Oh wow. This album screams of
hard rock power. If you’ve never heard of ‘The Pretty Reckless', here are a few
facts. Originally from New York City the band is made up of Taylor Momsen, Ben
Phillips, Mark Damon and Jamie Perkins. They have supported bands from
Evanescence, to Marilyn Manson, have played at festivals such as V, Wireless
and Download and their song ‘Make me Wanna Die,’ appeared in the end credits of
the popular movie Kick-Ass, and their new album Going to Hell is an absolute
scorcher. So, onto the review.
The album starts with a bang
with ‘Follow Me Down.’ After some rather raunchy moaning and the blaring of a
siren, the drums and guitar burst into your ears with a symphony of riffs and
power chords. Taylor throws her throaty voice into the mix and the sound is
incredible. The song mixes sweet and sexy, with the chorus being split into two
sides; first a sweet voice with quiet drums and the gentle plucking of the
guitar telling us to ‘follow [her] down to the river,’ however in the second
the guitar and drums are back creating mayhem. I must admit that Momsen’s voice
is incredible; she can manipulate it from raunchy and inviting to full on rock
goddess. The song speaks of a sordid relationship in which the character of the
song has lost her mind’ since entering a relationship. We are told to follow
her down to the river, where she will be waiting on her knees, repenting for
her sins. This is an obvious relation to the album name, and is likely to be
about the relationship between character and a deity or God. The song finishes
with the line ‘young love as sweet as can be,’ which only helps to pull the
whole song together; the raunchy relationship, the religion fuelled lyrics, and
the repentance of the character for her sins. An all-together well put together
song that screams of rock genius.
The next song is ‘Going to Hell,’
which starts with Momsen seductively whispering however the song explodes into
a mix of drums, electric guitar and strong riffs. Momsen sings ‘for the love
that I make, I’m going to hell,’ which is beautifully mixed with a rocking
guitar solo. The song climbs seductively and pulls the listener in but suddenly
goes into a softer section, where the guitar riff cuts in, but here it is
gentle. The drumbeat is strong but it is softened down to allow the song lyrics
to come through. The song takes an almost angelic turn; until the guitars cuts
right back in, and Momsen screams in ‘I’m going to Hell.’ The song takes an
unexpected turn with the guitar riffs taking the song higher and higher until
it ends in utter turmoil and ends with a crash. I loved this song; it has
power, sass and brilliant pairings of guitar and drums! Give this song a
listen! (Or you’re going to hell?!) We plough forward into 'Heaven Knows,’ but
do not expect anything sweet and innocent. The song starts with the clapping of
hands and reminds me of ‘We will Rock you’ by Queen. (Although I’m no way
saying this is on par with Queen it has the same sense of rock edge!) Momsen in
this song is joined by the choir of a number of children who sing along with
her until the song cuts into a sweeter, more rhythmic section, which really
displays Momsen’s ability to change to a different style of singing. The song
continues with Momsen acting as a leader of the gang with the children singing
perfectly along in time with her. The song finishes with the voices getting
quieter and quieter; an edgy but clean cut song.
We then move onto ‘House on a
Hill,’ which starts with what sounds like a news reporter speaking about
rebellion and anarchy in society. The guitar cuts in playing rising and falling
scales whilst Momsen’s clear cut voice sings with an earthy realism that makes
you feel everything that she is feeling as she sings to us. The song bursts
into a strong arrangement including the drums and rhythm guitar but the riffs
continue through and you can hear them behind the fuller arrangement. There is
also an addition of a number of string players that really adds emotion to the
song. I thought this was beautiful; not only the arrangement but the sheer
emotion that comes over through Momsen’s singing. Later in the song the speaker
cuts back in however it is overshadowed by the chords and is difficult to hear.
Momsen sings ‘somewhere in the end
of all this hate, there's a light ahead, that shines
into this grave that's in the end of all this pain.’ The song
sings of resistance but in a peaceful sense and it is beautifully understood.
The song finishes with a deeply emotional heartbeat. However we do not have a
space to breathe and reflect before we are straight into the next song and hit
with a barrage of rhythm guitar, bass and drums. Momsen’s voice cuts in
straight over the top and I was surprised to hear her so clearly over the
turmoil of noise underneath. The song suddenly lightens in depth and a male
voice can be heard singing over the brash chords of the guitar. The voices,
weave in and out of each other as the song continues lulling us into a false
sense of security before the song builds up and up causing chaos to the ears.
The voices brilliantly match each other and Momsen’s voice changes so suddenly
and succinctly from sweet and innocent to rock goddess with such ease! It is
just fantastic. The guitar solo is immense and the sense of rhythm that is
applied in each of the songs is brilliantly balanced; and here it is especially
good! Definitely one to listen out for! We then move onto ‘Dear Sister,’ this
was once again a strong song relying heavily on the brilliant singing talent of
the female lead and the strong riffs of the guitar. I fell in love with this
song and although it is a shorter song it doesn’t lack the power of the other
songs on the album. I also loved that the changed in pace and contrast between
was so brilliant in this album. You do not feel like you are listening to the
same song over and over again! The album continues with a number of power rock
tracks that continue to contrast between each other. Look out for ‘whyd you
bring a Shotgun to the Party,’ it really tests Momsen’s voice and it is
surprisingly catchy! Definitely worth a couple of listens! The album finished
with ‘Waiting for a friend’ which I think is the perfect ending to this album;
not is it gently but it is acoustic and also features the use of a harmonica
which is a stunning collaboration. The song is sweet and gentle and is
definitely one of my favourites from the album. If you are not a stereotypical
hard-core rock-fan still give this a listen (and a download) I know you will
not regret it because it is sublime. (PLEASE go check it out!)
This album definitely has a good
contrast in songs and although most the songs have a hard rock feel they do mix
up the use of arrangement and push Momsen’s voice to the limit which is
brilliant as it helps to contrast the album and make each song a little
different. The guitar solos are brilliant throughout and the way that they mix
with the lead singer’s voice without over-powering is the skill of the band as
a whole. After listening to this album I am so tempted to see them live and
really go and see if they are as good as this album sounds. I would definitely
recommend this album so go listen to it, borrow it, download it and if you’re
still not convinced listen to ‘Waiting for a friend’ because you will not be
disappointed!
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