The 1981 Listening Post - Blue Oyster Cult - Fire of Unknown Origin

 Blue Oyster Cult - Fire of Unknown Origin

#298

By Bobby Bognar

June 19, 1981

Blue Oyster Cult

Fire of Unknown Origin

Genre: Classic Rock

4 out of 5

 

Highlight:

Burnin’ For You

 

 

It’s easy to forget how fucking metal Blue Oyster Cult was in their heyday.

 

When you think of their biggest hit, “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” not only do you immediately want to throw up devil horns, you also want to very neatly put them into the Classic Rock bin at your local Peaches or Sam Goody.

 

But on this album, BOC puts their influences on full display, from Cream to Led Zeppelin, as well as lay out the path later followed by everyone from Iron Maiden to Winger. That’s right, those early rock and blues influences thread their way from K-Tel to Headbangers Ball.

 

The standout track on this album is “Burnin’ For You,” which is DNP (“damned near perfect”) in it’s writing and arrangement. Every piece of this song, from the opening guitar riff to the chorus, could be the load-bearing hook to another, lesser quality tune. This song is assembled like a Volvo: high quality parts on a rock-solid chassis. You can easily get 300,000 miles out of this baby.

 

“Veteran of Psychic Wars,” the third track, really begins to show it’s metal stripes. If you told me that this was a demo by Queensryche, I would believe you. It’s theatrical and bold, which, if that’s your thing, then this could also be your thing.

 

 “Heavy Metal: The Black and Silver,” not only has the term “heavy metal” in the title (and chorus), but it also has the sound of many bands I played with at Mancini’s, FM Station, and Palomino’s (all well-known hair metal venues in the 80’s and 90’s). Stomping riffs, screaming vocals, etc…it’s all there.

 

While Blue Oyster Cult carved out a pretty great career for themselves in the Classic Rock genre, this album suggests that they may have been co-godfathers of the metal movement in the 80’s, joined by Zeppelin, Sabbath, and Cream.

 

Listening to Fire of Unknown Origin, the roadmap is clear. Plus, any act that can sing “Joan Crawford Has Risen From The Dead” without a trace of irony is plenty metal for me.

https://open.spotify.com/album/7v4kEpVtppoMm80m43lGzt?si=pn6MXcZeSrunyu5o-4uzXA

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.

https://open.spotify.com/album/2w9ox8f1PSz30Ayanrm9C4?si=xKuCs4T5Rqi56V9k-GJTdw

The 1985 Listening Post - Blue Oyster Cult - Club Ninja

Blue Oyster Cult - Club Ninja

#502/1136

December 10 1985

Blue Oyster Cult

Club Ninja

Genre: Prog Rock

3.5 out of 5

Highlights:

White Flags

BOC owns a place in Americana for two reasons:

1. More Cowbell
2. Touring with Black Sabbath on a “Black and Blue” bill. 

That’s enough for me. 

I cannot explain why this worked for me as well as it did. There’s a nostalgic quality to some of it, like heirs to Moody Blues on “Perfect Water” but other times it just seems that they are having a good time (“Spy in the House of the Night”, “Beat ‘em Up”). 

You could do worse than spend 45 minutes with this. 

It won’t change your life and it has significantly less cowbell. But it’s fine. 

https://music.apple.com/us/album/club-ninja/452509961

The 1983 Listening Post - Blue Oyster Cult - the Revolution By Night

Blue Oyster Cult - the Revolution By Night

October 1983
Blue Oyster Cult
The Revolution By Night
2.25 out of 5

Highlights:
Take Me Away
Shadow of California

I always thought it was cute that Blue Oyster Cult toured with Black Sabbath on the “Black and Blue” tour (unless I’m imagining that. The same way that Rate toured with Poison. But aside from strong guitar work what did those two bands have in common? Sabbath was dark as hell and Blue was like Boston in comparison. Maybe there was a content thing I was missing.
Anywho, this album starts off strong with the opener “Take Me Away” and then falls into familiar rhythms. Nothing too harmful but also not enough to call your friend with “Have you heard the new Blue Oyster Cult record???” Has anyone besides the band’s family ever made that call?
I will admit that the big, dumb, “Shadow of California” sort of wormed its way into my heart.
This album is lousy with weird guest writers. Patti Smith. Aldo Nova. Ian Hunter (who wrote the glam-iest track, “let Go”) and “Broadway Blotto” from, apparently Blotto, co-wrote “Dragon Lady”.
It’s a weird grouping, man.
BOC always sounded like they took themselves too seriously but looked, in pictures, like they were in some jokey, fun band. That almost makes them endearing.
Almost.