Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Cool Feet - Burning Desire (1976)

Cool Feet are unquestionably one of the most sought after acts from the 70's underground. In fact, their sole full-length release easily fetches a few thousand dollars each time a clean copy surfaces online. Not much is known about this band, but the quartet formed in the Gutland of Luxembourg sometime in the early 70's. One half of the band were German & the other half British. Their self-titled album was recorded at Dierks Studios. Issued in very limited quantities on the small Pallas label, the album virtually came and went without much fuss at the time, though over time it has gained a nearly unparalleled amount of attention due to its scarcity.

So does this album deserve the hype? Well, let's just say that it's most certainly not the masterpiece one might expect, but it's also much better than a good portion of the relics that collectors tend to lavish praise upon. With a sound that references alot of the early Scorpions material, there's some real worthy music happening here. The vocals are eerily quite similar to Birth Control's own Bernd Noske. It's almost uncanny, really. There's plenty of turbocharged hard rock among the batch of tracks presented, along with a handful of more introspective numbers. One such heavy standout is the ballsy "Hello Lucy", with fantastic vocals & perfect rhythmic pacing. If drawing comparisons is your preference, see bands like Doctor Downtrip, Bastard or Hairy Chapter for other points of reference. Whatever your angle, I'm sure many of you will find something to love about Cool Feet. While we wait for a much needed proper reissue, dig into this decent vinyl rip and hear what all the stir is about.