released: 1986
Let’s cut the crap. A young Paul Gilbert had just won the LA Guitar Wars, and had a reputation as one of the hottest players in Southern California, if not the world, back in the mid-‘80s. There was nothing left to do now but release a shred-saturated album on Mike Varney’s Shrapnel label for the guitar-hungry masses to devour. This album answered the prayers of every guitar-head in LA, from The Strip to the Guitar Centers dotted around the County. Full of kinetically-charged legato and string-skipping as well as Gilbert’s explosive picking, this was a shred-head’s wet dream. To most people, Paul Gilbert was Racer X and Paul Gilbert was Street Lethal.
However.........
What most people don’t know is that Street Lethal is chock-full of fine songs and performances from the whole band, not just the BC-Rich clad young knight. With a bass player of the calibre of John Alderete and a drummer like Harry Gschoesser, at times it seems like it’s Gilbert who’s trying to play catch up. For raw energy and technicality, this rhythm section was nigh unmatchable, and Jeff Martin’s relentless screams and rock swagger rounded the band out perfectly – it is impossible to imagine a better singer for the band.
The intro track Frenzy showcases Gilbert’s technique and control, before opening into the pulverising title track. The title track seems to have been written for Martin – a known motorbike freak – and has my favourite solo on the album. It can be best described as a rare moment of musical congruity when everything sounds as it should and there isn’t a note out of place. Other than Frenzy and the Moto Perpetuo-inflected Y.R.O, there are no other instrumentals on the album, allowing Martin’s voice to soar as high as Gilbert’s guitar, from the steady pound of Into The Night to Rock It, more classic rock than classical arpeggios.
Criticisms? The production can seem a little harsh in places, but this is hardly worth picking on as the band was on a budget and had to record the record in under two weeks (and it is a Shrapnel recording, let’s face it). I wish Alderete had more space to shine because his blazing bass lines are immense, and sometimes Martin’s deranged zeal (not a bad thing, I assure you) can sometimes take his vocals out of key. If you’re of a faint disposition, do not listen to this album. If you feel guitar wizardry is a trifle self-indulgent, then avoid this at all costs. But if you want to experience what metal would sound like at the extreme, then this is your sound.
9/10
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