Lee Aaron
Elevate

Label: Metalville
Three similar bands: Deep Purple/Koko Taylor/Moxy

Rating: HHHHHHH (3/7)
Reviewer: Daniel Källmalm
Tracks
1. Rock Bottom Revolution
2. Trouble Maker
3. The Devil U Know
4. Freak Show
5. Heavens Where We Are
6. Still Alive
7. Highway Romeo
8. Red Dress
9. Spitfire Woman
10. Elevate


Band:
Lee Aaron - lead vocals
Sean Kelly - guitars
Dave Reimer - bass
John Cody - drums


Discography:
1982: The Lee Aaron Project
1984: Metal Queen
1985: Call of the Wild
1987: Lee Aaron
1989: Bodyrock
1991: Some Girls Do
1994: Emotional Rain
1996: 2preciious
2000: Slick Chick
2004: Beautiful Things
2016: Fire and Gasoline
2018: Diamond Baby Blues

2019: Power, Soul, Rock'n'Roll Live in Germany
Almost Christmas (2020)
Radio On (2021)


Guests:
Karen Barg - Electric Violin


Info:
Recorded at Armoury Studios
Mixed at Armoury Studios
Mastered at Maor Appelbaum Mastering
Produced by Lee Aaron
Recorded by John Webster, Lee Aaron, Sean Kelly, Mike Fraser
Mixed by Mike Fraser
Mastered by Maor Appelbaum
Artwork by Eric Bourdon

Released 2022-11-25
Reviewed 2023-01-07

Links:
leeaaron.com
youtube

Metalville



läs på svenska

Elevate, isn’t that an uplifting title? At least it could be, and it probably is supposed to be, the album was written during the lockdown times with a studio time already booked to late 2021. And the result became the album elevate that is just one of many releases since she came back to the rock scene in 2016, it has been six releases during that time. That is a lot. In my view no artist (with infinitesimally few exceptions) should do more than five, and that is counting a career over at least 20 years. I note that most artists just repeat themselves endlessly and for each new release it becomes more tiresome, and Lee Aaron has quite a few releases to her name already and the previous ones haven’t really struck me as particularly exciting from a creative standpoint. So, what about this one?

Kind of the same as Radio On! that I wrote about not too long ago, same style, same voice, same feel, different song titles. Bluesy hardrock mostly with a nostalgic tone to them, like opening Rock Bottom Revolution that sounds it was one of Blackmore’s rejects from Down to Earth or something of that era. Same with following Trouble Maker, that might not be Blackmore but like something discarded by someone in the early eighties. Everything has that feel of being old songs repainted with a better more modern production. There is no sense of novelty, new albums should give a feel of excitement, like finding something new to explore – this doesn’t.

I don’t feel lite it is an album to elevate my mood, I listen and nod along with a song or two, I end the album and forgets that it exists. I started on this in October 2022, but I just kept putting it off, never playing it as it bored me every time, and I find it difficult to write something sensible about album that is just a ctrl+c and then ctrl+v (cmd if you have an apple computer) of what others have done and it doesn’t feel like anything of what I hear was conceived in this millennium. Not that recycling is bad or anything, but recycling a cultural expression like music, movies, books, it is just pointless – the old stuff never goes away anyway so why add more of the same?

Another dilution of the rock scene, another pointless generic release of tired songs we have heard before. What is the point? Perhaps it pleases those that are fans of Lee Aaron, but I recommend anyone not to buy stuff like this – perhaps the artists and labels will learn if the dull and meaningless stuff gather dust on a shelf in a warehouse rather than in a person’s house. Honestly, I don’t see why anyone should bother with this album, isn’t there more than enough generic rock music already?

HHHHHHH