Rocktober Album #9: The Answer - Everyday Demons (2009)

A lot of today's rock is good and interesting, taking influences from a wide variety of sources. But there isn't all that much new music that can satisfy your inner Zeppelin or classic AC/DC fan. That's where The Answer comes in.

The Answer is a Northern Irish hard rock band that is trying their damnedest to bring back great, straightforward hard rock to the forefront where it belongs. I was lucky enough to see them in August 2009 at Beat Kitchen – a really small venue. The show was one of the best I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot of concerts. These guys rocked the Beat Kitchen like they were on stage at Madison Square Garden.

Everyday Demons is the band's first full-length release in the U.S. The album is full of fantastic guitars, pounding and driving rhythms, and great rock vocals. I've heard a few of the songs from the album on the local classic rock/hard rock station, The Loop (97.9), which is nice.

Sadly, Playlist.com has but one song by The Answer, so I didn't bother embedding that. I did put links to YouTube "videos" that play the songs, and some links to actual music videos. To hear clips of all of the songs on the album, here is a link to the Amazon page. There are also several full length songs available for your listening pleasure on the band's home page (the bottom left of the page has a "jukebox") and on the band's MySpace page.

1. Demon Eyes
After a short intro with just guitars and vocals feeding your anticipation, the song crescendos into motion. Before you know it, your sprinting around the room, chasing your terrified dog with a sock puppet. It's is a frantic, fast-paced hard rocker with a great driving riff. If you don't like this song, then you don't like rock and roll and I hate you. Here's the YouTube video of the song.

2. Too Far Gone
This one starts off with rolling drums, then kicks in with a nice, heavy guitar riff. The verses remind me of a heavier Stones song for some reason. Here's the YouTube video of the song.

3. On and On
This song is another really solid hard rock song. The riff hooks you, and then the fast-paced vocals in the verses keep your attention until the chorus chops off your legs at the knees. But you don't really care because it gives you something pretty awesome to listen to while the ambulance comes. Like many of the songs, this one has a great guitar solo. Here's a link to the actual music video of the song.

4. Cry Out
This is a slower, bluesy song. Lead singer Cormac Neeson shows his vocal range on this one. He sounds completely different (deeper) in the verses than he does in the choruses (where his normal, higher-pitched wail shines through). Here's the YouTube video of the song.

5. Why'd You Change Your Mind
This song starts out slow and eerie, then crashes into blues-based sonic alchemy. There is a nice guitar solo about three-fourths of the way through the song. Here's the YouTube video of the song.

6. Pride
One might assume that this is a cover of the U2 song of the same name, but one might also be way off base. Have you not been paying attention? Both songs are great, for their own separate reasons. Here's the YouTube video of the song.

7. Walkin' Mat
This is one of my favorite songs on the album. It's a nice "fuck you" song to some damn woman who keeps using him as a walkin' mat. I love it when the chorus kicks in. Here's a link to a YouTube video of the song.

8. Tonight
Good hard rock, like any music, has hooks. "Tonight" has a couple hooks that make it really easy to listen to and make it sound like it could have been a radio-friendly hard rock hit in the mid '70s. Plus, it has a blazing, Thin Lizzy-esque guitar solo that I enjoy. Here's a link to the actual music video.

9. Dead of the Night
This starts off with a nice hard riff, and the song rocks from there. There's not much to say, other than this is an awesome, straightforward hard rock song. Here is the YouTube video of the song.

10. Comfort Zone
This is a slower song. I don't know if I'd classify it as a ballad or not. The verses have kind of a grunge feel to them, and the chorus seems like it could have been the love theme for a '90s romantic comedy, played during the scene where the slightly geeky yet handsome guy and his female best friend who he's always had a crush on, but who never thought of him that way but finally realized her true feelings, make out in the rain after he tells her he's always loved her. Here's a link to the actual music video.

11. Evil Man
I'm a fan of this song. Perhaps it's a follow-up to "Comfort Zone," when we learn that the geeky yet handsome guy is actually a Russian spy. This song plays as he blows up the girl's parents' house. They were housing some very sensitive information, after all. Kick into the wicked guitar solo. Here's the YouTube "video" of the song.

12. Revolutions
This is a bonus track on the US CD, and it's another solid hard rock song with a nice, heavy intro. Here is the YouTube link.