{"id":34309,"date":"2013-11-06T09:35:28","date_gmt":"2013-11-06T14:35:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=34309"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:38:55","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:38:55","slug":"killer-dwarfs-start-one-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/killer-dwarfs-start-one-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Killer Dwarfs | Start @ One<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by John Kindred<\/span>
\n– Publisher —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"killerStart @ One<\/em> is the last release from Killer Dwarfs. The legendary Canadian band has reformed to support the release of this \u201clost\u201d studio album. Start @ One<\/em> was originally recorded in \u201993 with producer\/engineer Fred Duvall and featured the same lineup that appeared on \u201891s Method to the Madness<\/em>. The album follows the release of Russ Dwarfs acoustic release of Wireless<\/em> which was also was produced by Duvall. Start @ One<\/em> has been digitally remixed and re-mastered and features nine songs. The music is spot-on to the band\u2019s classic hard rock sound that Killer Dwarfs fans have become accustomed to. <\/p>\n

Out of the gates the band takes off on the opening song \u201cLonely Road.\u201d Sporting a catchy melodic vocal line that hovers over the crunch of the electric guitar and rhythmic pulse of the bass and drums, Russ welcomes fans back into the land of Killer Dwarfs. The majority of the music has a positive up-tempo vibe. \u201cSolid Ground\u201d captures this feeling about chasing one\u2019s hopes and dreams. \u201cSky is Falling\u201d opens with a heavy dissident riff and Russ vocals soars as the verse kicks in. The chorus has a layered gang vocal with a unique harmony, very catchy and certainly memorable. \u201cAdalina\u201d has a familiar bass groove (think \u201cTommy used to work on the docks\u2026\u201d) \u2026 while Bon Jovi pops in your mind here it is just a brief side note as the Dwarfs rawk it up on this track which balances soft then heavy dynamics to perfection. Add in the solo by Gerry Dwarf and this is a true ripping hard rock classic. <\/p>\n

So we land in the middle of the CD with \u201cPsycho Circus\u201d a song that predates Kiss\u2019 version by five years so there is no copycat leanings happening here. This song fires up the tempo as the guitar opens with a moving, grinding style of electric mayhem. Russ is right at home throughout\u2026 the chorus is very Killer Dwarfs and as the song progresses it keeps expanding and expanding, getting larger and bigger, until the music echoes away. The title track \u201cStart @ One\u201d is up next. It\u2019s another bon-a-fide Dwarfs song\u2026 lyrics music and vocals, it\u2019s all there. <\/p>\n

\u201cDown in Hollywood\u201d again kicks in with a riffing, kicking electric guitar groove. It certainly has that \u201880s rock vibe akin to the Sunset Strip when West Coast rock reigned supreme. Nice break down in the middle recalls Van Halen\u2019s \u201cPanama\u201d but the solo that follows is its own beast entirely. \u201cWalk on By\u201d continues on the same path. Another melodic number that feature a killer solo and superb vocals. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe Crowd\u201d wraps the album up. This song is the closest to anything resembling a ballad on the entire CD. It quickly picks up the pace as the band kicks in. The chorus has an easily memorable vocal melody, it\u2019s lyrically a bit moody\u2026 but the guitars have plenty of crunch. And with that we fade out\u2026<\/p>\n

Start @ One<\/em> ranks right up there with Dirty Weapons<\/em>. It\u2019s an album that is worthy of multiple spins and Killer Dwarfs fans should most definitely add to their collection. The production is flawless, every instrument sits perfectly in the mix, all audible. Russ vocals sit right in the middle, not too loud or to low\u2026 a real good balance has been struck by Duvalle. Russ, Darrell, Ronbo and Gerry deliver some delicious treats for melodic hard rock fans. It\u2019s a good thing that this album finally saw the light of day \u2018cause Dwarfs fans would have missed out\u2026<\/p>\n

Genre: Hard Rock, Melodic Hard Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nRuss Dwarf (v)
\nDarrell Dwarf (d)
\nRonbo Dwarf (b)
\nGerry Dwarf (g)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tLonely Road
\n2.\tSolid Ground
\n3.\tSky is Falling
\n4.\tAdalina
\n5.\tPsycho Circus
\n6.\tStart @ One
\n7.\tDown in Hollywood
\n8.\tWalk on By
\n9.\tThe Crowd<\/p>\n

Label: Smoothline Entertainment Group\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Online: http:\/\/russdwarf.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 10\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by John Kindred – Publisher — Start @ One is the last release from Killer Dwarfs. The legendary Canadian band has reformed to support the release of this \u201clost\u201d studio album. Start @ One was […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":34347,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[2317,7457,6471,7458],"class_list":{"0":"post-34309","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2013","8":"tag-cd-review","9":"tag-killer-dwarfs","10":"tag-russ-dwarf","11":"tag-wireless"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34309"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34309\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}