Music Review: Buckcherry, Rock ‘n’ Roll

By Tyler Hodg

Seasoned veteran rock ’n’ roll band Buckcherry have returned once again to deliver their seventh album, simply titled Rock ’n’ Roll. The band’s music of late has been less than desirable for a lot of fans and could be described as generic at best, so is Rock ’n’ Roll a return to form or another disappointing outing? Aside from being riddled with cliches, the album actually brings some much-needed energy back into the fading band. Buckcherry is a hit-or-miss ensemble that has ended up on the
hit side of the equation this time around.

It’s safe to say that the band’s career reached its full potential with the release of 15 in 2006. The platinum-selling album spawned major singles such as “Crazy Bitch” and arguably their most popular song, “Sorry”, among others. Rock ’n’ Roll has the potential to place the band back into the forefront, but it’s unlikely given the lack of attention that the album has been receiving to this point. It’s quite a shame that more people aren’t listening to the latest offering from the band, as it is, without a doubt, the best work they’ve done since their heyday.

At first glance, Rock ’n’ Roll is laughable: song titles like, “Bring It On Back”, “Tight Pants,” and “Sex Appeal”, and a lazy-looking album cover displaying a stamp on stained paper. But to my surprise, the music surpasses the tired, wannabe badass rock ’n’ roll cliches in almost every way.

From the crescendo introduction of the first song “Bring It On Back,” the album’s energy is set at an elevated place, and rarely dips below that level. “Tight Pants” is a complete disaster of a title and does the song no favors with lyrics like “I like your tight pants / I like the way that you bust at the seams, when you wiggle that thing,” but the music is unexpectedly intriguing thanks to the addition of a real horn section. Yes, real—as in, not a synth. Thank you, Buckcherry.

Songs like “Wish to Carry On,” “The Feeling Never Dies,” and “Rain’s Falling” help bring a softer element to the album, with the latter being one of the most experimental songs that the band has ever released. Part-jazz and part-blues, “Rain’s Falling” is the secret weapon in the back pocket of Buckcherry. Although it most likely would be subject to station purgatory if serviced to radio, the song is universal and sure to appeal to fans of all types of music, due to the stellar songwriting at hand.

Buckcherry is the type of band you want to hate, yet you find yourself tapping your toes and bobbing your head to their music far more than you would like. Rock ’n ‘Roll delivers plenty of body-shaking tunes, despite being painfully cliche at certain points. The band explores unfamiliar territory with their latest release, and although it’s still not the most original record, Rock ’n’ Roll is sure to exceed the preconceived opinions that many probably have of it.

Rock ‘n’ Roll was released on August 21 from F-Bomb Records.