NEW BRAZILIAN METAL BAND DESERT DANCE HAS SOME SPICE
By Gerry Gittelson
Metal Sludge Editor at Large
LOS ANGELES — Gene Simmons made news once again recently by pronouncing rock is dead, but there is no way the KISS founder’s words made it all the way down to Brazil, where a young upstart band called Desert Dance is on the brink of something truly special with an EP called “Open Secrets” that’s good enough to probably impress the likes of folks like Rudy Sarzo and Carlos Cavaso, two of the world’s top Latin rock stars.
Desert Dance are just babies in their late teens up to their early 20s, which means they weren’t even born when such acts as Def Leppard, Whitesnake and Ratt led the way for the second wave of post-Zeppelin metal. Yet somehow, the influences did more than just sink in. You listen to this four-song effort, and it feels like these South Americans were born to rock in a very British/American way that makes ‘em stand out from the crowd, big time.
This band might be the biggest breakthrough in hard rock since Creed, if, of course, the newbies can find a break or two and somehow make their way to America.
Singer Junior Rodrigues asserts himself immediately on the opening track, “Open Secets/Louder, Faster and Sleeze,” with soaring vocals, backed by a crunchy and catchy riff and a hooky chorus that recalls the awesome splendor or prime-era Loudness with a little Impellitteri thrown in for good measure.
On the next song, “Dance,” guitarist Lizzy Louiz does his best Warren DeMartini impression, and the rhythm section of bassist Leo Heavy and drummer Nico The Boss proves tighter than a brand-new Warrant groupie in the back of the bus long ago on the “Dirty, Rotten, Filthy, Stinking Rich” tour.
“Crime Town” keeps the pedal to the metal, and with a little re-working, the song could actually fit OK on a Dokken record. Then the Latins bring things home with “Letting You Know,” yet another selection that would not sound bad with 15,000 cheering in a smoky-hot arena.
Yup, these youngsters are onto something, and you heard it first right here at Metal Sludge.
The band first got together early this year, and in Dio-esque fashion, the name came from the musicians’ fascination with the mystery of the optical delusions of mirages in addition to the extreme situations that man can face in nature. At the highest point of dehydration a battered person passes through serious clinical impairments until stress and tension bring shock, the “desert dance.”
“Open Secrets” was recorded at Mr.Som studio in São Paulo with producer De Grigo (Paradise Inc., Oitoo, Electric Age, Tierramystica, Ação Direta). It was mixed by Henrique Baboom (Jeff Scott Soto, Salário Mínimo, Sioux 666, Panzer, Fake Number, Screams Of
Hate, The Mission, Nacionarquia) and mastered by Alessandro Kabral.
You can stream the songs on soundcloud below.
Everyone in the band looks young and cool, and the foursome got things right with artwork that includes a beautiful woman who is so sexy that she might even impress the likes of our very own Stevie Rachelle.
Rodrigues, 22, has some experience with tribute bands, including Son Of A Beast (Iron Maiden), Stainless Blade (traditional heavy metal), Killing Machine (Deep Purple), plus an original band called Electric Age, who was on the “Monsters Of Rock” festival 2013 and was nominated as one of the only Latin America bands for a spot in the European festival Sweden Rock Festival 2014.
Louis, 21, went to music college, and though rock is his specialty, he can play everything from blues to jazz to to pop, He recorded an album with a band called B.I.T.E.
Nico The Boss, 20, studied under professor Pedro Júnior at Tom Maior School of music. He played with Rodrigues in Killing Machine and Electric Age.
Xavier, just 18, played in Motley Crue tribute band called Psycho Mondays in addition to a Crashdiet tribute band (didn’t know there was such a thing) called Lost Boyz.
Gerry Gittelson can be reached at gspot@metalsludge.tv
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