Man Raze – Surreal
VH1 Classic Records (06/03/08)
Rock
While you wouldn’t necessarily call Surreal a vanity project, you might wonder if Man Raze would really be releasing albums if not for guitarist Phil Collen (Def Leppard) being the driving force behind the band. (It may also be a telling sign that the album is released on VH1 Classic label.)
The purpose for Man Raze, according to the band’s press material, is that Collen was looking for an outlet for the songs that didn’t fit the classic Def Leppard mold. Sadly, most of the material on Surreal, at least the stuff that doesn’t drastically deviate from the pop rock mold, sounds like Def Leppard light. And since Def Leppard itself sounds like Def Leppard light these days, well …
Man Raze presents pretty straightforward, uninspired pop rock. There’s other elements thrown in to the mix — some punk (“This Is” and “Turning it Up”), reggae (“Runnin’ Me Up”), modern rock (“Low”) or heavier rock (“That’s Entertainment”).
The best the band has to offer sounds too much like some other band: “Skin Crawl” and “Spinning Out” would have had a perfectly suitable home on any Def Leppard release, while “Can’t Find My Own Way” plays out like an homage to The Police.
Surreal isn’t a complete waste of time, and fans of timid rock music will find something to enjoy, but there’s plenty of other, better bands out there that aren’t getting an opportunity because they don’t also have a “day job” in a bigger, better band.
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