Review: Lynch Mob – Rebel

Frontiers Music srl (2015)

Reviewer: Aaron Chatfield

Let’s great straight to the point, George Lynch is one of the greatest hard rock guitarists around, from his days with Dokken, through his solo works and his projects such as KXM, but his work can sometimes be a bit of an acquired taste. Even with his band Lynch Mob, he has delivered work that makes the most ardent Lynch fan question himself (Smoke This, Take A Bow). I fully understand that all of this is part of George’s quest for that unique sound…..but, most of us a desperate to hear something that captures the magic that he created on the first Lynch Mob album, Wicked Sensation. With Oni Logan on the mic, the question is, does Rebel do that?

‘Automatic Fix’ starts us off with that recognisable modern Lynch Mob style. A mid paced rocker, that gives plenty of space for the guitars and vocals. It’s standard Lynch Mob through and through, so for fans, you’ll get into that groove… you will also just about wet yourself when the solo arrives, ‘cause it is a blinder……so much melody!

‘Between The truth And A Lie’ and ‘Testify’, continue the expected path through modern Lynch Mob style, with ‘Sanctuary’ and ‘Pine Tree Avenue’ following suit. In fact the whole album delivers what you are expecting from Lynch Mob in the current era. If you were a fan of Sun Red Sun and Sound Mountain Sessions, then you will be in familiar territory, plenty of groove, inventive guitar and bluesy vocals. That’s both good and bad, because it leaves you with little to be open mouthed about. The album rumbles past you like a freight train, making lots of noise, the ground rattle, etc… but ultimately it’s just another train and tracks like ‘Dirty Money’, ‘Kingdom of Slaves’ and the album closer ‘War’, come and go without really tunneling into your brain.

It’s difficult to pick individual tracks that stand out, they all have the distinctive sound, great guitar and vocals, everything you knew it was going to have, but nothing more.

I’m a Lynch Mob fan, so I do lap this up. If you are riding the same rolling stock as me, you will too, but if you’ve never got into the later Lynch Mob groove, this is probably not going to convert you or take you back to that quality post-Dokken debut.