Toadies – Hell Below/Stars Above – Review

Toadies

Hell Below/Stars Above (Interscope)
by Scott Hefflon

Always wondered what happened to these Dallas rockers after ’94’s Rubberneck. They toured with Samiam and ALL and then nothing… Part punk aggression, part metal groove (sounds trendy – I mean classic ’70s metal), part grunge depression/morbidity, part sweet melody, shit, ya run outta pieces of the pie to allot to different influences.

Singer Todd Lewis has a distinct Robert Plant vibrato that quakes with fury, trembles with passion and longing, and purrs like a finely-tuned muscle car at a stop light, just itching to let loose. If all the punk/metal talk sounds fishy, remember these guys are from Texas where bands like At The Drive-In and Pantera are from and the audiences don’t cotton to sissy bands, so ya better rock hard or run fast, hoss. Check these guys out if yer sick of one-trick ponies on the radio whose albums are failed attempts at the one song ya like.
(www.toadiesmusic.com)