn't really fit after building up from the previous two tracks. Rebel yell should end the album, while The Dead next Door should be in the mid-album area at best.
Getting through the structure, the album itself sounds fun; if you try not to compare it to the title track itself. As said before, the songs start pop-ish and gradually build up to a more rock-like sound, The rock side starts to come out more towards the end of
Flesh for fantasy. The guitarist for Billy Idol does some pretty nice work during the later tracks. That work is the main factor towards the album building hype. As for the vocals, Billy Idol has a great voice, though he doesn't seem to utilize his full potential. He is very passive on a majority of the tracks. The passion heard in
Rebel Yell is hardly consistent throughout the album. Though in honestly this is why once again,
Rebel Yell Outdid most of the album.
Billy Idol made an album pretty separate from the title track itself. The music is good, but once again the structure and lack of passion on Billy's vocals have made
Rebel Yell a lot less than it could have been. It is still a good album. Maybe a great one to some. To close with , just move a few tracks around and see how the album sounds then. The potential is there, and
Rebel Yell as whole is good 80's fun at its best. Maybe not great, but good fun.
recommended tracks
-Rebel Yell
-Eyes without a face
-(Do not) Stand in the shadows
-Flesh for Fantasy
