Sebastian Bach – Give ‘Em Hell

Back in 2007, more than a decade since he parted ways with Skid Row, Sebastian Bach released his first studio album Angel Down. The album was much as you’d expect from Bach, meaning that it was good ol’ mixture of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal and as such it was perfectly suitable for fans of Skid Row. The album included some prominent guest appearances and overall, it was worthy representation of Bach’s state at the time as well as his Skid Row legacy.

The follow up Kicking & Screaming came out some four years later and it saw Bach dialing down on guest appearances and rather relying heavily on guitarist/bassist Nick Sterling. The result was weaker album, which of course checked all trademark Bach/Skid Row boxes, but lacked the quality.

Fast-forward three years and Bach is back with his third solo album and few songs in it’s clear that Give ‘Em Hell is whole another beast. The album is like its predecessor produced by Bob Marlette but this time around it’s better balanced and with noticeably more body to it. But the album also comes across as more fired up. And them, perhaps most importantly, there is the quality of songwriting, which is among some of the strongest of his career. Back are some of those prominent collaborators as well. This time around they count Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), John 5 (Rob Zombie) and Duff McKagan (ex- Guns N’ Roses) and their involvement suits the album well.

Taking into the consideration that this is a Sebastian Bach album it goes without saying that what we have here is that same brand of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock, which made him famous with Skid Row. You can say a lot about the guy, be there can never be the doubt about his dedication and the fact that he is 100% rock 100% of the time.

So as such there is not much new to get here. But with possible exceptions of Skid Row’s Subhuman Race, Bach was never really into reinventing the wheel or trying some new radical stuff. He’s a fan of rock music and he wants to rock. Still the overall quality on Give ‘Em Hell is noticeably elevated and even with some interesting twist on likes of “All My Friends Are Dead”, “Temptation” and “Forget You”. These are often connected to guitarwork by the guitarist Devin Bronson, which bear an almost John 5 quality to some of them, which gives the music nice almost psychedelic layer.

Bach’s vocals are still intact, even thou some of that sheer primal power which characterized his last two albums with Skid Row, is not as present.

Lyrically this is Bach being Bach and he’s not the most elegant writer, but he gets his points across. At times it can get cringy like on otherwise musically interesting “Dominator”. Cover of April Wine’s “Rock N Roll Is a Vicious Game” seems bit too on the nose and kind of out of Bach’s league. Replacing it with one of those Desmond Child-esque ballads Bach did so well on his debut would work better.

Generally looking Sebastian Bach has just released the strongest album of his solo career, one that might not come close to any of his albums with Skid Row, but nonetheless one that won’t lose face if compared by Skid Row’s first albums without Bach, the surprisingly strong and vital Thickskin.

www.sebastianbach.com