Published on Oct 11, 1999
It is rare when I am inspired to buy an album after hearing a
song or seeing a video one time. But back in 1986, this was the
case the first time I ever heard the song “Modern Day Cowboy” by
Tesla. Actually, I might have seen the video twice, then I never
saw it again – but I knew that I wanted to hear what else this band
had to offer. Within a matter of days and a week’s blown allowance,
I walked out of Sound Warehouse with my copy of their debut release
Mechanical Resonance.
In recent years, I have forgotten about this album, possibly
because I’ve got so many other groups that I’m trying to fit into
my daily listening schedule… and possibly because I found myself
disappointed with their follow-up releases. Whatever the case, I
finally dug out my battered copy of
Mechanical Resonance to see if the album still lived up to
the hype I experienced as a 15-year-old.
The first thing that strikes me about Tesla is that they sounded
very much like a poor man’s Def Leppard. With vocalist Jeff Keith
doing his best Joe Elliott impersonation, the two-guitar attack of
Tommy Skeoch and Frank Hannon trading licks back and forth, and the
solid rhythmic backbone of bassist Brian Wheat and drummer Troy
Luccketta, the band seemed to take the sound that other bands had
put forth and put their own stamp of approval on it.
As for whether
Mechanical Resonance has held up to the passage of time…
well, I don’t quite know. I know that the excitement I used to feel
when I listened to this album is nowhere near what it used to be,
but the album does not disappoint me in the least.
Let’s start with the easiest facets to examine. The two singles
off this album, “Modern Day Cowboy” and “Little Suzi,” are still
great tracks, though I’ve never been able to understand the one
chord in the bridge of “Modern Day Cowboy” that fails to resolve
itself. It sticks out like Pat Robertson at a Slayer concert.
Still, you have to admire the twin guitar work of Hannon and
Skeoch, especially on “Modern Day Cowboy”. (As for “Little Suzi,” I
was going to say that this was the first solo I had ever learned
note for note, but when I heard it again for this review, I
realized I wasn’t even close in certain areas. Another dream
flushed down the crapper.)
A few other tracks on
Mechanical Resonance achieved some attention in their time.
“Changes” seems to be one of the underground favorite tracks – then
again, seeing the “best of” compilation was called
Time’s Makin’ Changes, maybe it wasn’t so hidden as I’ve
thought. “Cumin’ Atcha Live” is a free-for-all party here, though
it was slowed down to a country boogie on
Five Man Acoustical Jam… and I do prefer the original
version.
While some of the other tracks on
Mechanical Resonance are quite formulatic, they still have
some level of spontaneity that makes them worthwhile even today.
The album’s opener “EZ Come EZ Go” and “Rock Me To The Top” both
fall under this category – and while I was fully prepared to rip
“Rock Me To The Top” after hearing its Def Leppard-like opener for
the first time in a good 10 years, I soon remembered how much I
liked this track. One just can’t help it.
There are a few turkeys on this album, though. “We’re No Good
Together” is a painful attempt at a ballad that switches gears in
an attempt to win both the rock and the ballad fans over in one
shot. “Love Me” and “Cover Queen” are fair to middling tracks, but
when compared to the killer tracks, they just don’t hold up.
I guess this brings me full circle to my original thought: Is
Mechanical Resonance still worth checking out today? After
much thought (and the better part of a two-liter of Coca-Cola), the
answer is “yes”. Tesla did build on the musical ideas that were
shaping hard rock in the mid-’80s, but they were able to throw
enough California sensibility (with even a slight touch of rural
flavor) to make the music on this disc something to cherish. It’s
even made me interested in going back to the other albums they
released… but we’ll save those thoughts for another review.