[Still Shouting] -- By 1983, music fans had already experienced the marriage of heavy rock and on-stage theatrics by way of such acts as Alice Cooper, KISS, Twisted Sister, New York Dolls, and others. But forty years ago this week, another chapter in the history of what we call glam metal – or, more derisively, hair metal – was written. On September 26, 1983, LA-based Mötley Crüe released their second album, Shout at the Devil.
I had wanted to include a humorous history of glam metal, one that charted the rise of each new band by saying something like "deciding there weren't enough Alice Coopers, Stanley and Simmons started KISS," but I could not find it. Maybe the site is down, or I didn't archive the magazine article, or I made it up as a memory. So, if you're not all that familiar with this particular genre, I'll instead direct you to the more serious take on the subject by MasterClass: History and Sounds of Glam Metal Music.
Back to today's album.
While Mötley Crüe's debut album, Too Fast for Love (1981), had been raw and unpolished, almost hurried, and appealed to rockers and punks in almost equal measure, their new album was more popular with the heavy metal crowd, particularly the teen and pre-teen members of that fan demographic. And while fans were buying the record, watching the videos, and driving the Crüe up sales charts, critics were much less favorable towards them. Robert Christgau panned the record, saying the band's commercial appeal lay in false braggadocio on an album that is "[poor] even by heavy metal standards." J. D. Considine found them to be boring and unoriginal: "The whole point of bands like Motley Crue is to provide cheap thrills to jaded teens, and that's where the album ultimately disappoints." Retrospective reviews have been considerably kinder.
Of course, back in the 1980s, teens rarely considered, or even read, music critic reviews. They lapped up that false braggadocio, buying and recording the album, buying music mags that had pictures and interviews of the band, and generally annoying or scaring their parents with this obsession. (Remember the Satanic Panic of that decade?)
So, Shout at the Devil peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200 and it yielded three singles: "Shout at the Devil" (#30 on US Mainstream Rock, "Looks that Kill" (#54 US Billboard Hot 100), and "Too Young to Fall in Love" (#90 US Billboard Hot 100). While the album's production was slick and polished, the two music videos for the singles were ... well ... they were pretty much ... just go watch them and make your own decision. Or maybe don't.
And, yes, before you ask, I did own this album on vinyl back in the day. I ultimately traded it to a classmate, but I cannot recall what I received for it.
I give this album three and a half devil horns, mainly for the nostalgia. 🤘
Flashback: Shout at the Devil (September 26, 1983)
And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.
I'll see you in seven!
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