Masochist Music Review - Brides of Destruction: Runaway Brides

What can I say, I’m a masochist when it comes to music.  I like to have complete catalogues when it comes to my favorite musicians.  Sometimes this is a good thing (Alice Cooper, AC/DC) but oftentimes it’s not.  Not only that, but I used to fall into the trap of hearing one or two great songs and purchasing a whole album because of it, which sometimes produced a diamond, but usually only coal.  During this series, we will dwell on some of the albums I have in my collection that are downright terrible.  I will re-listen to them all and give you my impression of them.

Now this is only my opinion, so don’t take it as gospel.  If you like a particular album in this series, let me know, we’ll open up a discussion about it.  I’m always open to discussing the merits of any particular album, and if you have any suggestions (and especially if you have the album itself and are willing to share your views) then let me know and I’d be happy to add it to the list.

Album Name: Runaway Brides

Artist:  Brides of Destruction

Release Date: September, 2005

Why you bought it:  Being a Motley Crue fan I was intrigued by the initial release from Brides of Destruction.  Even though Nikki Sixx left after that album and subsequent tour, I thought that maybe, just maybe, Tracii Guns could keep the momentum going and make a good sophomore album.  After hearing Brides of Destruction, it also got me into LA Guns so I had my hopes up based on the fact that they were a solid band as well.

First impressions:  It didn’t really do it for me like the first album did.  The first album had the right mix of LA sleaze, grunge and pop, while this album didn’t really fire on all of those cylinders. This was a dirtier sounding record, much like American Hardcore from the dark period of LA Guns that didn’t feature Phil Lewis on vocals.  It wasn’t terrible, it just lacked a certain polish that came from having Nikki Sixx as your primary songwriter.

Impressions upon listening to it recently:  I like the guitar work by Guns, in particular the solo on “Never Say Never”.  Being so far removed from listening to Here Come the Brides (their debut album) I am able to listen to Runaway Brides as its own entity, without feeling the need to compare it to its predecessor.  That doesn’t, however, make it a great album.  It’s okay, but the flaws are glaring even without the comparison.  The vocals are relatively weak and the music, save for the way-too-infrequent guitar solos, is not nearly as polished as I expected or hoped it would be.

Any saving grace?:    It’s not a horrible album, and I don’t skip the tracks when they come up on my playlist, but I don’t frequently revisit the album unless it’s for something like this. 

Was it worth the purchase?: At a discounted price, sure.  Not at full price though.