Review Summary: So obscure yet so awesome...
Very short lived British rock band Gogmagog made their sole release, "I Will Be There", the EP was good (for an EP) but failed to chart, resulting in the band disbanding.
It's a shame really, these guys are pretty good and could've used a debut album.
The opening title track comes up and it sounds pretty good. The bass, though not all that special, enforces the guitar riff and it is a very enjoyable riff to hear. Clive Burr on the drums (YES!) does an excellent job with the fast paced drum fills, The lyrics are pretty much a love song, the usual "I will always be there for you" theme, but there must be one thing that is bothering everyone; how could the agressive Paul Di'anno possibly sing a love song? Singing a calm song is one thing but a love song is another. Well, against all odds, he pulls it off, he does the song by being semi-aggressive, he sings the lyrics like he really means them and that surprisingly adds depth to them.
Well, we just got through the opening track and things are looking good, Clive Burr is nowhere near as good as he was on "Killers", the same can be said of Di'anno, but they still hold up good. Janick and Pete are good on the guitars though in all honesty this EP only needed one guitarist. The bass is only used to enforce the riffs and nothing more, adding some dissapointment, but you'll learn to nevermind that after the opening track. There is just one thing we haven't seen yet, a solo, is this album going to be good on solos? Let's find out.
The next one is "Living in a F**cking Time Warp", yes, this album has curse words. Believe it or not, the guitars and drums are better than the title track, there's more of a sence of rhythm-lead guitar relationship, there's actually a solo in this one. Di'anno is back to his usual vocals (if you've heard "Iron Maiden" you've heard this), the drums are even faster with the fills, and the solo is almost completely insane. The performance of the solo is so warped, I don't know whether to marvel at it or be dumbfounded, the wah-wah pedal performance in the beginning is why I say it's so insane, after that it's pretty awesome with really fast strumming.
How is it going so far; Di'anno's vocals more or less fit the songs well, Clive's kick a** drumming is a highlight, the guitars range from repetetive to insane, and the bass is still dull...Yeah, it's going pretty well.
And then there's the final track, "It's Illegal, It's Immoral, It's Unhealthy, but I'ts Fun" and I must say, I don't enjoy this track that much. Don't get me wrong this track contains the best drumming on the album, but it's very forgetful. The whole thing starts out as if it's live and starts a drum solo with Clive, then cuts to Di'anno getting deeper with his voice on this one for what I assume is comedic effect, then the whole thing builds up to a solo much more insane the first one. This track is overall O.K, but the arrangements make it seem repetetive and way longer than it already is, "I Will Be There" may come off as repetetive too, but the guitars, the drum fills, and Di'anno's surprising depth made enjoyable to listen to, this track is just O.K, that's the best I can say for it.
And that is "I Will Be There", a good EP, it has it's flaws but it still manages to be enjoyable.
And now it's time for the scores:
Vocals - A-
Di'anno has always been a surprisingly good singer despite his short range, his depth and non-aggressiveness on this EP make the vocals very enjoyable.
Guitars - B+
I have to give the guitars a B because, while the guitars are very good in performance, there is no need for a rhythm-lead guitar relationship, though this is presented in the second track, the second guitar is pretty much useless.
Drums - A
Clive's best drum work is arguably in "Killers", but on this EP, his drum fills and solos showcase what this great drummer can do.
Bass - C
The bass is easily this album's weakest point both generally and musically. I give it this low of a rating because in all honesty there is nothing special about it, it's just, well...there, and that doesn't help it much.
"I Will Be There" - A
The only thing holding the title track back from a perfect rating is that it's a tad too long for it's own good, not even Di'anno's vocals can save it from that fact.
"Living In a F**cking Time Warp" - A
This one gets everything except the bass right; the drums are faster, the guitars have a relationship with eachother, the vocals don't have as much depth as they do in the previous track but it is still present.
"It's Illegal, It's Immoral, It's Unhealthy, but I'ts Fun" - B
Overall it's O.K, definetly the weakest track off the album, but that doesn't make it bad, it's just that; the whole thing tries to be awesome, it really does (cheering audience, drum solo, comedic effect on the opening vocals, insane solo) but it just fails to capture the charm that the two previous tracks had, and that is it's downfall.
Best song on the album: Tie between "Living in a F**cking Time Warp" and "I Will Be There".
Overall album rating 3.95/5 (Very close to excellent)
With that said, I'm Number666 check out my other reviews cause I'll keep dishin' out more, and thank you for reading.
