Sweet Teaze
Do It Till It Hurtz

The sleaze/street/glam rock (or metal, as some say) was a phenomenon whose boundaries are still unclear to many today. The mind immediately jumps to restrict the scene to the Los Angeles Area and to singular situations on the east coast. Here is where most people's knowledge stops. But human understanding has diversified and enriched itself with concrete experiences, often hidden in general, and in this particular case, it would be presumptuous to stop at these trivial considerations and ignore a genre's underground, often surprising and certainly flourishing, rich with surprises that can build the cultural basis for those who truly want to know more and not miss anything.

This necessary premise introduces the first album (of a series of two) by Sweet Teaze, a Michigan band with Matt Matthews on vocals, Raymond Jay Eveland on all sorts of guitar antics, Mike Snake Edwards pounding on bass and keyboards, and Dave Press not missing a beat on drums. The album is a self-produced project that is almost impossible to find on the market. "Do It Till It Hurtz": the title and the final "z" take us directly into the original and canonical sleaze scene. The release year of the album and the band's entry into the scene is 1989. One might immediately think of a "nothing new, maybe well done" scenario. However, Sweet Teaze carry certain characteristics that make them interesting interpreters of that music scene. The category they belong to is purely sleaze/street/glam. This is beyond question. But there's something that immediately makes you think that their simplicity and gut-punching desire carry a musical and cultural heritage of a different nature. In fact, in "Do It Till It Hurtz" you hear a band that, while playing as Los Angeles demands, keeps the echoes and manners of adult-oriented rock alive. To be precise, the Canadian kind. You can hear it in the vocal style (which, anyway, in some situations also recalls the vocal lines of Enuff Z' Nuff) and in the quest for arena-like refrains, in the manner of leopard-spotted classic rock with AOR. But don't let this make you forget the first magic word I brought up: sleaze, the true dominant of this debut.

The tarry riff is immediately served with the title track opener, revolving perfectly around a cheeky and rude guitar. The first thing to note is a somewhat rudimentary production that, if you wish, detaches the bass from the rest of the instruments: in my opinion, it has a great vintage effect, making you feel like it's first-hand music, reminiscent of early studio works in the thrash metal genre and bands like Exodus or Nuclear Assault. Uninvasive keyboards accompany the start of "Pink Peru", which makes you think of classic glam but almost immediately veers towards Dalton and Pink Cream 69, while still maintaining an absolutely streetwise base. "Drive Me Crazy" is a bit banal right from the title. It's a track that could have comfortably sailed at average levels but is truly knocked out by the sound failing to give it the impact it should have. "Little Bit Of Ever" elevates the tone and showcases a sharp old-school street rock done right. It might not be highly original, but it works quite well. "How Do You Say Goodbye" is the western ballad of the album. To get an idea, remove the hyper-romantic coating from "I Won't Forget You" by Poison, and you'll get a similar but not identical effect, distinguished by an expressive and convincing voice. "Living On The Edge" is street rock on the verge of classic heavy metal. It's a truly hard, dark track sung with the stance of a heavy vocalist. The instruments advance decisively until the stadium-chorus explosion, showcasing great vocal range. "Sweet Wize" is a track showing off its L.A. tag, driving a Cadillac along waterfronts in search of women. "Turn Off The Lights" takes advantage of a truly original driving riff, a sleaze cut-and-sew manual. "The Fool" is a slow, charming street track in the style of the masters. Additionally, steam keyboards, barely perceptible, expertly cushion the piece. Then there's "One Night To Love", well-done but not overly original track for a dancefloor and drinking antics. "Horse Tief" is a surprising closing piece from the brigade. Everyone sings just like comrades do, but suddenly, after only 42 seconds, a depleted battery effect interrupts everything, and the album ends.

Much later, Sweet Teaze released a proper full-length produced as it should be, which I hope to analyze shortly. In "Do It Till It Hurtz," there's a meticulous and commendable effort, yet it often oscillates between peaks of originality and somewhat overly familiar notes. Some riffs are, however, praiseworthy. Debaser, let's leave the half measures behind: this is a solid 3.5.