Published on May 28, 1997
In the mid ’80s, Ann and Nancy Wilson did what many people
thought was impossible – they resurrected their band Heart from
obscurity and brought them to the top of the charts. A band that
had been touring the “has-been” circuit was again in the forefront,
with songs like “What About Love” and “These Dreams.” For a time,
it looked like nothing could spoil their success.
Just one album later, the bubble burst – 1987’s
Bad Animals is a weak attempt at recreating the magic that
Heart captured on their previous self-titled album. Though there
are one or two good songs on this one, the remainder is too
keyboard-oriented.
Sure, there are two great songs on this album. “Who Will You Run
To” is an okay rocker, but is not the best song of their career.
However, the following song, “Alone,” is an amazing track that I
spent far too much time listening to after breaking up with one
girlfriend. Ann Wilson’s vocals have rarely been stronger, and even
though the album relies far too much on keyboards, their use here
is appropriate and moving.
Unfortunately, that ends the praise for the album. The guitar
work of Howard Leese and Nancy Wilson is buried so far back in the
mix for the rest of the album that one wonders if they were even in
the same studio when their parts were recorded. “There’s The Girl”
could have been a decent track had the chorus not been dominated by
a keyboard riff – boring, boring, boring. The same goes for “Wait
For An Answer,” a track which had some original promise but is
electronically killed. (Maybe part of the problem is that Leese and
Nancy Wilson played keyboards as well on this album – too bad they
forgot about the guitar work.)
The remainder of
Bad Animals is marred by weak songwriting as well as
continued ignorance of a decent rhythm section. The title track is
poorly conceived, and Ann Wilson’s vocals sound far too
melodramatic for the track – just because you know how to scream
doesn’t mean you constantly have to do so. “You Ain’t So Tough” is
another song that started off on the wrong foot and never
recovered. By the time “RSVP” comes around, I had given up hope in
the album.
Heart would recover from this embarassment to record
Brigade, which almost took them to the top of the charts
again. But at the time,
Bad Animals seemed like a serious blow to their rebirth.