Cross Eyed Lover is a hard rock band from Australia founded by drummer Jason Rigoli and guitarist Sal Truscello. The band is completed by vocalist Andy Smith and bass player Simon Whyte. ‘Blonde Zombie’ is the band’s debut album and was released in 2022…
…featuring eleven hard-hitting yet highly melodic songs. The band is full of energy and includes a feeling of “arena rock” within every song on offer. The new album gets underway with the raucous title song ‘Blonde Zombie’, rattling along at a fairly high tempo and pulsating with electric energy. The highly sing a long-able chorus will get everyone chanting “blonde zombie” at full volume – and should Cross Eyed Lover open their live shows with this one, the crowd goes fucking mental! Injecting a tonne of groove, the album powers on with the much heavier hitting ‘Break The Machine’. The swaggering guitar riff is just sublime, causing heads to nod and feet to tap wherever it is played or heard. And again the band utilizes a chant-style chorus that’s gonna keep the crowd participation at an absolute high. Kudos Cross Eyed Lover, kudos – there’s nothing an audience loves better than to be a part of a live show. Energy levels rise high off the scale with the upbeat ‘Watcha Gonna Do About It’ – loaded with attitude and (mild) aggression. Much more upfront and in your face than the opening double, ‘Watcha Gonna Do About It’ is a riotous romp.
With no dip in the pulsating pace of the album, ‘Ain’t It A Shame’ continues forth with a more melodic feel than has been heard so far. And with only two of the eleven songs breaching the five-minute mark, the album is fairly snappy and somewhat breathless. The diversion into a more melodious field is short-lived though, as ‘Two’s Good’ veers into the hard-hitting Southern rock arena – blended with a slight hint of the blues. Not to mention the song’s punchy nature too – strap on those boxing gloves and prepare to spar with the band! ‘Back In The Game’ picks up pace and thunders forward, banging heads and raising fists high in the air. The more metal feel of ‘Back In The Game’ is gonna appeal to fans over the border – with Cross Eyed Lover straddling the line between rock and metal. Retreating back to their chosen musical direction, the band rock hard with an Aerosmith, Van Halen blend for ‘Jump Start Baby’ – a majestic tall and proud swagger of thumping hard rock.
I tell ya – the band is touring all over the hard rock genre, visiting every corner, nook, and cranny! ‘Gotta Get Out’ brings back the Southern rock flavor from earlier, pulsating with a tone that is just so captivating you’re gonna be intoxicated. The breathless and relentless energy surging through this album is incredible, leaving absolutely no time for a break. The rampage of rock continues apace with the heavy blues led ‘Gutter Crawl’ – and when I say heavy, I mean HEAVY! Heavier than most blues-rock, ‘Gutter Crawl’ combines the band’s raucously loud and proud root sound with a multitude of rock influences. No style of rock is safe from Cross Eyed Lover – the band moving to the heavier end of hard rock for the thumping ‘Slave’. Hitting hard and kicking harder, ‘Slave’ may be heavy but doesn’t lose any of the album’s overall melodious streak – a streak that remains unbroken as we arrive at the final song ‘Never Die’. And a hard rock album that doesn’t feature a single ballad!!
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Unusual but not unexpected from a band such as Cross Eyed Lover – they’re just so fucking energetic! The album closer is so full of energy you just have to wonder where in the hell the band gets their energy from!
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Fingers crossed this energy is transferred to the band’s live performances – what a night that’ll be.
Overall, an up-tempo, highly energetic, and raucous romp of heavy-hitting hard rock.
TRACKLIST
Blonde Zombie
Break The Machine
Watcha Gonna Do About It
Ain’t It A Shame
Two’s Good
Back In The Game
Jump Start Baby
Gotta Get Out
Gutter Crawl
Slave
Never Die
Cross Eyed Lover: Facebook
Release Year: 2022
Label: self-released
Category: Album
Country: Australia
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire, and Metal-Roos.
