Australia has such a great Rock scene and Western Australian music is so strong at the moment, with every genre out there hitting home runs these days it seems. Sometimes though it’s a blast from the past that reminds you how much world class Hard Rock we have. Andy Smith was of course the voice behind Baby Jane, the West Australian band that produced the wonderful ‘Are You Listening’ in 2011 and toured the U.S. before dissolving on New Year’s Eve 2015 shortly after witnessing Motley Crue’s ‘last’ show.
Andy started Sister Switchblade in 2017 (also check out the other project he is part of ‘Cross Eyed Lover’) and pre-covid they hit the ground running with a couple of wonderful albums – 2017’s ‘Best Served Cold’ and 2019’s ‘Tales and Taboos’ – the third album ‘Don’t Try This at Home’ though, might just be the best yet. I’ve always enjoyed Andy’s song writing and I hope that he’ll agree (don’t worry I’ll ask him) that 2024 might just see him put out his finest and most consistent work to date. After a forced break for the pandemic and a change of the lineup, ‘Sister Switchblade’ are back with a new album that promises to pick up where we left things off with another fine selection of Sunset Strip meets Western Australia. ‘Don’t Try This at Home’ sort of nods to that absence and yet also seeks to refine the sound and collect up some rarities.
I always see Andy when there’s a great Rock show on whether it be Buckcherry (a band I now he loves as much as I do) an old school arena filler like Iron Maiden, or even a trip over east for a Festival and I think it’s that love of music that fuels the passion to create his own work. And as I say this might just be the best yet…
Opening with the storming ‘The Gloves Are Off’ it could be 1989 all over again – there’s a great riff, a great groove and the type of chorus that will have you singing along before the end. That’s backed up ably by the heavier more metallic riff of ‘Get Down Stay Down’ and the lead single from the album ‘I Smell A Rat’ which has a lovely Skid Row-esque chug and groove. Any way you look at it, it’s an impressive opening.
If you want more variety then ‘Dead To Me’ has a great bluesy groove: you’ll love the guitar almost a ZZ Top rhythm section sets it aside. I asked Andy about the song and particularly the drum sound and he confessed that he actually handled the drums not only on this track but also the entire record due to availabilities. A man of many talents indeed.
The best thing about this record is that the quality is shot through from start to finish and whilst you may have favourites there’s not a weak link here. ’24 Hours In The Hole’ is hard rocking goodness from the cool solo that serves as the intro to the great chorus – it’s nice and sleazy, just like fans will love. The surprise of the set is ‘Like Dominos’ which features Perth’s own Chris Gibbs on guitar. I love the build up and spoken intro – then that refrain – and the melodic first vocal, it’s such a soaring song that like all the best songs makes you feel like you’ve heard it before and always loved it. Whilst it might stnd out as being a little different with its pop rock sound – it’s exceptional and a complete ear-worm!
‘Electric Angel ‘ takes us back to what Sister Switchblade do best – it’s a nice grubby AC/DC meets LA Guns Riff rocker that blows away the cobwebs. It’s followed by a slightly mellower ‘Finger On The Trigger’ another cool hard rocking song, before ‘Don’t Tell Me What To Do’ turns it up again with a dirty groove and a great build up – it’s a real headbanger and has a nice punk ethos. Like a few of the songs here there are some nice intros and the messages that bookend ‘What A Way To Go’ are classic! This one comes with a groovier guitar tat wants to funk like Extreme, ad it works beautifully with a great gang vocal.
There’s an interesting story to ‘Something Wicked’ the penultimate track. Andy tells me it’s a song that predates Baby Jane and was written with the same writer who also penned Baby Jane’s ‘Are You Listening’ with Andy when they were part of pre- Baby Jane band ‘White Wednesday.’ It’s a great song that reminds you of great Skid Row – ‘Slave to the Grind’ vintage. It’s another highlight.
We close interestingly with a wonderfully reworked acoustic arrangement of ‘Are You Listening?’ It’s a wonderful reimagining for anyone that knows the original will love, A great vocal, some great keys to end things in the best possible way – just like an icy cold beer and whisky chaser on a hot summer’s evening in Perth, Western Australia.
This isn’t just a great Australian Rock album, it’s up there for album of the year…
Tracklist:
01. The Gloves Are Off
02. Get Down Stay Down
03. I Smell A Rat
04. Dead To Me
05. 24 Hours In The Hole
06. Like Dominos
07. Electric Angel
08. Finger On The Trigger
09. Don’t Tell Me What To Do
10. What A Way To Go
11. Something Wicked
12. Are You Listening? (acoustic version)
