Nearly all of the band's best tracks are included here, such as "Back to Mystery City," "Motorvatin'," "Mental Beat," and "Taxi Driver." Also included is a triple-shot encore of cover songs: Alice Cooper's "Under My Wheels," the Stooges' "I Feel Alright" (aka "1970"), and the Yardbirds/ Aerosmith standard "Train Kept A-Rollin'." The death of drummer Razzle a year after this concert was recorded proved a crippling blow for the band, and they splintered not long after - which is sad, because Hanoi Rocks had the talent to put all the other glam metal bands of the '80s to shame. Their 1985 double live album, All Those Wasted Years, shows that they were the real deal (as well as a major influence on future raunch-rockers Guns N' Roses). Tragically, this would be Hanoi Rocks' last full-length studio album for nearly twenty years, in spite of the fact that Two Steps From The Move would see them achieving a level of commercial success for the first time in their career, thanks in part to the presence of Pink Floyd and Alice Cooper producer Bob Ezrin. Unlike other bands of the era whose influences were strictly heavy metal, Hanoi had roots in punk rock ( Stooges, Ramones) as well as hard rock. Unlike other bands of the era whose influences were strictly heavy metal, Hanoi had roots in punk rock (Stooges, Ramones) as well as hard rock. Gyp Casino was replaced in 1982 by Nicholas Razzle Dingley who became an integral member of Hanoi Rocks. They get extra points, as well, for having one of the more entertainingly crude song titles around: "Lick Summer Love.Although many would like to forget the '80s glam rock movement, there's no denying that one of the genre's leaders, the oft-overlooked Hanoi Rocks, were by far the best. Hanoi Rocks, the first Finnish rock band to make an international breakthrough, recorded their first three albums with the original line-up: Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks (1981), Oriental Beat (1982) and Self Destruction Blues (1982). In their own way, they weren't so much pioneers as followers of a style that not many attempted at the time. Overall, IC-01 Hanoi is interesting and shows that the band does have impressive range, but its not quite an essential piece of the UMO puzzle. More so, admittedly, when things suddenly kick into the brilliant rocker "Malibu Beach Nightmare." Other songs, like "Beating Gets Faster" and "Ice Cream Summer" (gratuitous misogyny aside), may be more Hanoi Rocks by-the-numbers, but it's a good enough pattern to follow. One thing's for sure: calling the first song "Strange Boys Play Weird Openings," and having it be a mock rustic folk song - with acoustic guitars, flutes, and chirping birds - is a great way to have fun. Thus, the full-on glam stomp, mock- Burundi drums, and animal noises during the merry romp "Tooting Bec Wreck" (one of many Hanoi Rocks songs paying homage to home-away-from-home London), or the clearly obvious "Mony Mony" steal from the title track, with reverbed vocals working wonders. The aura of '50s rave-up, '70s glam party, and '80s hard rock chaos that the band made their own sounds even better than before, but the production duo also made even more room for intriguing experiments within the songs themselves. Whatever else they brought to the sessions, the duo makes Hanoi Rocks sound like a much more powerful band than before compared to Self Destruction Blues, the riffs are more explosive, the drumming pounding, and Michael Monroe is in full swing. Having so obviously worshipped at the altar of Mott the Hoople for much of their career, it's little surprise that for their fourth album Hanoi Rocks went straight to the source, getting both Dale Buffin Griffin and Pete "Overend" Watts to produce Back to Mystery City.
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