Dokken & Lynch Mob (and related bands)

Don Dokken is my favourite singer. Great vocals, and the best vibrato in the business.
Don was definitely great in his prime. He sounded amazing on Back For The Attack in particular.
Up From the Ashes is almost as good as the golden era Dokken material.
I found it to be half-baked in terms of the songwriting. Don sounded good on it, but the songs didn’t really come together, IMO.

For me, the best example of a good Dokken record without Lynch would be Erase The Slate. Reb Beach put his own stamp on the guitars while honoring Lynch’s legacy, and there are some great tracks on there like the title track and “Voice Of The Soul”. I also think this was the last album where Don’s voice was still pretty strong.
 
I saw Dokken live [...] on the Monsters of Rock tour opening for the Scorpions and Van Hagar 2 shows in a row (Houston & Dallas).
The Van Hagar Monsters Of Rock tour was actually the only time I ever saw Dokken live. They did a great set.

I almost went to the South Dakota show on that one-off reunion tour in 2016, but I couldn’t find anyone else to go with me. I probably should have done it anyway, since I doubt it’ll ever happen again...but I did pick up the Blu-Ray for that tour, at least.

I also saw the original incarnation of Lynch Mob at one of their very first shows in October 1990 at a small club. Oni Logan seemed bored, but he still delivered a good vocal performance, and Lynch was on fire. Amazing to watch a player of that caliber up close.
 
I forgot to mention both at last night's The End Machine show as well as at Lynch Mob show a few months ago, George loves adding extended impromptu jams to a lot of the songs (accompanied by the band) that are jaw dropping!
 
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I've actually been listening to this song a bit more recently and I'm quite liking it now. Verses and pre-chorus are only decent but everything else is pretty great.
Keep listening and you’ll figure out why you’re wrong about those parts too. :D
 
Jeff Pilson’s project with Reb Beach and Robin McAuley now has a name, Black Swan. First single drops next week with an album to follow in early 2020.
 
First Black Swan single, the title track from Shake The World:

More info:

Sounds good!
 
Second single from the Black Swan album:

It’s OK, but I liked the first one better.
 
The Black Swan album has its ups and downs, but there are a few great tracks on there, and some pretty awesome guitar work from Reb Beach. McAuley’s vocals are mostly very good, though that piercing tone of his can get a little grating on some songs.

Still digesting it, may post some thoughts in a few days.
 
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Black Swan - Shake The World (2020)
  • Shake The World - Thumping drums and an ominous guitar line break into an uptempo rocker. McAuley’s vocals are strong and catchy here, especially in the chorus. Nice riffage and bass fills throughout. Great bridge, sweet guitar solo. Excellent song, 9/10.
  • Big Disaster - More of a midtempo stomper with a pretty catchy vocal line. Energetic bluesy guitar solos, cool bridge. This one’s a bit of a grower, but it probably delivers enough in the end to round it up to an 8/10.
  • Johnny Came Marching - A slower bluesy stomper with some great guitar playing. McAuley’s piercing vocal wears out its welcome a bit on the pre-chorus and chorus, and some of the backing vocals are odd. I’m also pretty sure the reporter voice near the end is just Jeff Pilson trying to talk like a reporter, which is kind of low rent. Cool outro otherwise. The music here is great, but some of the vocal choices drag this down to a 7/10.
  • Immortal Souls - A bass-driven intro breaks into a bright melodic guitar line. Nice vocal melodies throughout, and a pretty catchy chorus. Solid bridge, nice extended guitar solo. Good stuff, 7/10.
  • Make It There - The obligatory sappy power ballad. McAuley sounds good on the verse, but things get cheesier and more perfunctory after that. Nice guitar solo, though. 6/10.
  • She’s On To Us - Nice uptempo riffage and some Lynch-esque fills. The verse and chorus are catchy, the pre-chorus less so. Cool guitar solo. The backing vocals on the outro are a little icky. Good stuff overall, 7/10.
  • The Rock That Rolled Away - Reb Beach channels late 80s Satriani for the main guitar line. Nice riffage throughout. The verse and pre-chorus vocals are good, but I’m not as sold on the chorus. Solid bridge, great guitar solo. Cool vocal interlude with a great build-up into an awesome extended guitar solo outro. Had a couple of weaker elements earlier on, but finishes super strong. 8/10.
  • Long Road To Nowhere - A sweet guitar harmonic intro and soaring guitar lead kick off this uptempo rocker. Strong verse, great pre-chorus, good chorus. Great guitar solo, cool outro. Great stuff, 8/10.
  • Sacred Place - A plaintive intro breaks into a lead that borrows heavily from Boston’s “Peace Of Mind”. Great vocal lines throughout. The chorus is a bit of a grower, but it turns into an earworm pretty quickly. Very Lynch-esque solo. Cool interludes, love the outro. Excellent song, 9/10.
  • Unless We Change - Strings give way to a busy uptempo riff. Urgent vocals drive the verse and pre-chorus, then the chorus is more melancholy. The backing vocals are a bit icky. Rip-roaring guitar solo! Cool bridge. Great stuff overall, 8/10.
  • Divided / United - A catchy piano ballad with electric guitar accompaniment delivers a pretty clear anti-Trump message. Halfway through, an uplifting riff enters and changes gears. The vocals are pretty catchy here, with some sweet guitar soloing. Things deconstruct during the outro. Not sure this totally holds together as a single song, but it has a lot of very good parts. Let’s say 7/10.
Average: 7.6/10
Weighted: 7.6/10

Unlike your typical Frontiers supergroup, this collaboration between Robin McAuley (MSG), Reb Beach (Winger, Whitesnake, Dokken), Jeff Pilson (Dokken, Foreigner), and Matt Starr (Ace Frehley, Mr. Big) has genuine chemistry, and some real fire in places. Beach tears it up on guitar throughout the album, and McAuley sounds great for the most part.

