If you were to go down the list of the defining bands of the 80’s sunset strip scene and assess the quality of their releases over the decades, The bands who actually lasted decades and continued to release new music rather than riding on nostalgia, You’d be hard pressed to find a band who has been as consistently great as L.A. Guns. Sure, There were a couple of albums that didn’t quite hit the mark, and they’ve gone through a revolving door of musicians throughout the decades they’ve been around. But the quality of the majority of their catalog of music has been great, While several of their better known contemporaries have struggled to release anything of substance L.A. Guns has been killing it both on record and on stage.
Ever since Phil Lewis and Tracii Guns reunited they’ve been putting out some of the best work of their career, From The Missing Peace up through Black Diamonds they have added new classics to their repertoire that go over live just as well as their older songs do and how many bands can you say that about? Not many.
For the most part it can be said that the music of L.A. Guns while having diverse songs sounds like them and doesn’t stray too far from that sound, Black Diamonds saw them leaning into their 70’s influences and kind of dipping their toes into that style, Leopard Skin goes much further in than that and I would argue is probably their most different sounding album since American Hardcore though I’d say quality wise it’s galaxies apart from that album. Now I’ll say this up front, If you’re looking for Cocked And Loaded 2.0 then this isn’t for you. But if you are a listener who loves the journey an album can take you on and enjoy when bands evolve their sound to new places then this is the album for you.
The album opens with the first single “Taste It” a mid tempo rocker which bears a slight resemblance in the melody during the verses to “Feels Like The First Time” by Foreigner. This song has a great groove to it, Phil Lewis sounding as great as ever vocally and this song just has a real swagger to it in his vocal lines. A real highlight of this track is the drumming of Adam Hamilton and the bass lines of Johnny Martin who is one of my personal favorite members to ever join the band, both of them lock in really well and give the song some extra punch and a richer quality to the sound. This song really picks up from where their last album Black Diamonds left off.
Next up is “Lucky Motherfucker” which was their second single and speaking of great bass lines from Johnny, The opening bass line leading into this song is great before leading into the riffs and this is where I feel like the record begins to establish it’s distinct identity as doing something different, I don’t really know what to compare this to except to say it’s definitely rooted in the 70’s. It’s got a funky vibe to it that will get you moving, there’s an unexpected but welcome melodic interlude that allows Phil to flex his cleaner vocals that I just love before going back to the funky rock riffs of this song. All in all a fun track.
Tracii Guns has a well documented love of Led Zeppelin and you can hear some of that influence emerge in his playing on “The Grinder” meanwhile the rhythm section brings the thunder and Phil is sounding positively viscous on this track.
“Hit And Run” is another unexpected case, There’s an almost R.E.M and The Velvet Underground quality to the melody of this song, Very beautiful guitar playing while Johnny’s bass hums in the background, Phil sings a bit more gentle and restrained. These guys have recorded a variety of more mellow songs over the years but this one is something you haven’t heard before, Guitarists Tracii Guns and Ace Von Johnson weave a rich soundscape throughout this song that is just flat out hypnotic to listen to.
Definitely one of the albums highlights in my opinion.
“Don’t Gimme Away” just rocks and grooves the whole way through and will get your body moving. No real analysis needed here, Just a fun song to rock out and dance to.
“I’m Your Candyman” again, a bit of a Led Zeppelin influence with a pinch of The Beatles but filtered through the style of this band, there’s a playfulness to this song that makes it a fun song to sing along to.
“Runaway Train” starts off with a bit of John Lee Hooker style blues playing before combining that with a slight old school country influence, an energetic track with excellent playing from the entire band that would definitely make a good soundtrack for an old school train ride. That musical combination could’ve been a risky move but these guys nailed it.
“Following The Money” brings things back to familiar post reunion L.A. Guns territory with great rocking riffs that with the power of the rhythm section really thundering and by the time you get to the guitar solo the band is just on fire.
“The Masquerade” begins with some beautiful acoustic playing and strings before laying on the electric lead, The melody really leaving Phil space to bring the emotion that his lyrics convey but it’s an appropriately restrained performance. The guitar solo here is absolutely lovely, what an absolutely stunning ballad.
The album ends with “If You Wanna” which is a decent enough mid tempo rocker.
A lot of bands by this stage in their career are often content to play it safe and L.A. Guns continue to impress, Leopard Skin definitely stands out as one of the most unique records in their catalog. It takes several swings for the fences and the surprising thing is that it’s the songs that sound the least like what they are known for that work the best, I get the feeling these guys had a lot of fun in making this album. I honestly would love to hear more diverse songs like they’ve done here in the future, But then again I just love this band and every new album is for me something to celebrate. Bring on the tour!
8/10
