THE UNRIPES -

THE UNRIPES - THIS IS NOT AMERICA - STREET SYMPHONIES   
Track No 1 is remarkable not only for its title and powerkickingactionsound, but also for making use of the chorus to Kiss’ Heaven’s On Fire. Reload is next and this girl assures you is not a M***llica reboot... so keep reading. This song begins with a brief gulp of thrashy chords before becoming a brash heavy metal anthem. The heavy as lead chorus is grinding and the lead taking no prisoners. What a band. The Unripes is glammy and hard rocky but heavy. The melodies, harmonies, catchy anthems all meet in a tent fully decked with pounding heaviness. Skid Row’s Slave To The Grind? Perhaps. Did they have to scare us with a techno dance intro? It is too bad they associate themselves with tasteless wrestling.
Get On This Rollercoaster is melodic, but brings out the rock-solid production on this striking disc, and that is without mentioning the serious artistic quality of the musicians. Axia has soaring vocals. The guitarist is Michele 'Mike P.' Pelillo and is not just good, but has the leads and the chops to push him to the top of the pile without difficulty. The production fully takes advantage of the stereophonic resources and capabilities to give us a dynamic and lively sound.
My Muse Is Called Rock’N’Roll underlines the fact that the band is so American in sound. This has a Love/Hate vibe.
The disc maintains its quality until the end. Predictably, the last song, which simultaneously at over five minutes is the album’s longest, is slower. It sounds like one of those strumming slow tracks the likes of Slaughter or Tesla love. It turns electric, but not before the harmonica plays in. Perhaps this is why the album is called This Is Not America. The band knows how American it sounds. Until now the money was on the name owing to the fact that the cover model was thin! More metal hair too! - Sheila Wes Det