The Action Is Go

Fu Manchu

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 7, 1997)
• Original Release Date: October 7, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fontana Mammoth
• ASIN: B000004ATQ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #40,726 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Despite the loss of two ostensibly crucial members--guitarist Eddie Glass and drummer Ruben Romano--Fu Manchu soldier on with the followup to their brain-numbing masterpiece, In Search of.... While The Action Is Go doesn't quite equal the high-water mark the band set on its previous outing, it mines the same Sabbath/'70s hard-rock vein with slightly different results. Produced by White Zombie guitarist J. Yuenger, Fu's fourth album has less garage fuzz and more heavy metal crunch. Though Glass and Romano's replacements--Bob Balch and former Kyuss drummer Brant Bjork, respectively--do a good job handling the band's standard chug-a-rama, their feel for and interpretation of the material is dramatically different than that of their predecessors. Like every Fu Manchu outing, The Action Is Go heaves and grunts with monstrously heavy classic guitar riffs. There's absolutely nothing new about them--you've heard most of these riffs on any number of Black Sabbath and Blue Oyster Cult records. However, it's the little touches--such as guitarist/vocalist Scott Hill's plaintive, stoned wail and bassist Brad Davis's snaky, throbbing bass lines--that make Fu Manchu more than just pale imitators. While Balch and Bjork add their own personal touches to the proceedings, their contributions aren't quite as unusual as they might be, and ultimately The Action Is Go suffers from this lack. Though it's not a bad album, the garage edge that once gave the band a muscle up on the competition (Monster Magnet, Slo Burn, and others) is sorely missed here. --Adem Tepedelen

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars She wanted nothing... and I delivered, July 28, 1998

By A Customer

Fu Manchu- Gods. A cross between the Stooges, Black Sabbath and a really stoned teenage garage band. Reminds me of a friend I used to have- listened to KISS a lot, grew his hair long, wore clothes from 1977 and disappeared... I imagine him now- in a souped-up, customized Trans-Am rolling along, Sabbath on the 8-track and bumper sticker which reads "Gas, Grass or Ass: No one rides for free."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love the musical indie aggression, February 9, 2004

By	Michael Cheney (Seattle, Washington United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I love this album... espically the reference to hotrods, skateboards, and bmx... I highly recomend this album...

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not a Thing Wrong with 'er., January 28, 2003

By A Customer

Fu Manchu is no doubt one of the most straight-ahead rock bands around today and I think this album proves it. If it were up to me, everybody would own it. Track after track on this masterpiece flat out rules. It satisfies rockers, stoners, skaters, and also fans of pro-muscle car tunes. Scott Hill's non-chalant vocals add layers of "laid back, just chillin and rockin out" vibes. "Urethane","Laserbl'st", and "Grendel,Snowman" are definately classic (good)(not Kansas, Boston,etc.)70's all the way. I would recommend ya go get this 'un as soon as ya can if you don't mind rockin' ...-Get In Search of... too!