Tesla ~ Into The Now (album review) ... Updating an old sound the right way!

Style: hard rock, blues-rock
Label: Sanctuary
Year: 2004
Home: California

Members: Jeff Keith ~ vocals
Frank Hannon ~ guitars/keyboards/b. vocals
Tommy Skeoch ~ guitars/b. vocals
Brian Wheat ~ bass
Troy Luccketta ~ drums

Additional: Section Quartet ~ strings
Michael Rosen ~ loops


Some albums really aren't meant for dissecting ... just for enjoying. This is one of them & I am positive you will enjoy it & I recommend you take up that challenge ... even considering that the riffs are somewhat by the book & thus predictable, but being a mix of older styles & newer bands (i.e. title track) fused in a cool mesh that just rocks with the best of what has come before yet never sounding nostalgic. At the same time the flash of the older styles is replaced by the heaviness of more contemporary styles, bringing together the best of both worlds. The lyrics are sung very well as always from Tesla, but aren't always the most interesting. They are sometimes a bit too cute for their own good (i.e. "Mighty Mouse"), but no worse than so many of the bland 80's cock rock lyrics that are the roots of these current lyrical endeavors. This album won't go down in the history books as breaking new musical territory, but somehow through the haze of its imitative quality it comes out shining as everything one wants a hard rock/metal album to be - straight on gutsy music with great playing & singing & songs that you remember after the fact & are distinctive from one another & an album you'd recommend to friends happily, while you keep it rotating around your own player day after day without getting tired of it. Don't dissect it, just rock out to it. When it comes to comeback albums Tesla did it right six years after their break-up following the grunge hurricane that wiped them & their peers off the map. Like many of their peers, Dokken also spring to mind as doing the same thing, they dumped the flash of the 80's & replaced it with some of the gutsiest music of their career with lots of grooves but without all the shallow raunchiness. Many probably consider Tesla a one hit wonder due to their acoustic cover of "Signs" from their acoustic live album Five Man Acoustical Jam that pre-dates MTV Unplugged & when acoustic guitars were reserved for power ballads or song intros. Though, this hit overshadowed four great studio albums of 80's rock with far more blues & a bit of country swagger than any other band was doing ... which is probably why Tesla never broke through to the top as they aren't your typical group & difficult to place for a record label that wants everything by the book & perfectly sitting in the box. They were also wearing jeans when everyone else was wearing spandex. Tesla is one of the many bands that deserve a second listen & opinion & Into The Now might be a good starting place for that. Proof is in the fact that this album debuted at number 30 on the Billboard charts. The secret, like every Tesla album, is how the album sneaks up on you with underplayed grooves & maybe not always inspired but certainly well-crafted songwriting. You'll be hooked into the songs' varied textures before you even realize it & it'll sound like a welcome addition to your music collection versus so many of the band's peers that tried for big flashy comebacks with too much 'we're back & we're wonderful' spirit.

Tesla ~ The Great Radio Controversy (album review) ... Tuning into a good station!

Style: hard rock, blues rock
Label: Geffen
Year: 1989
Home: California

Members: Frank Hannon ~ guitar/gong/keyboards/tremolo/b. vocals
Tommy Skeoch ~ guitar/strings/b. vocals
Jeff Keith ~ vocals
Troy Luccketta ~ drums/cymbals/pedals/stick/tama
Brian Wheat ~ bass/strings/b. vocals


Tesla, for me, are one of the bands that haven't really gotten their shake, either at the time of their commercial peak or later in reunion form. Their most recognizable effort for many is their acoustic rendition of the classic "Signs" & its acoustic live album Five Man Acoustical Jam. As their third album it was a risk. Today it might not appear that way, but at the time there was no MTV Unplugged & hard rock bands didn't do acoustic albums of their songs. But, its not really a great representation of Tesla. It's a low-key fun concert but some of the songs lose their tight feeling & edge at times. When I first heard it I thought it was good but not great. It took looking into the rest of the catalog to hear the great. Sadly, I think many might have had the same response, but didn't listen any further & take the risk as I did. It's a shame, as both during their heyday & the reunion Tesla has a very solid catalog amongst fans & critics. Most bands have a career high & a brief but eventually bored reunion output. Not here. The least liked albums they've done are a pair of 70's covers & if that's it that's not much to worry about. Covers albums are a risk as it is. The problem with those who may have given Telsa a cursory listen is, besides the point their biggest hit is completely the opposite musically of everything else, on one hand they sound like just one more 80's hard rock band with the girl lyrics, screaming vocals & by the book guitar solos. That's true. They are of their time. But, give them a few more listens & something else appears & this is what makes Tesla special ... though it takes that extra listen which few make, so the band never gets its kudos. To do an album of 70's rock classics might be seen as gimmicky but it's more than that. Thread through their hard rock from the arrangements, the groove to the vocals is a 70's feeling & a deep love of the blues. Badlands had it & even Pearl Jam had it & even the Black Crowes. But, these bands were all a step away from the 80's hard rock & Tesla didn't take that step as much as they could have. It's the fine line of being different versus not so much & getting radio play. They play it safe, maybe a bit too much in retrospect, but its hard not to fault a decision that at the time seems the right one. Their albums though don't really suffer, even the average 80's rock is acceptable, but their reputation does & at points their career did. But, trying not to dwell on the what if's of the past there's so many good starting places with Tesla. Their debut or even their second album The Great Radio Controversy, which is a great name for an album. Fans often recommend this album over others. It has the big production of the day & the 80's hooks & adequate songwriting ... great songwriting is not their forte. At the same time it's also got lots of blues (i.e. slide guitar on "Heaven's Trail (No Way Out)", "Be A Man", "The Way It Is", "Love Song", "Paradise") is a little more focused than their debut, includes more acoustic instruments & thus texture. It has has some great twin guitar moments, check out "Flight To Nowhere". While check out "Love Song" for a bluesy take on the obligatory power ballad. The album also spun out numerous fan favorites including "Hang Tough", "Lady Luck", "Heaven's Trail (No Way Out)" & "Love Song". Tesla never really ventured too far from the template presented here, with later albums varying the focus on the blues or the hard rock aspect, usually more the former which is the better thing to emphasize. If you like this I would highly recommend you digging up the Tesla catalog. Their latest album came out in 2008 & personally I have no hesitance recommending anything between their 1986 debut & their latest release. Few bands of Tesla's tier have been able to succeed. The secret is they never changed their sound. Sadly, alongside Pearl Jam & the Black Crowes they should have soared with a second coming success, but as all hair metal fell to grunge & Tesla was never that big they fell too. It doesn't matter that theirs was a different type of rock.