Crashdiet
The Savage Playground

The conspicuous Swedes in Chrasdiet has had a career with both noticeable ups and downs. It's been seven years since their frontman Dave Lepard was found dead in his apartment, which was a huge blowback and something the band probably never can escape from but as tragic and sad as that was for his band members, family and friends (and without depreciate their loss) I think this is something that has made this band stronger. 'The Savage Playground' is the third album since Daves premature death and a few new members has joined as the band has grown in to the giant shoes Lepard left. With this album they also have Frontiers Records in the back, a big label that has made themself famous by promoting music that either is or sounds like 30 years old. But Chrashiet is not one of those bands, they sound very much modern despite having their roots firmly buried in the 80's sleaze.

'The Savage Playground' is more or less a full hour of modern sleaze with 13 songs made by the basic recipe of sleaze, but modernized to something that sound very much of today. Chrashdiet is an exception in their genre, most band playing this music today still sounds like they come from the mid 80's but not this band. They have made something more exciting with their sleaze and therefore it has always sounded fresh and modern and 'The Savage Playground' is no exception.

I like the opening track, it gives a good start to the album but it's later in the following tracks that 'The Savage Playground' really comes alive. The second song i called Cocaine Cowboys and it's one of the best songs on the album - probably most challanged by Damaged Kid that comes at the end. In between these two we find some good and some less good songs and also some memorable and less memorable songs. Anarchy (track 3) is one of these memorable songs, however not one of the best and Sin City (track 7) shows the same characteristics. California (track 4) is one of the good ones, likewise Circus (track 6) while a song that don't win me over is Lickin' Dog. And then at the very end we get two long and quite dull songs. They are the longest and third longest songs on the album and combined they take up almost 13 of the 59 minutes of the album, and I think it's a pity the album ends like that.

Instrumentally Chrashdiet play a pretty simple kind of music - they don't pile up with with orchestras and choirs or hired guest musicians playing strange instruments no one has ever heard of outside the music class in school. In Chrashdiets world the music is suppose to be rock, quite simply, and to play rock you don't need much more than an electric guitar (or two), a bass, some drums… and that's kind of it. Chrashdiet also have pretty simple melodies - they have their target set on one point and that's where they're going. No reroutes, no detours - no alternatives. The positive side of that is that the music don't get stuck in something that isn't as good as the rest and then can't find its way back to the basic sound. The negative is that you quite feel you've both heard, seen and experienced all that this album has to offer. I also think the vocals follows the same pattern as the rest of the album - quite simple and cowardly. There's no choirs or experimental vocals in the edges of our voice frequency but a quite clean, clear shot on the spot vocal expression only supplemented by some background vocals in certain choruses or other more important parts. I think Simon Cruz, which is the bands current vocalist - doing his second album with the band - sounds really good despite not doing anything particularly interesting. He has a sort of rebellic voice that's suprisingly clear and expressive.

All in all, though, it doesn't feel like you'll get the most advanced or impressing piece of music from 'The Savage Playground' - but I also guess that Chrashdiet didn't have this in mind when they made the album either. And neither do I belive they will ever try to do that, at least not under the Chrashdiet label. Instead you get a rock 'n' roll album - a dirty, filthy, hard kicking and rebellic kind of hard rock with a pretty modern character despite its vintage style (being kind of retro but with a modern touch). I do like this album, I find it honest, relaxed and laid back - not trying to be something it isn't and succeeding doing what it does. You never get a "wow" feeling wondering how they manage to do what they do but it's good nevertheless and despite the fact that you recognize the music and that the band doesn't break any boundries or anything it's still quite interesting. Many bands could do this kind of music but I haven't heard too many that does. Therefore I don't have any problems at all to listen to this album and I can't find any reason to why you would either. I think this album deserves to be given a chance, it deserves your attention. It doesn't make anything new and revolutionizing but it's good and it does what it's suppose to do without making it difficult for them selves. Quite simple, a well made sleaze album.

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