Critics Roundup 1986

’86 inspired the realisation that rock’n’roll now encompasses such a broad spectrum of self-contained categories (Hip-Hop, Metal, AOR, ad infinitum) operating simultaneously that the possibility of any truly revolutionary movement on the scale of ’78 would appear to be singularly remote.

The Irish scene exceeded all expectations over the first eight months, but faltered to near static at year’s end. Tuesday Blue scored a triple success: single of the year (‘Tunnel Vision’), gig of the year (Project Arts Centre), and a record deal with EMI America. Hothouse Flowers, currently preparing to record their vinyl debut on U2’s Mother label, performed a devastatingly effective gig at The Olympic and must surely be lined-up as Ireland’s next big singing. Another band well overdue an international launch, Aslan, released the excellent ‘This Is’ and made The Danceline Club their own. Surely destined for greater things., Something Happens!, stole the vinyl limelight temporarily at least with the brilliant ‘Burn Clear’/’Shoulder High’ EP. The Golden Horde’s Simon Carmody released so many records under various guises that ’87 must surely see him opening his own pressing plant! Irish musicians in exile also fared extremely well: Boston-based John Farrell’s Three Hands are looking like potential contenders for the U.S. radio market. London-based Gerry Lane finally brought Driveshaft to The Marquee, while Jim Lyttle’s Rogue Male released a classic Irish rock statement in ‘Belfast’. The latter outfit also returned to Dublin and left a memorable trail through our beloved nightclubs!

’87 look s set to be equally rivetting on the home scene with a promising selection of new and relatively new names ready to make their mark. Keep an ear and eye out for The Summerhouse, Watching Horses Running, Smear Campaign, Interference, Echoes of Pink Whispers, Takapuna, Whatnext, and Touchdown. The increasingly confident hard-rock outfit, Assassin, look destined for further advances (pun intended) and – I hear – a relatively unknown Metal band are about to win a record contract as part of an international competition. Believe it or not!

Offerings of international origin were no less satisfying. Alice Cooper at Wembley Arena, Charlie Sexton at The Marquee, and Anthrax at the SFX, livened things up, while The Screaming Tribesmen’s ‘Date With A Vampyre’ EP (via Hotwire/WEA) did an admirable job in clearing out the dust lodged in my speakers. Not content with the Alice Cooper revival, ghosts of another era came back to haunt us with Boston delivering the best Seventies album of the Eighties and Bad Company (sadly, without Paul Rodgers) effecting the greatest change in direction since Christopher Columbus.

Unlike last year, i had considerable difficulty in narrowing my albums of ’86 down to a top ten, but here is my final selection: The Lover Speaks ‘The Lover Speaks’; The Church ‘Heyday’; The Sensational Alex harvey Band ‘Collection’; Steve Vai ‘Flex-Able’; Alice Cooper ‘Constructor’; Adrian Legg ‘Lost For Words’; Andreas Vollenweider ‘Down To The Moon’; Rio ‘Sex Crimes’; The Bomb Party ‘Drugs’.