Smack

On You (Triple X)
by Scott Hefflon

Originally recorded in ’84 and ’85, Smack on You makes sense being re-released, now that swagger rock is again on the rise. On par with seminal glam rock bands like Hanoi Rocks, Smack was a Finnish band who never really reached mainstream ears, but influenced folks like G’N’R, Nirvana, D.A.D., and Mudhoney. At least that’s what the CD’s liner notes say. Sleazy, not especially glitzy, and kinda dark in the way glam was in its early days, this 17-song reissue (five bonus tracks including “I Wanna Be Your Dog”) is a testament to barroom rock when it was about songwriting and decadence, not pop melodies and hot chicks in MTV videos.
(PO Box 862529 Los Angeles, CA 90086)