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Sweet Sybil: Sweet Sybil

Melodic Hard Rock

3.5/5.0

Eonian Records
www.myspace.com/sweetsybil2008
www.eonianrecords.com
Review: Craig Hartranft,  07.12.2010

Hailing from the windy city of Chicago with some local and regional reknown comes Sweet Sybil. Attempting to blaze their own path through late 1980's melodic sleaze and hard rock, Sweet Sybil became another victim of fickle label disinterest and the rising tide of grunge. Still, with only demos under their collective belts, the band opened for the likes of Extreme, King's X, and ironically Alice in Chains. Nevertheless, despite promise, the elusive door of opportunity never opened for Sweet Sybil.

However, this short collection of nine songs gives an inviting and interesting picture of Sweet Sybil's style and potential. It's an eclectic mix with standard fare of the day like Remember When, Downtown Suicide and Burning House, and more promising turns on Alone with You and Someone In Your Eyes (pure radio-friendly melodic rock). Sweet Sybil shows some true visionary trends on the masterful #69, where melodic sleaze rock gets almost ska feel from the horns, and Walkin & Talkin' with its tasty arrangement and addictive bass line. Unlike many vocalists of that day, Sam Carava has a developed and versative style all his own.

Sweet Sybil once again shows that, as the 80's scene was imploding, there were still some promising talent out there. And not all of them were from LA, for the matter. Regional fans and those digging that wonderful era of American melodic hard rock would do well to pick up Sweet Sybil's archival recordings on Eonian Records.

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

Sweet Sybil once again shows that, as the 80's scene was imploding, there were still some promising talent out there. And not all of them were from LA, for the matter.

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Here's a fun fact about Swiss legends, Gotthard: their last 16 releases, excepting their debut album, went to number one in their home country, making them one of Switzerland's most successful acts and ... [ Read More ]