User Profile
Tom Kellar
I enjoy several types of music, but mostly rock of all types: Southern, metal, progressive, grunge and more. Of course, user reviews tend to be higher. We do not get our music for free and are not paid for our opinions. Unless we are given an album, or try an experiment, we are buying works from artists that we have enjoyed. But I plan to be very stingy with full 5-star ratings, saving them for flawless masterpieces which are ALL KILLER NO FILLER. I expect to be giving many 3 to 4.5 scores.
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Tom Kellar's Album Reviews
I first heard this album paired with "Agents of Fortune" on a cassette. I long considered them to be of similar quality: a couple of hits and a lot of filler. But on listening to this album again, my opinion of it has risen. I don't agree that "Agents of Fortune" was a triumph and "Spectres" a disappointment. This album rivals "Secret Treaties" for consistent quality. The goofy "Searching for Celine" is the only filler, and even it features some good four and six-string work.
"Godzilla" is a big, monster track, about a big monster which leaves tracks across Japan. As loud and unstoppable as a kaiju on the rampage, it's one of B.O.C.'s 5 best songs. As for "I Love the Night" and "Goin' Through the Motions", these might have been hits in your neck of the woods, but I never heard them on the radio. But that does not take anything away from either one of them. "I Love the Night" is a relaxed, cool and beautiful track. "Goin Through the Motions" (later covered by Bonnie Tyler) had everything a hit single should need, like a catchy melody and great playing. Speaking of which, "Fireworks" certainly deserved to be a hit single for the same reason. "R.U. Ready to Rock" is a good Cult party tune, and "Golden Age of Leather" is enjoyable, especially the awesome bridge. "Celestial the Queen" is a good upbeat song, while "Death Valley Nights" is another spooky track ("the horror of space"). Ending the album, "Nosferatu", based on the German movie adaptation of the novel "Dracula", is even more ominous. ("Rats in the hold, my crew is dead, I fear the plague"). They are good examples of the horror and science fiction themes in many B.O.C. songs.
There are 4 bonus tracks on the CD: "Night Flyer", "Dial M for Murder", "Please Hold" and "Be My Baby" were all rightly left off the original release. The first 3 are generic rockers. With its pounding drums, The Ronettes "Be My Baby" is actually a sensible choice for a heavy metal or hard rock band to cover. Although it works better than KISS's attempt at "Then She Kissed Me", the original still rocked harder.
The insert has a few pictures and a brief essay on the album.
Listeners wanting to explore Blue Oyster cult more deeply should try either "Secret Treaties" for their earlier barroom boogie or "Spectres" for their later pop-metal period.
"Godzilla" is a big, monster track, about a big monster which leaves tracks across Japan. As loud and unstoppable as a kaiju on the rampage, it's one of B.O.C.'s 5 best songs. As for "I Love the Night" and "Goin' Through the Motions", these might have been hits in your neck of the woods, but I never heard them on the radio. But that does not take anything away from either one of them. "I Love the Night" is a relaxed, cool and beautiful track. "Goin Through the Motions" (later covered by Bonnie Tyler) had everything a hit single should need, like a catchy melody and great playing. Speaking of which, "Fireworks" certainly deserved to be a hit single for the same reason. "R.U. Ready to Rock" is a good Cult party tune, and "Golden Age of Leather" is enjoyable, especially the awesome bridge. "Celestial the Queen" is a good upbeat song, while "Death Valley Nights" is another spooky track ("the horror of space"). Ending the album, "Nosferatu", based on the German movie adaptation of the novel "Dracula", is even more ominous. ("Rats in the hold, my crew is dead, I fear the plague"). They are good examples of the horror and science fiction themes in many B.O.C. songs.
There are 4 bonus tracks on the CD: "Night Flyer", "Dial M for Murder", "Please Hold" and "Be My Baby" were all rightly left off the original release. The first 3 are generic rockers. With its pounding drums, The Ronettes "Be My Baby" is actually a sensible choice for a heavy metal or hard rock band to cover. Although it works better than KISS's attempt at "Then She Kissed Me", the original still rocked harder.
The insert has a few pictures and a brief essay on the album.
Listeners wanting to explore Blue Oyster cult more deeply should try either "Secret Treaties" for their earlier barroom boogie or "Spectres" for their later pop-metal period.
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