HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES 'At Montreux Jazz Festival'

HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES
At Montreux Jazz Festival
earMUSIC

Supergroups are notoriously difficult beasts. Throw together a handful of famous musicians, put them on stage and you often end up with little more than a glorified jam session. The HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES, however, have long since proved that they are considerably more than an expensive rock-star hobby. 'At Montreux Jazz Festival', recorded at the legendary Swiss festival in 2018, makes that abundantly clear.

After almost one and a half decades of performing together, it is hardly surprising that Alice Cooper, Joe Perry, Johnny Depp and Tommy Henriksen sound like a genuine band here, rather than a collection of celebrities sharing a stage. There is a looseness to the performance, but also a reassuring sense of musical cohesion. Above all, the band is as tight as a duck’s arse and the odd inaccuracy is a testimony of the authenticity of the live performance. Perry plays with the effortless authority you'd expect from an Aerosmith legend, Henriksen provides a rock-solid foundation, while Depp's understated rhythm guitar is a pleasant surprise for anyone still thinking of him solely as an actor.

The set gets off to a suitably forceful start with “I Want My Now”, followed by the dirty, old-school hard rock banger “Raise The Dead” – you gotta appreciate those harmony vocals, folks. The band's own “My Dead Drunk Friends” adds a dose of dark humour, while “The Boogieman Surprise” and “As Bad As I Am” demonstrate that the Vampires are perfectly capable of writing convincing material of their own and deliver it in electrifying live versions.

Where the album really comes alive, though, is in its tributes. These are not dutiful cover versions but affectionate celebrations of the music and musicians who inspired the band. Thus “Ace Of Spades” retains Motörhead’s raw aggression without attempting to imitate Lemmy. And above all, the spark of the live performance immediately leaps across, with nothing to shield it. Even the audible feedback from some microphone kicks arse. And then there is Depp delivering a surprisingly vulnerable “Heroes”. His vocal performance gives Bowie’s classic a distinctly personal character.

Perry naturally gets his moments in the spotlight with “Combination”, “Sweet Emotion”, and “Train Kept A-Rollin’”, all of which sit comfortably alongside the band’s other material. Elsewhere, The Who’s “Baba O'Riley”, AC/DC’s “The Jack” and the Jim Carroll classic “People Who Died” keep the momentum high. The dark, explosive Doors medley of “Five To One” and “Break On Through” is another highlight.

And then there’s “School’s Out” mashed up with “Another Brick In The Wall” to close the live performance with definite classic rock ‘n’ roll style fuck-you to disciplinary educational institutions. Of course, it’s hardly an unexpected finale, but hearing thousands of Montreux festivalgoers singing along while Cooper conducts the crowd is precisely the sort of moment a live album should capture.

At the end of the day, this is what the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES are all about: celebrating the music that inspired them and keeping the spirit of rock history alive. The album’s wealth of familiar songs turns it into a joyous celebration of rock’n’roll, but the band never simply goes through the motions. The performances are spirited, powerful and full of personality, bringing these classics vividly back to life while giving them the unmistakable energy of the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES. Rather than feeling like a mere exercise in nostalgia, the album shows just how much these songs still have to offer when played with this much passion and conviction. 

'At Montreux Jazz Festival' is loud, celebratory and packed with genuine affection for rock's past. More importantly, it demonstrates that the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES have earned their place on the stage rather than merely borrowed it from their famous names.

5.0 Out Of 5.0