The Hottness
Stay Classy

August 2008
Released: 2008, Ferret Music/Border Music
Rating: 2.0/5
Reviewer: Anders Sandvall

The Hottness have been out on the road for 4 years now and that’s even before they have even release their debut album. I guess the band must have a very solid and loyal fanbase. The music the band play is a combination of heavy riff based metal, melodic punk and southern groovy rock’n’roll. It sounds like the band has two lead vocalists. One of them has a more metal/aggressive vocal approach and the other sings in a more smooth and ordinary way. The bio claims that the band has a very unique and personal music style but to that I can’t agree. The music sounds a bit different but I wouldn’t call it unique.



STAY CLASSY could have been a great album but one of the vocalists and some of the material make sure that is not the case. The one who is singing clean vocals doesn’t relay fit into the bands musical approach. There aren’t any surprises on the album at all. STAY CLASSY doesn’t have anything that captures you in any way. The album is pretty even which can be OK but I had wished for a little more fascinating material. The many various musical styles make it hard to get through the album and gives it a schizophrenic feeling from time to time.



The 40 minutes the album lasts for what feels like a lot longer. There are a few stronger songs and they are “Straight Brown”, “This City Is Ours”, “Trashy” and “King Of Thieves”. Those songs are all high voltage and raw metal songs with a punk attitude and fierce lead vocals. Those are the songs that save the album from a total meltdown. The production feels solid and there is a lot of focus on the heavy rhythm section and guitars. The production is the most exiting part of the album.



There are too few songs to help STAY CLASSY from sinking. The album could have been much more fun if the band had focused on one musical genre instead of mixing so many different beats together.





http://www.myspace.com/thehottness

http://www.border.se