Pilson and Beach previously collaborated on Dokken’s Erase The Slate in 1999, and there’s definitely some shared musical DNA between that effort and this one, though Shake The World does have its own identity. The songwriting is mostly good to great, with the excellent “Shake The World” and “Sacred Place” serving as standout tracks. A lot of this album is immediate, but some of it needs a little time to grow on you.

Hopefully this will be more than a one-off project, but Pilson and Beach are pretty busy, and McAuley isn’t getting any younger, so who knows. I’d love to see this lineup live, though.

(Master review index >)
 
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Black Swan - Shake The World (2020)
  • Shake The World - Thumping drums and an ominous guitar line break into an uptempo rocker. McAuley’s vocals are strong and catchy here, especially in the chorus. Nice riffage and bass fills throughout. Great bridge, sweet guitar solo. Excellent song, 9/10.
  • Big Disaster - More of a midtempo stomper with a pretty catchy vocal line. Energetic bluesy guitar solos, cool bridge. This one’s a bit of a grower, but it probably delivers enough in the end to round it up to an 8/10.
  • Johnny Came Marching - A slower bluesy stomper with some great guitar playing. McAuley’s piercing vocal wears out its welcome a bit on the pre-chorus and chorus, and some of the backing vocals are odd. I’m also pretty sure the reporter voice near the end is just Jeff Pilson trying to talk like a reporter, which is kind of low rent. Cool outro otherwise. The music here is great, but some of the vocal choices drag this down to a 7/10.
  • Immortal Souls - A bass-driven intro breaks into a bright melodic guitar line. Nice vocal melodies throughout, and a pretty catchy chorus. Solid bridge, nice extended guitar solo. Good stuff, 7/10.
  • Make It There - The obligatory sappy power ballad. McAuley sounds good on the verse, but things get cheesier and more perfunctory after that. Nice guitar solo, though. 6/10.
  • She’s On To Us - Nice uptempo riffage and some Lynch-esque fills. The verse and chorus are catchy, the pre-chorus less so. Cool guitar solo. The backing vocals on the outro are a little icky. Good stuff overall, 7/10.
  • The Rock That Rolled Away - Reb Beach channels late 80s Satriani for the main guitar line. Nice riffage throughout. The verse and pre-chorus vocals are good, but I’m not as sold on the chorus. Solid bridge, great guitar solo. Cool vocal interlude with a great build-up into an awesome extended guitar solo outro. Had a couple of weaker elements earlier on, but finishes super strong. 8/10.
  • Long Road To Nowhere - A sweet guitar harmonic intro and soaring guitar lead kick off this uptempo rocker. Strong verse, great pre-chorus, good chorus. Great guitar solo, cool outro. Great stuff, 8/10.
  • Sacred Place - A plaintive intro breaks into a lead that borrows heavily from Boston’s “Peace Of Mind”. Great vocal lines throughout. The chorus is a bit of a grower, but it turns into an earworm pretty quickly. Very Lynch-esque solo. Cool interludes, love the outro. Excellent song, 9/10.
  • Unless We Change - Strings give way to a busy uptempo riff. Urgent vocals drive the verse and pre-chorus, then the chorus is more melancholy. The backing vocals are a bit icky. Rip-roaring guitar solo! Cool bridge. Great stuff overall, 8/10.
  • Divided / United - A catchy piano ballad with electric guitar accompaniment delivers a pretty clear anti-Trump message. Halfway through, an uplifting riff enters and changes gears. The vocals are pretty catchy here, with some sweet guitar soloing. Things deconstruct during the outro. Not sure this totally holds together as a single song, but it has a lot of very good parts. Let’s say 7/10.
Average: 7.6/10

Unlike your typical Frontiers supergroup, this collaboration between Robin McAuley (MSG), Reb Beach (Winger, Whitesnake, Dokken), Jeff Pilson (Dokken, Foreigner), and Matt Starr (Ace Frehley, Mr. Big) has genuine chemistry, and some real fire in places. Beach tears it up on guitar throughout the album, and McAuley sounds great for the most part.

Pilson and Beach previously collaborated on Dokken’s Erase The Slate in 1999, and there’s definitely some shared musical DNA between that effort and this one, though Shake The World does have its own identity. The songwriting is mostly good to great, with the excellent “Shake The World” and “Sacred Place” serving as standout tracks. A lot of this album is immediate, but some of it needs a little time to grow on you.

Hopefully this will be more than a one-off project, but Pilson and Beach are pretty busy, and McAuley isn’t getting any younger, so who knows. I’d love to see this lineup live, though.
G R E A T album¡¡. McAuley stills a serious singer. Remember McAuley-Schenker band.:)
 


Sounds like shit, albeit a different kind of shIt from that RE-volution album he did years ago. WTF, George?
 

Also bad, but not as awful as the title track. Those drums sound like a kid pounding on plastic tubs...
 
Lynch is apparently retiring the Lynch Mob band name, which is probably appropriate, all things considered.

Another nugget in the interview is a mention of a project called “Heavy Hitters” with Jeff Pilson where they reinterpret a couple of songs from each decade over the past 50 years. Hopefully those reinterpretations will be way better than the Lynch Mob ones...
 
Wow. Okay, he's getting old but Lynch Mob was kind of the eternal band with ever revolving members...

Been listening a lot to Back for the Attack and Up From the Ashes lately. Brilliant records, through and through. Not crazy about Lynch Mob's Wicked Sensation though. (Convince me otherwise?)
 
Not crazy about Lynch Mob's Wicked Sensation though. (Convince me otherwise?)
I love the music on that record, but the lyrics are mostly dumb and I don’t like Oni Logan’s vocal tics.
 
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