Paul Collins - Feel the Noise

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 14 / 11 / 2014

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“Everyone was saying rock n’ roll was dead/I didn’t understand a …thing they said,” sings Paul Collins on the opening track ‘Feel the Noise’, and it’s pretty obvious their words were wasted on this power pop legend. As he goes on to sing, “And I turned it way up loud/I said I’ll let my guitar do the talking now,” you know that Collins is back and he’s lost none of the power and passion he displayed in his previous bands. There are obvious nods to his former bands in this collection of eleven originals and one cover version. Collins first came to notice with the Nerves before forming the Breakaways and the Beat (what’s with Collins obsession with using other bands names? While the Breakaways were long before his time, I think Collins' version of the Beat were around the same time as Dave Wakeling's lot), and it shows in these songs; add in a sprinkling of the Ramones on some songs and you have ‘Feel the Noise’. Collins keeps to the blueprint of classic power pop in the main, and there’s nothing wrong with that when it’s done with such passion. The chiming guitars, the harmonies, and the general ‘makes you feel good to be alive’ vibe that features through all these songs is addictive and undeniable. The energy that Collins and his band (producer Jim Diamond on bass and electric guitar, Eddie Baranek on electric guitar and David Shettler on drums supplementing Collins' own rhythm guitar playing) display through this album is breathtaking. The band storm through the songs. Even on tracks like ‘With a Girl Like You’ where Collins and company slow things down a little, the power in his vocals along with Baranek’s stunning guitar sound still make for an exhilarating ride. There’s a distinct 50's flavour to some of these songs too. Collins has made no secret of the fact that he wanted to make a rock and roll album, that he wanted to prove that good old fashioned rock and roll was still alive and relevant today, and he’s succeeded. There’s little to be gained from dissecting this music. It’s made to be enjoyed, to be appreciated in the spirit in which it was made, and there’s little doubt that the band and producer Diamond enjoyed every fun-filled second of capturing the spirit of rock and roll in these songs. That’s not to say that a considerable amount of care and thought didn’t go into the creation of these recordings; ‘Can’t Get You Off My Mind’ is but one track where the harmonies shine, the guitars chime perfectly and summer returns through your player on a gloomy dull autumn day. When that lead guitar break comes in nothing else matters; you’re living for the moment and never want it to end. If ever there was a feel-good record or an album that can lift you out of the darkest of moods, then ‘Feel the Noise’ has to be that album. It’s impossible to sit still while listening to the songs, and every song will have old men feeling like teenagers again. Imagine hearing ‘Teenage Kicks’ again for the first time, and that rush you got. Well, it’s here, just waiting for you. ‘Baby I’m in Love With You’ is Buddy Holly fronting the Ramones. What else could any self-respecting music lover need? The cover of the Four Tops' ‘Reach Out I’ll Be There’ could have been a massive mistake. Can anyone out sing Levi Stubbs? But Collins has wisely steered away from trying to outdo or even reproduce the sound of the original; he has simply given the song a rock and roll slant, and although it really shouldn’t it works remarkably well. Given that it’s not the greatest song on the album says much about the contents of ‘Feel the Noise’. Those 50's doo-wop influences raise their voices again on the closing song, ‘Walk Away’, making it the perfect end to a thrilling ride through rock and roll history. Thanks Paul Collins, you’ve just made thousands of jaded music fans happy again while showing the young pretenders how it should be done and at the same time winning them over to. ‘Feel the Noise’; play it loud with company and see how long it takes before “Who is that?” is fired at you, followed by the words “It’s bloody good”.

Track Listing:-

1 Feel the Noise
2 Only Girl
3 Baby I Want You
4 I Need My Rock N'roll
5 Don't Know How to Treat a Lady
6 A Girl Like You
7 All Eyes to See
8 Little Suzy
9 Can't Get You Off My Mind
10 Baby I'm in Love With You
11 Reach Out I'll Be There
12 Walk Away

Band Links:-

http://www.thepaulcollinsbeat.com/bio.html
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Paul-Collins-Beat/46392812761?sk=timeli
https://twitter.com/paulcollinsbeat

Label Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/AliveNaturalsoundRecords
http://www.alive-records.com/
https://twitter.com/AliveRecords
https://instagram.com/alivenaturalsound/
https://www.youtube.com/user/JIMalive1

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