PRETTY BOY FLOYD – Stray Bullet [Deluxe Edition +3] (2022) *HQ*

320_1 /// 320_2 /// HQ

As requested here’s PRETTY BOY FLOYD‘s “Stray Bullet [Deluxe Edition +3]” a collection of rare  recordings from the early ’90s that was to be the band’s follow-up to their major label debut album ‘Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz’. Also includes the entire 1998 EP ‘A Tale Of Sex, Designer Drugs, And The Death Of Rock N’ Roll’, and this Deluxe Edition adds 3 bonus tracks and different cover art.
Originally available in 2019 on CD with hand-numbered certificate and limited to 500 copies, when sold-out and as requested by fans, this second pressing was made and released January 2022.
Tracks 1-10 are remastered demos performed by Steve ‘Sex’ Summers on vocals, Kristy ‘Krash’ Majors on guitar, Vinnie Chas on bass and Kari Kane on drums of songs that were originally supposed to be become PRETTY BOY FLOYD’s second album on MCA Records, recorded in the early 1990 with very good sound quality. The band feels more melodic on this material than on their debut LP.

Tracks 11-15 were recorded in 1998 and performed by Steve Summers, Kristy Majors, Kari Kane, and Keri Kelli on bass, released by themselves as ‘A Tale Of Sex, Designer Drugs, And The Death Of Rock N’ Roll’. The Deluxe bonus are a Mötley Crüe’s classic “Girls, Girls, Girls”, a sleaze cover of The Kink’s “Father Christmas”, and a remix / re-recording of Mötley Crüe’s “Live Wire” featuring Tracii Guns, using the original Motley track.
While the production quality of these songs differ, overall it’s good and enough to enjoy its catchiness. More poppy and melodic hard rock than ‘Leather Boyz…’, one wonders what would have happened if MCA approved this Pretty Boy Floyd second album back in the day.

Today, as we all know, Hair Metal is still out there, but the “major” players have had to modify their respective styles to reach a wider audience. Clearly, though, Glam / Hair Metal has its place in musical history, and can / should be enjoyed for its merits even to this day.
Enter Pretty Boy Floyd (PBF), a band determined to keep the sub-genre alive. In fact, God luv ‘em for it!

“Stray Bullet” include the material for their second LP on MCA Records that was dropped at the eleventh hour. Most tracks are filled with raucous fun and, via controlled decadence, the celebration of life — especially life as carefree “young bucks.”
The lyrics, light in content, are generally shallow and ephemeral, but this is consciously done to promulgate a positive vibe throughout each song and to ensure that PBF can deliver catchy choruses – something that has always been and continues to be indigenous to Hair Metal / Glammy Hard Rock.

Because of the constant emphasis on sing-a-long lyrics, musically, there is nothing eye opening here, but there are no turn-offs either. In the end, the drumbeats are pronounced, basic, and deliberate. The guitars provide the pace for each song, and are presented with typical treble-influenced distortion – you know, the kind that basically blends all of the chords and notes together. The vocals are the most emphasized instrument, and tend to come through smoothly in a non-offensive manner.

All of the tracks generally have all the right ingredients to be winners, and PBF shows as much ability as any band of their feather to create quality songs.
Also included there’s entire 1998 EP ‘A Tale Of Sex, Designer Drugs, And The Death Of Rock N’ Roll’, plus 3 special bonus tracks – two of them Motley Crue covers, one featuring Tracii Guns on guest guitar.

If this album had been released in 1991 as it was originally planned – even in a time when the genre started to decline – and received the benefit of conventional recording standards and promotional resources available, PBF would likely have sold at least one million copies.
Pretty Boy Floyd successfully captures here that which made Hair Metal / Melodic Hard Rock popular, and churned out quality tunes for the genre.
Rocks!

01 – Tonight Belongs To The Young
02 – Hands Off My Radio
03 – Far Away
04 – Till The Real Thing Comes Along
05 – Long Days
06 – Restless
07 – Hold On To Your Dreams
08 – Stray Bullet
09 – Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel
10 – Gangster Of Love
11 – Shut-Up
12 – Junkie Girl
13 – Everybody Needs A Hero
14 – Do You Love Me
15 – Good Girl Gone Bad
Deluxe Bonus:
16 – Girls, Girls, Girls (Mötley Crüe cover)
17 – Live Wire [feat. Tracii Guns] (Mötley Crüe remix)
18 – Father Christmas (The Kinks cover)

Steve Summers – Lead Vocals
Kristy “Krash” Majors – Guitar
Vinnie Chas – Bass
Kari Kane – Drums
Tracii Guns – guest Guitar

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