Afterburner

ZZ Top | Format: MP3 Download

Product Details

• Original Release Date: November 30, 1984
• Label: Warner 1061
• Copyright: 1985 Warner Bros. Records Inc.
• Genres: Alternative Rock/New Wave & Post-Punk, Classic Rock/Arena Rock, Classic Rock/Southern Rock, Dance & DJ, Pop/Dance Pop
• ASIN: B00123LQPM
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Example Of Top's Experimentation, February 7, 2009

By 

John Lawrence (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Afterburner (Audio CD)

First of all, let's get one thing straight. This isn't the true ZZ Top as the hardcore fans identify with. Anyone that's a substantial fan of ZZ Top knows that the heart and soul of what makes ZZ Top such an amazing band is found in their blues and boogie rock of their early period (Tres Hombres, Rio Grande Mud, Fandango...etc.). This album is not of that period, and to compare it to that material is a waste of time, because this album was not trying to be what ZZ Top was in their early career.

The truth about Afterburner is that it was made as ZZ Top's true take on the synth-infested, digitized world of 80's mainstream rock, and that's exactly the period that it should be compared to. Whether or not Top was trying to "sellout" in order to garner more mainstream success or just wanted to fiddle around with the sounds of the period is something I sure don't know the answer to. However, I can say one thing for certain; their end result was quite an impressive production.

Many reviewers slam this album for its massive use of synthesizers and other digital equipment and mixing. However, I on the other hand have to praise it for what it's done. Afterburner really seeks to go after its synth-sound headfirst and it puts the synth material at the heart of all of the songs on the album.

I truly view this almost as somewhat of a concept album in that it takes the popular synthesizer sounds of the 80's and tries to take them from the backing track area of most mainstream rock of the time period, and it moves them into the forefront of every track. These are songs led along by their synthesized compositions. The synthesizers own the rhythms of each track, and that's somewhat of a major difference between most music of the 80's which used synthesizers to help back up the rhythms. In this album, Synths are not part of the songs, they are the songs.

So, what we have is an album embracing the technology and style of the time while still adding in some of the blues rock style that ZZ Top has always had in the past. The guitar playing is still often quite heavy and bluesy, like Gibbons style shown on older albums. These aren't the Van Halen-esque solos popular during the time period, but instead it truly is Gibbons being himself and playing his own style.

And, to be frank, this album really rocks harder than most of the music it was trying to emulate and stem from during the 1980's. Just listen to the ending solo to "Rough Boy", for example. This solo is far more "soulful" than most guitar parts coming from other mainstream rock of the same time. Arena power ballads and hair metal of this time period couldn't touch the raw emotion of Gibbons guitar playing throughout this album.

And that, to me, is what makes this album so well done. It retains much of the synthesized sound of the time period, but the music itself is far less "cheesy" at its heart than most contemporary releases. There's soul to this stuff, and there's rock there too.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars At The Height Of Their Popularity, ZZ Top Lays Out A Mixed Bag, January 5, 2006

By 

Maxim - See all my reviews

This review is from: Afterburner (Audio CD)

This album is definately better than "Deguello" and "Tres Hombres." I have those two albums and this is definately better than them. But I noticed how in almost every song on the album, the bass sounds exactly the same. It's almost as if ZZ Top recorded Dusty's bass playing for one song, then Frank and Billy
made the rest of the album on their own.

SLEEPING BAG--This was the fifth ZZ Top song I heard from beginning to end. The others were Mexican Blackbird, She's Just Killing Me, Breakaway, and Pincushion. And it's pretty good. The music video is pretty interesting as well. This is the one song were the bass doesn't sound the same. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons.

STAGES--This song didn't interest me much at first. I knew the chorus too well compared to how well I knew the rest of the song. But I've listened to it a couple more times and it's actually not bad. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

WOKE UP WITH WOOD--The second-to-best song on the album. Has some awesome guitar and a great tune as well. I don't know what else to say. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

ROUGH BOY--This song has a 1:30 minute difference than the music video of it, and I can't figure out why. It's the only ballad on the album, and it's surprisingly good. Billy Gibbons does a good job incorporating an awesome guitar solo into a slow rock song. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'--The third-to-best song on the album. The earliest song that I know of where Dusty Hill really displays his real singing voice after light singing and Little Richard imitations in the 1970s. Featuring vocals by Dusty Hill and Billy Gibbons.

PLANET OF WOMEN--The fourth-to-best song on the album. I enjoy the chorus of this song particularly. I noticed that whoever created the ZZ Top ringtones accidentally mislabeled this song's ringtone as 1994's Pincushion, which it sounds nothing like. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

I GOT THE MESSAGE--I'm not too fond of this song. I tried listening to it one day in the morning, and for the rest of the day the intro guitar sound was stuck in my head. I try to avoid it now. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

VELCRO FLY--This song features Dusty Hill playing the keyboards, just like 1983's TV Dinners. It's interesting to see that for a change in the music video, and to hear it in the song. That makes the sound of the song rather unique. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons.

DIPPING LOW IN THE LAP OF LUXURY--This is the other song on the album that I try to avoid. It doesn't have an annoying into guitar sound like I GOT THE MESSAGE, but I'm not fond of it nevertheless. Featuring vocals by Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.

DELIRIOUS--Without a doubt the best song on the album. I'm pretty sure that this song features keyboards too. I admit that the lyrics repeat themselves continueously throughout the song, but I love it despite that. Dusty Hill has the best choice of what songs to sing. Featuring vocals by Dusty Hill.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure fun!, March 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Afterburner (Audio CD)

This album got them into trouble with some fans. Some said it sounds to close to everything that was going on at the time. Some said they were trying to fit in with the keyboard crazed late 80s. I think this album is pure fun. Great songs like "Sleeping Bag", "Planet Of Women", "Velcro Fly", "Rough Boy" and my personal favorite "Stages!" If you claim there are no heavy guitar tracks think again. Check out "Can't Stop Rockin'" Point being, no I don't want every ZZ Top album to sound like this one, but for the time it worked! Not as raw as their 70s and early 80s stuff. That polished sound my scare a few people. Worth a listen anyway.