Y&T – Earthshaker [Rock Candy remastered & reloaded]

Rock Candy Records did a ‘Remastered & Reloaded‘ treatment to the early ’80s Y&T albums, for many, the band’s finest moment. “Earthshaker” was Y&T’s first album for A&M and the first under their current name, after changing it from Yesterday and Today used on the two prior records.

This record changed everything for Meniketti & Co., with a polished production (yet still retaining a quite heavy sound) and full of radio-friendly hooks.
The whole album standouts driven by hot riffs, even present on the ballsy power ballad “I Believe In You”, a reference for just about every hair metal to come in the way of crafting their rock ballads.

“Earthshaker” stunned the hard rock world with its aggressive songs and production. It was a double whammy that breathed new life into the band’s profile, helping to re-establish them as real contenders after years spent hiding in the shadows on a label that offered little in the way of promotion or career advancement.
In Europe, where the band had already enjoyed a cult following through imports of their previous two records, the news was embraced with open arms and word soon spread that the band were not only back but sounding bigger and better than ever.

Recorded in their native San Francisco, the album harnessed a new raw energy, allowing songs such as ‘Hungry For Rock’, ‘Dirty Girl’, ‘Squeeze’ and ‘Hurricane’ to explode like molotov cocktails, whilst the epic and lengthy album closer, the aforementioned ‘I Believe In You’ showed that the band could write anthems equal to the best of the genre.
It also showed just how masterful they had developed as musicians, especially Dave Meniketti’s extraordinary vocals.

There’s a previous remaster of “Earthshaker”, very good in my opinion.
This Rock Candy sonic treatment is equally fine, with a little more emphasis in the mid-frequencies and ‘air’ between instruments.
Honestly, we can’t recommend this album highly enough.

First seen here, at 0dayrox

01 – Hungry For Rock
02 – Dirty Girl
03 – Shake It Loose
04 – Squeeze
05 – Rescue Me
06 – Young And Tough
07 – Hurricane
08 – Let Me Go
09 – Knock You Out
10 – I Believe In You

Dave Meniketti – vocals, guitar
Joey Alves – guitar, vocals
Phil Kennemore – bass, vocals
Leonard Haze – drums, vocals

BUY IT
www.amazon.co.uk/Earthshaker-Y-T/dp/B07BF681FG