The Eyes Have It

Provocative cover here from Canadian hard rock band Eyes! It gives me an "Alison Hell" from Annihilator (also Canadian, by coincidence) vibe, but what it really reminds me of is this classic meme...

Maybe they're related. ;)

The back cover features the same design around the edges, so I decided to focus the attention on the info in the center...

I wish I could find more info on the band, but all I found was their Discogs listing. People are asking huge money for this there. Glad I got my copy at Salvation Army for around 30 cents. ;)

Here's a live video of the title track...

Great moody sound and killer guitar tones. I would've bought a copy had I been there!

And the last track on the album...

I don't often add two videos, but they deserve it! :)

[Mother] Teresa!

It's Teresa Brewer, of course! Looks like they airbrushed her teeth and eyes a bit. Not bad, though. A very simple cut and paste job overall, but it works.

Same simple formula on the back.

Look at the end of the first picture. See? Mother Teresa! ;)

Wrabit!

"We hated the name but it was forced on us. What a mistake." - Lead vocalist Lou Nadeau

But don't let that throw you off! This is a hard rockin' album, featuring great vocals and harmonies, and nice musicianship overall, including some impressive guitar work!

This is the debut album of Canadian hard rockers Wrabit, re-release version when they signed with MCA (who convinced them to change their name from Telemann). And yes, the logo and cover were drawn by THE Chuck Jones, of Bugs Bunny fame. Quite a coup there! Very eye-catching.

More info on the band here.

I don't know which song to highlight, as they're all good, so I think I'll just go with the opener, which features a strong 70s classic rock sound...

Aloha? Hawaii?

I dunno, nothing exactly screams Hawaii on this cover.

I guess the plants are what do it, cuz the girl with the artificially (I suspect) color boosted eyes doesn't scream Hawaii either. *shrug* What I'm gettng at is, this is one of the least stereotypically Hawaiian album covers I have. In that sense, it's a bit of a failure, because it doesn't make much of an impression on its own among the plethora of Hawaiian albums. Moving on...

The back cover wasn't too interesting either, but I always like these self-aggrandization boxes that were on most records. Never really saw this with CDs, probably in part because there was just no room, but also because people eventually realized that you get what you pay for and such things were unnecessary. Buy a junky stereo, you get junky sound. But I figure there's much more real variation in vinyl and needle quality than in CD players as well.

Speaking of needles, I was checking a record yesterday and the arm slipped and the needle broke. Yay. I have ordered a replacement, but I wish I had a better player in general. I'm always a little wary of playing good quality records on it. It's an ION Profile LP with USB, seen below. The USB was the draw for me, but I've never actually used that feature. Maybe someday...

Looks nice, sounds decent (feels like it's too quiet, though), but the cover design is just plain bad. Way too much of a gap, especially on the sides. I ended up adding strips of clear tape to block those stupid holes because SO MUCH DUST gets in. I suspect they left those gaps so people could slip a finger in there to lift it up, but come on, it's not like it's heavy or something. I wish I could add a little strip of rubber or silicone along the edge to seal it better. But at least the record area itself is mostly dust-free.