Album Review - Razamanaz - Razamanaz

Razamanaz is the brainchild of Britny Fox guitarist Michael Kelly Smith. Razamanaz was originally formed in 1993, when Britny Fox was on hiatus. Michael Kelly Smith teamed up with singer/guitarist Cory Massi, bass player Joe Bisbing, and drummer Steve Attig. The band recorded a few tribute songs, but their own material was never released. This self-titled album contains the songs Razamanaz recorded along with some unfinished songs and demos.

Michael Kelly Smith has a cool 70's tone on his guitar. Singer Cory Massi has an 80's feel with a great vocal range mixed with inspiration from Bon Scott. Feel it sounds like an old AC/DC song with the heavy drums in the background, which is a solid foundation along with the pounding bass. The album opens with the best track Urgency. Michael Kelly Smith is playing some crispy leads on this strong song, which oozes honestly and dedication to this style of music. The chorus is excellent and has a hookline that reminds of Kelly Smith's main Band Britny Fox.

Razamanaz perform a really strong cover version of the amazing Aerosmith tune Seasons of Wither. Massi's vocals are very close to Steve Tyler's and the guitar sound is also equal to the original. The 70's feel that dominates the record is reinforced by a cover of Kiss' King of the Night Time World from 1976. On this song Razamanz also tries to adapt to the original sound, especially the drums sound very Kiss-like. Kicks is a really strong song with a more song oriented style. Massi sings more varied and deeper than on the previous songs.

The rest of the album is a disappointment. A song like Call of the Wild could have been a killer tune, but the version is unfinished with lack of vocals. Furthermore the recording quality is reduced. The song sounds really promising with some cool musical epics, but as an instrumental song, it tends to sound like the song has been dragged out.

On the last couple of tracks, the vocal is very weak in the mix. It's very hard to hear the vocals from Massi, which is a shame, because a song like Rock 'n' Roll Outlaw has great potential.

The overall impression of this album has been depreciated, because of the many demo and outtakes with weak vocals and weak sound. Razamanaz should have finished a few of the best demos instead and they would have a great debut album instead of a half-done product.

Written by Michael
Tuesday, July 22, 2003
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