Dokken - Lightning Strikes Again
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Free Music Notes for Lightning Strikes Again
Free Music Review: Lightning CAN strike twice
Hit: 4 Stars
It appears that 2008 is going to be the year for a resurgence of 80's metal as Iron Maiden just released their best of for the decade, Whitesnake has given us the excellent "Good To Be Bad" and Dokken wants to prove that the 80's are not dead with their newest release "Lightning Strikes Again", taking the title from a song on their most popular album, "Under Lock and Key" from 1985. Has it really been THAT long? Although this release will not make you forget Dokken's glory days of "Key" or "Tooth and Nail", respectively, it is definitely a step up from their last studio effort, the dismal "Hell To Pay" in 2004.
As may be expected Don Dokken's voice has lost some of the range it once possessed and has grown raspier over the last 20 years, but NOT as expected, the sound of the band themselves has not changed a bit. Guitarist Jonathan Levin proves he has the chops to be a worthy successor to George Lynch which was NOT an easy space to fill. Listen to the solo on the opening track for proof.
Opening with the heavy but melodic "Standing On the Outside" and "Give Me a Reason" the CD is a combination of patented Dokken rockers ("Heart To Stone", "Disease", "Point of No Return") power ballads ("How I Miss Your Smile", "I Remember"), and pure guilty pleasure melodic metal ("Oasis", "It Means"). In short, this release has everything that someone would expect from a Dokken release.
"Lightning Strikes Again" may not be enough to make you forget their classics like "Tooth and Nail" or "Under Lock and Key" from the 1980's, however it IS enough, for now, to perhaps make you forget it is the year 2008. And depending on how you look at it, that may not be such a bad thing at all.
Free Music Review: Like the old Dokken with some exceptions
Hit: 4 Stars
I just downloaded this today from the mp3 store here at amazon.com and I've given it a careful listen. To give you some background, I'm a big fan of the older Dokken material from Tooth and Nail, Under Lock And Key, and Back for the Attack. When the group broke up, I didn't care for the grungy direction the group took and basically stopped listening. Sure, I got Dysfunctional from a used CD bin, but I can only recall listening to it once and not liking it.
I can agree with the other reviews that this is more like the sound the group had with Tooth and Nail. I like the sound of most all of the tracks and a few have some very memorable sounds right off the bat. There are a couple of exceptions though. "Disease" and "Release Me" just seem to miss the mark, in my opinion. As I listened to them I was clearly reminded of the grungy hard rock sound that has plagued the music industry for the last 15 years that I don't like. "This Fire", on the other hand comes across much differently. There's just something much more enjoyable about the guitars, the beat, and even the lyrics in that song. That they appear side by side in the track listing is surprising - to me, they don't belong on the same CD.
Overall, it's good. I'll definitely be listening to it more and, just maybe, those other tracks might grow on me after a while. I hope Dokken continues to refine their style/sound to become one of my most enjoyed artists once again.
Free Music Review: AFTER 25 YEARS DOKKEN HITS THEIR STRIDE
Hit: 4 Stars
I bought Dokken's debut album 'Breaking The Chains' when it came out in 1983, and I've even seen Dokken in concert a couple of times. However, as unlikely as it would seem, I'm not a hardcore Dokken fan. And while this CD alone is not likely to change that fact, it is definitely a step in the right direction. This is a very good CD, and is in my opinion the best of Don's career.
Now, most of the reviews before mine state that this CD is a glorious return to Dokken's classic sound? Well, for the most part I disagree, and if I thought it was I would not be writing this review. To my ears the music on this CD is a bit heavier and more focused, and the lyrics are without question more mature and substantive than on any previous Dokken release. And overall this album is far more solid and compelling than anything Dokken released in the 80's and 90's.
In the 80's and early 90's I partied as much as the next headbanger, but ultimately, lack of substance (extremely cheesy lyrics and incredibly lame ballads) has always been one of my problems with many 80's and 90's bands. Don't get me wrong, vacuous party rock did and does have its place, but it's clearly void of any qualities that would make it an essential part of anyone's music library. For Dokken this CD is a step or two in the right direction for correcting that problem.
Free Music Review: Best Dokken LP in quite some time
Hit: 4 Stars
In looking at the previous reviews, it seems to me that most people that gave this album a poor review do so by way of comparison. No - this is not Dokken circa 1986 with George Lynch shredding every song and Don's voice in his prime. But for the 2008 version of Dokken, this is a very good album. I have to agree with several of the previous reviewers in that 'Hell to Pay' and 'Long Way Home' were forgettable albums. I listened to each of those albums from the beginnig to end and except for maybe 1 catchy song on each I felt no reason to play them again. Not so with LSA. This is a very strong album, with a nice mix of up-tempo tunes mixed with a few ballads. And who in the Metal world sings a love-gone-bad ballad better than Don Dokken? I was very pleasantly surprised by Jon Levin's guitar work, and Mick was spot-on with the drums as always. Some of my favorites were "Standing on the Outside", "Heart To Stone", "How I MIss Your Smile", "I Remember" (great guitar work here), and "This Fire". This album has found it's way into my CD changer since I bought it, and I don't se it coming out any time soon. Now - is this as good as some of those great Dokken albums of the 80's - not quite - but when judged on its own it is a solid album. I don't think any Dokken or Hard Rock fan for that fact would be disappointed!Free Music Review: Great comeback, great sound, great album.
Hit: 4 Stars
I disliked every album Dokken has put out since the 80's. From the terrible "Dysfunctional" all the way to the merely OK "Hell To Pay". Therefore, I was more than skeptical about this record when it was announced. I was wrong.
From the first riffs of the opening track, "Standing on the Outside", I knew this album will do something Dokken's music hasn't done in over 20 years - ROCK. This is their best product since "Back for the Attack" back in 1987, and in some ways better.
Classic Dokken riffs = check.
Classic Don's vocal harmonies = check. (although Don's voice has diminished quite a bit)
Awesome ripping solos = check. (you'd think Lynch is back with the band)
Clear production = check.
90% of the album are rockers and not ballads = check.
Songs like "Heart to Stone" and "Judgement Day" are just a couple of highlights that one should listen to before buying this record, and you'll probably be sold.
Great effort by the band - I haven't gotten tired of this album yet and I have been playing it a lot since it came out. Most songs are very easy to actually sing along to, something Dokken has abandoned a long time ago. Give this one a shot - you'll love it.