Tesla | Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions

by John Kindred
Staff Writer

Tesla’s follow-up of 2008′s Forever More with Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions a 12-song compilation of acoustic remakes of their classic songs, one cover and two new songs. Revisiting the past, Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions includes six songs that were recorded with Tommy Skeoch in 2005 at Brian Wheat’s studio, J Street Recorders. The other six songs feature Tesla’s present day lineup, or everyone from the original band, sans Skeoch, enter Dave Rude.

Trying to determine what songs feature Skeoch was more than difficult. An image of the back cover of Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions was found on CDUniverse.com. According to the details listed on the back cover, Skeoch recorded on the songs “Into The Now,” “Hang Tough,” “Edison’s Medicine,” “Shine Away” and “I Love You.” With the sixth song not noted. The lack of information is frustrating. This a pet peeve for all reviewers who receive digital downloads versus hard copy CDs because it is a challenge to verify detailed recording information.

Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions features two brand-new tracks, “Second Street” and “Better off Without You,” a cover of the Climax Blues Band’s ’70s hit “I Love You,” nine acoustic remakes, which include fans favorites and more obscure album tracks. The theme here is “acoustic,” much like the Five Man Acoustical Jam, except the band subtracts the setting of performing in front of an audience. This concept has worked well for Tesla over the years; Jeff Keith’s bluesy-gritty voice is built to be laid bare over an acoustic guitar and quiet percussion.

Melancholy and easy-listening, Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions is a slick collection of songs made for listeners to sit back and just chill out to. Tesla music beats to the heart of the working-class Americans who like music that tells stories, their stories, in fact. Lost love, heart break, desire, longing, believing in yourself are themes that lyrically they hit the nail on the head time after time. The new music fits the mold of the group. Both songs will have you singing along after a few listens. The old songs are shined and polished in their stripped back form.

You are probably telling yourself that you have heard these songs in this format before. Two new songs maybe are not be enticing enough to shell out cash for another CD purchase. But the more you listen to Twisted Wires and The Acoustic Sessions, the more this presentation of Tesla’s chosen selection of songs grows on you. They have taken songs that in their original form leaned heavily on the electric crunch of Marshall amplifiers and redefined the presentation into a whole new animal. They also have taken more obscure songs and given them a second life so that fans might rediscover them.

Genre: Hard Rock

Band:
Frank Hannon (vocals, guitar, piano)
Jeff Keith (vocals)
Brian Wheat (bass)
Dave Rude (guitar)
Troy Luccketta (drums, percussion).
* Tommy Skeoch (guitar) appears on these songs

Track Listing:
01. Into The Now *
02. Hang Tough *
03. 2nd Street
04. Edison’s Medicine *
05. What You Give
06. Better Off Without You
07. Shine Away *
08. I Love You *
09. Changes
10. A Lot To Lose
11. Caught In A Dream
12. Song And Emotion

Official site: www.teslatheband.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/teslatheband
Youtube: www.youtube.com/teslatheband
iTunes buy link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/twisted-wires/id445984574

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.5/10

Tesla Alive in Europe

by Trevor Portz
Staff Writer

Capturing a live Tesla show on record is no easy task. As is the case with many great live bands, as easy as it is to record a show, it’s virtually impossible to encapsulate the energy and atmosphere of actually being there. Alive In Europe attempts to do just that, and though it’s not exactly the same as a real show, it is a great representation of one of hard rock’s most elite bands.

Kicking off with “Forever More” from the 2008 album of the same name, it is instantly apparent that, to reference an old Tesla song, time has in fact not made changes, at least it terms of the band writing killer songs and playing them perfectly live. The energy carries over into another new track, “I Wanna Live,” and which point the band goes into a string of classics, both old and relatively new.

“Modern Day Cowboy” is as powerful, and strangely poignant, as ever, and features a small but great live tweak as the third acoustic-into-verse riff is played electrically rather than acoustically. This tiny change adds a large amount of darkness to the already dark and heavy song.

A surprising addition, “Shine Away” from Bust a Nut makes a welcome appearance, and fits beautifully into the set. Its instrumental mid-break remains one of Tesla’s finest chill-inducing moments, not just on its original album, but across their catalog as a whole.

It becomes strikingly obvious that the album was recorded in Europe when the intro to mega-hit “Love Song” is accompanied by a thousand fans “oooohing” along. This Euro trend hasn’t quite caught on in the US, but it is fun for both the audience and band, and gives the songs a huge, “rockers-united” sort of feel.

’90s hit “What You Give” stands as the only representative from the Psychotic Supper album, and sounds great as always, though the revelation that it was written about Jeff’s beloved dog does add an air of creepiness. But bestial undertones aside, it’s a fine track and a great reminder that not all power ballads have to be generic and nauseating.

Closing track “Into the Now” from the 2004 comeback album Into the Now wraps the show up in an odd-time, melodically heavy fashion, and though Jeff Keith’s vocals do start to sound a wee-bit tired here, it’s the first time they falter and this can easily be forgiven. Considering the vocal-skill loss that has affected so many other singers from the same time period, it’s nice to know that Jeff still sounds the same he did over 20 years ago.

Complaints? Well, the biggest one would be regarding song variety. While it’s nice seeing newer numbers, and the aforementioned “Shine Away,” many classics and deep cuts are nowhere to be found. It would have been cool for the band to have included one or two other non-hits; perhaps “Flight to Nowhere,” “Rubberband,” or “Makin’ Magic” for the diehards. Of course, when coupled with 2001′s Replugged Live and 2008′s Comin’ Atcha Live! DVD, there are a great number of songs captured live, though quite a few are repeated as well. This would seem rather an obvious statement, however, as few bands would risk not playing the hits.

Though technically an import, it would be unwise for any Tesla fan to pass up Alive in Europe. Hell, it would be unwise for any fan of hard rock/metal to pass it up. The members of Tesla seem unable to stop being awesome, and if all goes well, they’ll never decide to. While it may not fully replicate the energy and pure rock bliss generated by an actual Tesla show, it’s still a damn fine souvenir.

Label: Frontiers Records
Web: www.teslatheband.com

Band Lineup:
Jeff Keith (vocals)
Frank Hannon (guitars)
Dave Rude (guitars)
Brian Wheat (bass)
Troy Luccketta (drums)

Tracks:
1. Forever More
2. I Wanna Live
3. Modern Day Cowboy
4. Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)
5. What A Shame
6. Shine Away
7. Love Song
8. What You Give
9. The Way It Is
10. Breakin’ Free
11. Hang Tough
12. So What!
13. Signs
14. Lil’ Suzie
15. Into The Now

Hardrock Haven rating: 9.1/10