Dunno what sort of backdoor Voodoo label politics, or rock-ego hissyfits, or whatever, prompted Revolution Riot to re-record their seminal 2001 Feedback Boogie Records release, “Out of the Gutter, Into the Light” (quite possibly renamed the bluntly honest ‘Pure Sleaze Mayhem’ now- I’m guessing), but since it’s two years later, and I’m still waiting for Feedback Boogie to send me a copy, I’m gonna go ahead and say that it was a brilliant fuckin’ move on the 'Riot’s part. And anyway, the last time I even heard of such a thing suggested, it was when Axl Rose got all haughty, and announced plans to re-record “Appetite For Destruction” with his little bucketboy band to spite Slash and the boys; so it obviously takes a fair degree of lust-for-revenge to rewrite rock n’ roll history, and what’s a better motivation to rock than revenge? However Swedes sleaze dealers Revo-Riot got here, this much I can tell you- it was worth the long-ass ride, because “Mayhem”, or “Gutter”, or whatever you wanna call this record, is gonna go down as a classic of rampant cock rockery- just like Smack’s “On You”, or Hardcore Superstars’ “Bad Sneakers and a Pina Colada”. Why? Well, lemme tell ya why. Despite the fact that lead screamer Glitz does sound remarkably like a soulful Vince Neil (if you can imagine that puffy cretin actually possessing a soul), and despite my own original report on ‘em, from their track on the ‘Jackpot’ comp, and despite all the poor clueless rock crit bastards that insist on labeling ‘em as Too Faster For Love, Revolution Riot do not sound like Motley Crue, unless Motley Crue sound like the new saviors of rock and roll, which they didn’t, not even when they were skinny. There’s no doubt that Rev Riot are just as arena ready- arena demanding, even- as Motley, but they are much closer to the sleaze n’ roll source (the Rolling Stones, case ya didn’t know) that spawned all this madness. They might not even know who the Glorious Bankrobbers or Gunfire Dance are, but you do, right? Well, these boys sound like that, or like a glammier, less self-obsessed Buckcherry, maybe. I could go on, mentioning the pigpile singalong mayhem of Faster Pussycat or the retro-glam cool of Hanoi Rocks, or the crash n’ bash debauchery of Motorcycle Boy, but I’d much rather just be rocking the fuck out to this record than merely singing it’s praises. I will just add that there’s a subtle layer of melancholy to these cats- Sweden is cold and dark all the goddamn time, remember- that stings in all the right places, and adds a wealth of depth to a genre that, by design, is supposed to be as shallow as it’s guitarist’s cheekbones, and it really makes ‘em stand out from the sleaze metal ratt pack. The songs are infectious, possibly addictive, and the execution is flawless. Sure, they got a second chance to get it right, but still, plenty of bands release the same songs over and over, only with different titles, and still can’t get it right. At any rate, I guarantee you that it’s only a matter of time before all the nonsense burns itself out and big giant rock and roll comes screaming back into favor- and when it does, this is what it’s going to sound like. Don’t be second in line, brothers and sisters, join this here Revolution now. What’s more fun than a full scale Riot, right? “One Hell of a Ride”? It sure as fuck is.