Thursday, August 27, 2020

The 1980 Listening Post - Blue Oyster Cult - Cultosaurus

 Blue Oyster Cult - Cultosaurus


#278

by Rob Slater
Blue Öyster Cult
Cultösaurus Erectus
Genre: Spinal Tap’s Inspiration 
Allen’s Rating: 3 out of 5
Rob;’s Rating: Rating: (First time through 3) [Second 3.5]. C instead of C-. (Kind of a Covid *A3 grade.)

Highlights:
Black Blade
Deadline
Marshall Plan 
Lips in the Hills

by Rob Slater
The seventh studio album by American hard rock band. It's uneven and kind of weird. I listened to this more than any other review I have done. 

Tracks 1-3. First listen while gardening. Sounds like a parody of Heavy Metal; Spinal Tap might have gotten their inspiration from this album. ;-) On second or third listen and after actually receive their double disk best of CD from Amazon, I will upgrade track 1, Black Blade to one to listen to, especially if you ever read Moorcock or “read” the Heavy Metal magazine. (One of my favorite B.O.C. Tracks is Veteran of the Psychic Wars from the film Heavy Metal.)   

1. Black Blade has got a great story. No surprise as it's lyrics are written by Michael Moorcock, a frequent collaborator with B.O.C. The often had other people writing the lyrics. One thing I LOVE about doing these reviews is I essentially go read the liner notes after the first listen. Love getting the history and the Degrees of Seperation among musicians. Michael Moorcock is also a musician in his own right, releasing a couple CDs, and collaborating several other bands, like Hawkwind. 

4. "Deadline" gets back to what I think of as B.O.C. 

5. "Marshall Plan" is a great touring sound also sounds like B.O.C. It's their version of Bad Co's Shooting Star, Foreigner's Juke Box Hero, and John Hiatt's Perfectly Good Guitar. Less poppy, but still a great song. Marshall Plan as in the amplifier, Marshall Stack, I assume. The boys named Johnny... And Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water", (a song that the producer, Martin Birch, previously produced) is homaged. The song is overlong, but good. 

6. "Hungry Boys" Starts like parody, but it ended well 

7. "Fallen Angel" – Started well. 

8. "Lips in the Hills” This one grew on me. Stupid title, but great metal music. I can hear the roots of the speed metal genre, but slower. 

9. "Unknown Tounge" – Decent song, weird lyrics. What you might expect from B.O.C. “She was wearing cotton pajamas a crucifix over head…” 

 Give it a listen.

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