Saigon Kick – The Lizard
Release Date: 1992
Highlights: Cruelty, Hostile Youth, Feel The Same Way, Freedom, God of 42nd Street, My Dog, Peppermint Tribe, The Lizard, All Alright, All I Want, Body Bags, Miss Jones, World Goes Round, Chanel
First off, if you’re going to write off Saigon Kick because of their uber cheesy ballad “Love Is On The Way”, stick around. You just may learn something. Anyways, Saigon Kick was a band that pretty much defied any kind of label. Were they metal? Were they alternative? Were they alternative metal? Either way, Saigon Kick managed to put out one of my all time favorite albums “The Lizard” and it was unlike anything I had been listening to. Much like bands like Animal Bag and Collision, Saigon Kick was taking elements of heavy metal music, 60’s Beatles like harmonies and modern (at the time) alternative hard rock and creating a hybrid of music that was all their own.
“The Lizard” was the band’s 2nd album and much like their debut, what captured me was the songwriting and the over all sound of the album. The album is very thick sounding and has much better vibe than the thin, tinny sound of it’s predecessor. Lead Singer Matt Kramer has such an amazing voice that at times sounds like a cross between Jim Morrison and Perry Farrell. The harmonies that Kramer and guitarist Jason Bieler are absolutely amazing and it really creates a great dynamic. The songs on “The Lizard” cover a lot of ground. Songs like “Hostile Youth”, “Freedom” and “Body Bags” cover the melodic hard rock side of things while “Peppermint Tribe” and “My Dog” are pretty much acid inspired psychedelic metal. As much as I hate the ballad “Love Is On The Way”, the album’s other ballad “All I Want” is a bit on the cheesy side but it’s a beautiful song and I totally appreciate it more now than back then. The album closes out with a novelty song “Chanel” which showed the band’s since of humor and it’s actually a really fun song to listen to.
“The Lizard” is an album that unfortunately committed suicide with “Love Is On The Way.” If that song hadn’t been on the album, the band would never have had a hit song but at the same time, if it wasn’t on there maybe more metal fans would be open to giving this amazing album a listen. Song for song “The Lizard” is a really awesome collection of melodically beautiful songs with some stellar playing and arranging. The album sounds really well thought out and has a flow that makes it very easy to listen to. Before writing this one off give this one a listen. You just may find that this band can surprise the hell out of you.
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