Aerosmith
Toys In The Attic

THE REVIEW

The hard rock bone crushers…

Hard riffs, “dirty” vocals, energetic hard rock songs but with a very close connection to blues, erotic lyrics, a band that best exemplifies the myth of the rock star “sex, drugs, rock n’ roll.” This was the Aerosmith formula, a Boston band that was among the first to export the hard rock genre to the USA. Or at least: in the '70s that was the formula.

Then, after the excellent 'Rocks' following 'Toys In The Attic', a slow descent began, culminating in the temporary departure of guitarists Joe Perry and Brad Whitford (1982). After reuniting, they became proponents of radio-friendly and commercial rock (that *?#!*%* of Crazy). The album in question is from 1975 and, according to some, including myself, represents the highest point of their entire discography. Indeed, here the sound had already strengthened compared to their debut but hadn't yet fallen into banality like in the LPs of their decline. Moreover, they managed to personalize the style (initially they borrowed many Zeppelin-esque sounds). So it's the qualitative zenith.

All the songs make you want to jump like a grasshopper. 100% HARD ROCK. How can you not get excited for Toys In The Attic and Adam’s Apple? Can a fan of the genre not shake their ass to the driving riffs of Walk This Way (their most famous song of the '70s, reworked in a famous duet with the rap group Run DMC in the '80s)? And then it's a very heterogeneous album: it ranges from pure hard rock songs to a revival of '50s rockabilly in Big Ten Inch Record. And finally comes Sweet Emotion… hypnotic tempo, slow chorus, guitars doing an excellent job, magnificent voice of Steven Tyler (not yet ruined by the excesses of their 'reckless life'). The lyrics are one of the few noteworthy on this album (as well as in all of their discography). In fact, unless you are sex maniacs or have a passion for double entendres (and I hope you understand what I mean), the other lyrics are better left where they are, without delving in.
"Sweet emotion Sweet emotion You talk about things and nobody cares You're wearing other things that nobody wears You're calling my name but you gotta make clear I can't say baby where I'll be in a year"

They can even move on to very heavy riffs à la Blue Oyster Cult in Round And Round. The work is concluded with a ballad: You See Me Crying. Introduced by a piano, the song presents an unheard Tyler. Really beautiful.
In conclusion: Aerosmith, despite having tried all imaginable drugs at the time (they were nicknamed Toxic Twins), had enough clarity to always nail the appropriate song. Their influence will extend across a wide array of genres. How many paid them due homage? Well, for instance, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, and Motley Crue.

After listening to this album, you will remain silent for 1 minute to absorb it. And then only the following exclamation will come from your mouth: “MIIIINCHIA!”