The Sex Maniacs – Mean As Hell – Review

The Sex Maniacs

Mean as Hell (Manic Ride)
by Ari M. Joffe

Great rock ‘n’ roll is all about catharsis, a glorious release of sin via three, maybe four chords, a hip-shake inducing drum groove, and some bastard on the mic telling everyone around him to fuck off, in so many words. Bon Scott knew it. Motörhead, before they started recording wraslin’ music, knew it. Venom knew it and even threw in a little Satan stuff for good measure. But nowadays, it seems too many fans, labels, and bands have forgotten this formula. Hold on, folks! All hope is not lost! Damas y caballeros, I present to you, courtesy of Yorkshire, England, The Sex Maniacs!

These dudes sound dangerous and in desperate need of victims to pummel, rob, and laugh at. This isn’t punk rock so much as hooligan rock (according to Prick, punks are mugs with silly haircuts, dumb clothes, and an utter lack of balls). Beautiful Steve brags about bar fights, statutory rape, jail, and other such sundry anti-social behavior in a growl that falls somewhere between Dez Cadena and Cronos. The music is played, written, and arranged in a concise, sharp manner that makes the tunes instantly catchy, without being too predictable. The fellas get in and out in two, never more than three minutes. Of the 12 excellent tracks, “Illegal Libido” (a prurient homage to young girls who’d rather consent to satisfying the Maniacs’ depraved desires than do algebra homework) and “Sabertooth” (the best swagger rock tune since “If You Want Blood”) are the big winners in my book. But it’s all killer. At just under 22 minutes, Mean as Hell is the type of disc you just gotta double dip on. Highly recommended.
(www.manicriderecords.com)