Customer Reviews

Abominog

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Nowadays, it is quite common for a band can take a hiatus from recording/touring for a couple of years. Back in the day, a year away from the studio or off the road was a recipe for disaster. But guitarist Mick Box went against the norm in 1982 and Uriah Heep roared back onto the scene.

The band had spent several years trying to reinvent itself while keeping an ambitious recording/touring schedule before calling it quits in 1980. But Box used the time off to plot a sustainable course for the band, which included the return of drummer Lee Kerslake - who brought bassist Bob Daisley from their stint with Ozzy - along with vocalist Peter Goalby and keyboardist John Sinclair.

Five of the 10 original tracks are covers, but the unbridled "take no prisoners" approach to the sound brings back fond memories to the gothic metal from earlier albums, but with the drive that was looking to the future. Box shines on the top cut - Too Scared to Run - while Sinclair takes the reigns on Chasing Shadows and Hot Persuasion fits neatly in the harder-edge AOR sound that was finding airplay on FM radio. The best cover is Prisoner (lyrics by D.B. Cooper/performed by Sue Saad and the Next), with That's the Way That It Is (Paul Bliss/The Bliss Band) very close behind.

The album cover may be chilling for some, but the music inside - bolstered by six bonus tracks - sizzles. This was a tremendous comeback by a band that had imploded in 1980.

OK, this album will certainly disappoint core Heep fans from the Magicians and Demons-era. Enter the new decade and we find a completely different Uriah Heep at the works, and guess what? they are quite brilliant! Sorry, but Ken Hensley's departure was good for the band. Abominog is definitively more mainstream oriented but the songs are very good. Enter Pete Goalby, and Uriah Heep gets a superb vocalist, sounding a bit like Foreigner's Lou Graham, only better. Hensley's replacement, John Sinclair (ex-Heavy Metal Kids and Gary Farr's Lion) came up with some of the best keyboard intros, sounds and arrangements ever. The freshness of the new line-up works fantastic together with the old nucleus of Mick Box (g) and the "Bear" Kerslake (d). Abominog is a great commercial-rock album from the early '80s. And don't forget that the rhythm section here consists of Lee Kerslake and bassist Bob Daisley (relatively fresh from Rainbow and Widow Maker), the same rythm partners in Ozzy Osbourne's two greatest albums (Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman), which were recorded within a year-and-a-half of Abominog. If you like QUALITY ROCK, buy it!

Same comments apply on Heep's outstanding follow-up: HEAD FIRST... an excellent album.

Lots of cover songs. Lack of Originality. More hard rock them classic Rock? So what! this album rocks. The mix of the group members Daisley-Kerslake back end. Box's guitar with Sinclair on Heavy Keys. And Peter Goalby's vocals fit perfectly into the mix. What Box did on this release was pull the band out of the 70's/doldrums. MTV Played a cover song from this LP in medium rotation good for HEEP at the time. No Byron, or Wetton? Thats not great but Hell Sinclair and Goalby easily made up for that with their own talent. Out of the 200+ hard rock/metal albums I bought in the early 80's Abominog rocked the hardest with the best mix of Hard rock/Keys/vocals. I wore the disk out.

Uriah Heep was reborn (or was it re-reborn?) as an 80's heavy rock band with the release of Abominog. While this album,er.. CD, bears little similarity to Heep's David Byron-era works, the best tracks on Abominog are some of Uriah Heep's best rock. That's The Way That It Is (remember the bad MTV video?),On The Rebound,Too Scared To Run,etc. are great. The worst tracks on Abominog aren't bad,just basic formula 80's rock. If you've come this far in checking out this CD, my advise is buy it. Abominog should be in every Heepster's collection.

Abominog was the first album recorded by the "new" version of Uriah Heep after guitarist Mick Box singlehandedly rebuilt the band following the 1980 collapse. This effort does not quite sound like the Heep albums of the eighties, being full of glam and bombast, but is a solid effort nonetheless if you like well-done and polished hard rock. Indeed, most of the material is strong and the songs rock really well. However, the absence of the departed Ken Hensley and the reliance on cover versions for four of the album's ten tracks turn some hardcore fans off, as does the cheesy album cover.

THIS ALBUM HAS TO HAVE THE SCARIEST ALBUM COVER I HAVE EVER SEEN; HOWEVER, THE MUSIC ON THIS ALBUM WILL KICK YOUR BUTT. ON THE REBOUND AND PRISONER ARE SONGS THAT YOU WILL FIND YOURSELF PLAYING OVER AND OVER AGAIN. THOSE TWO TRACKS ALONE ARE ENOUGH MAKE THIS ONE A CLASSIC.

I couldn't find my album of the same CD, lost it some where. Although, the cover picture is absolutely hidious, the music is excellent and captivating. I especially love the added extra songs. Most places I looked for it on-line called it a japanesse import and wanted over $45., for the same thing I purchased for $10.. Thanks That was a great relief. My favorite song I guess "That's the way that it is " and you won't ever change it.... Real classic hard rock from around 1985, 80's nostagia at it's best.

Long-running British rock band Uriah Heep released their 14th studio album, the oddly-titled Abominog, in 1982. The album marked some major changes for the band. Not only was this the first Heep album not to feature keyboardist Ken Hensley, but it was a stylistic departure as well. Guitarist Mick Box (the only founding member on board at this point) and company took a decidedly commercial direction with this album, much to the dismay of some older fans.

Beneath a hideous cover image that Venom might have rejected as over the top, Abominog is essentially the best AOR album Foreigner never recorded. It's about as perfect a snapshot of the early `80s arena rock sound as you're likely to find. Uriah Heep definitely took a page from bands like Journey and Foreigner with this one. The songs are catchier, more melodic and definitely had commercial radio appeal. It helps that then-vocalist Peter Goalby had the perfect voice for this kind of AOR. "On the Rebound" (a Russ Ballard cover) and "That's the Way That It Is" (a Paul Bliss cover) were the bigger hits from this album, but Abominog's best tracks are the opening rocker "Too Scared To Run" and "Running All Night (With the Lion)."

Fans of the classic Uriah Heep sound from albums like Demons & Wizards and Magician's Birthday were understandably upset by the very AOR Abominog, but this is still a very strong melodic rock album, and one that accurately reflects both the band and the era. It's probably not an essential Uriah Heep release, but for fans of the `80s AOR/melodic rock/arena rock sound, Abominog is definitely a must-have album.

Edition Notes: Castle reissued Abominog in 1997, giving the album expanded liner notes, digital remastering and four bonus tracks, including the b-sides from the Abominog Jr. EP and a pair of demo versions. It's a really satisfying reissue all around.

Edition Notes 2: Castle, ever prone to double-dipping, reissued Abominog yet again in 2004. This time around they replaced the two demo tracks with three live tracks and an alternate version of "Think It Over." I suppose this is the better reissue, but it wasn't enough to make me replace my 1997 version.

I bought this cd in 83' when it first came out on vinyl.Great album and brings back many memories.

a great album by a great band.Music like this has been lost to time but classic rock fans know that time brings all great things back to the present day