Classic power pop band Cheap Trick made a return to the music world on Friday, Nov. 14, releasing their new album, “All Washed Up,” after nearly five years without new music.
Known for 1970s hits such as “I Want You To Want Me” and “Surrender,” Cheap Trick reached their peak towards the end of the decade before experiencing a resurgence in popularity in the late 1980s. Including “All Washed Up,” the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band has now released 21 studio albums. The title of the album is a play on their 1980 album “All Shook Up.”
“All Washed Up” is a strong opening track and sets the tone for the first half of the album. The heavy instrumentation largely masks the hoarse and rough vocals from lead singer Robin Zander. Zander, known as one of the best rock vocalists of all time, sounds good throughout the album, but struggles a bit early.
This trend in the vocals is even more obvious with “All Wrong Long Gone,” where the thinness of Zander’s voice when held in comparison to the distortion of the instrumental is much more apparent. That is especially true due to Zander screaming many lyrics.
“The Riff That Won’t Quit” showcases Daxx Nielsen, who replaced original drummer Bun E. Carlos in 2010 and is the son of guitarist Rick Nielsen. The younger Nielsen delivers a swinging recording behind the set that drives the song. It may have been even better if the younger Nielsen had leaned even more into that swing and the production would have benefitted from just a bit more reverb on the snare drum.
“Bet It All” is a bluesy jam with layered lead vocals. While nothing special, the catchy chorus hook and short run time ensure that the old school rocker doesn’t overstay it‘s welcome.
Starting with “The Best Thing,” the production on the vocals gets cleaned up and Zander’s vocals come into the forefront of the mix for the next few songs. It is slightly overproduced in the vocal part which cheapens the track a bit but is nonetheless a solid ballad.
“Twelve Gates” was released as the album’s lead single in late August. It harkens back loosely to the band’s ’70s hit “Dream Police,” similar in vocal performance and especially harmonies but slowed down.
“Twelve Gates” starts a transition point in the album in which the quality of Zander’s vocals improve significantly. Beginning with that song and continuing on the following track, “Bad Blood,” a combination of the vocals being increasingly forward in the mix and the lack of overproduction on Zander’s voice make the second half of the album feel much lighter.
“Dancing With The Band” is bassist Tom Petersson’s best work on the album, especially in the verses. It also features great synth work from Emmy-nominated musician Tim Lauer along with one of the rare guitar solos on the album and is one of the best songs from the record.
“Love Gone” is not a bad track by any means, but it does take away some of the energy built by the previous song due to a downtick in tempo and could have been sequenced earlier. Still, the soaring and passionate vocals from Zander in the chorus mark some of his best on the album.
“A Long Way to Worcester” works its way back to the tone that “Dancing With The Band” set while leaning into a grunge-influenced sound. The solo is the best showcase of Rick Nielsen’s guitar prowess on the album.
The closing track “Wham Boom Bang” is a departure from the rest of the album. Incorporating ukelele and clarinet, they deliver a jazz-infused track reminiscent of Van Halen’s version of “Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)” with more of an edge. The song almost leans into being camp but toes the line perfectly to provide an uplifting feeling to end the album on a high note.
“All Washed Up” doesn’t have many standout individual tracks but works very well as a whole to encapsulate many of the traits Cheap Trick came to be known for throughout the peak of their career. While Zander’s struggles at times to recapture his full range, which is understandable for a 72-year-old who has been singing professionally since the early ’70s, the album is at its best when he reaches his full potential. From “Dancing With The Band” through the end, Cheap Trick demonstrates that they can still put out top-tier rock.
Rating: 3.4/5