Serious noise merchants and slaves to the grind Skid Row stuck out from the hair metal crowd by simply being… LOUDER!!

Were they really a hair metal band? Yeah… they were slick and had big hair and cashed in on what good looks they had.

How'd it happen then? Jon Bon Jovi quite fancied himself as an A&R man so in 1989 he offered another young New Jersey band, Skid Row, a major break -- on the condition that Jon and Richie got a big cut of the money the earned. How much has never been established; Sebastian Bach explains that he "signed a gag order". I see.
     Well, signing with Bon Jovi's management, the Skids toured to support Jovi on their 1989 US stadium tour. Skid Row, a US top ten album with two top 10 singles to its name. The album also achieved noticeable international success. In spite of this, Bach denies they were an overnight success. "It took at least two nights," he asserts. Bach's good looks found him on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, and Skid Row were happy. For about two minutes. Of course, in the process of selling millions, they should have been earning millions, but their deal with Bon Jovi meant they weren't. There were multiple legal battles which ended with Richie Sambora handing over his share (with Jovi selling in bigger numbers than Corn Flakes, he didn't exactly need it), but it didn't do Skid Row any good in the long run. Slave to the Grind surprised everyone by entering the Billboard chart at #1. The sound was considerably commercial; in its place came a raw metallic barrage reeking of attitude. Skid Row were unquestionably an international headline act, but the grunge tide went against them and Subhuman Race, though heavier again and containing several nods in the direction of alternative, was less successful. Bach was extremely unhappy with the Best of release 40 Seasons and the current incarnation of Skid Row which does not include their outrageous former frontman, has had little success aside from a support slot on the Kiss Farewell Tour.

Ah, but were they actually any good? Absolutely… heck yeah! The absolute genuine rock & roll article, complete with more attitude than you can shake  Tipper Gore at  and a singer who can always be relied upon to get himself into shedloads of trouble. Their crunching twin guitar attack spat out ultra-grinding riffs and their songs were always awesome slabs of metal with melodies to sear themselves onto your brain. They were all set to take over the world… and at one point they almost did.

So what was the best bit? Slave to the Grind, just ask anyone (except for the girlies who just liked them for the power ballad "I Remember You" on Skid Row). This CD has a head-banging, pounding beat and thumping heaviness unmatched by any other hair metal band (except maybe Tesla, if they are hair metal. Which they aren't). It has a Sex Pistols-esque sneer and if you're in a bad mood there's nothing like them for attitude. The songs have the metallic power of Motley Crue and Ratt with a similar concept of melody, as well as more than a nod to Kiss. "Monkey Business" and "The Threat" are two such molten slabs of metal, like Bon Jovi… in a blender. "Quicksand Jesus" was and is a great mini-epic ballad. Skid Row on the other hand, was simply more commercial but still with the sneering attitude that makes them so exciting to begin with. Subhuman Race has a major  highlight in "Breaking Down" but overall is not in the same league as the first two.

Hmm… so what sucked about them? Simple… two good albums. Just ain't enough.

Band rating: 91%

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