Published on Mar 24, 2000
“Welcome to the real world,” sings Pete Franklin on the leadoff
track of
Real World, the second release from Britain’s Dirty Deeds.
Following the cancellation of the Iron Maiden tour where the band
was making their debut and the shuttering of Velvel Records (who
were supposed to release the band’s debut
Danger Of Infection), that phrase probably rings too true to
the band.
Unfortunately, the phrase applies to the entire album
Real World, which fails to break any new ground for the band
and tries unsuccessfully to build on the strong foundation they
laid with
Danger Of Infection. It gets tiring to refer to the
“sophomore slump,” but
Real World is, sadly, a textbook case of this – and it’s
frustrating when you know this band is capable of better.
There are, admittedly, some moments where it sounds like Dirty
Deeds has things running full steam ahead. “Kill The Pain” is a
definite pick for a radio track, integrating a little more of the
harmony vocals that this band underuses so much. The guitar work of
Franklin and Barry Fitzgibbon shines on this track.
Regrettably, this is the only strong track on the disc. “Welcome
To The Real World,” which kicks off the disc, sounds like a
re-tread of “Nothing To Lose,” the first song off
Danger Of Infection. When you start repeating things like
that early in the album, you can see the red flag being raised.
Granted, the song isn’t a note-for-note cover of “Nothing To Lose,”
but it’s disconcerting to hear two albums in a row led off by a
song in the same key, in the same tempo.
For that matter, most of the songs on
Real World don’t vary much in tempo. Normally, this isn’t a
thing to worry about, but add in to the mix a drop in the quality
of the songwriting, and the concern factor increases tenfold.
Tracks like “Nightmare,” “Hell On Earth” and “Cyber Babe” just fall
flat, failing to inspire or encourage the listener. One could even
say that the album has a dull ring to it.
What is discouraging about this is that Dirty Deeds is a band
capable of so much better work.
Danger Of Infection and their live shows have proven this.
(I’ve also gone on record to say that Dirty Deeds’s magic is better
captured in the live setting rather than the studio.) But
Real World does more than fall short of expectations. In a
sense, it’s almost as if the band wasn’t trying hard enough to
create an album that took them to the next step. And that,
children, is the greatest disappointment of all.
Dirty Deeds is a strong enough band to come back from such a
setback with killer material. But one wouldn’t have expected their
stumbling point to come on only their second album.