Customer Reviews

Face to Face (US Version)

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This version of Face To Face was a US only release which is a conglomerate of the two original albums Face To Face (1978) and No Exit (1979), plus Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again, the re-released version that appeared on the Out Of The Blue E.P. If you are a real purist like me and can't get enough of the music of The Angels (a.k.a. Angel City) then check out the 'originals' on import by searching by album title. Then scroll way way way down the list to the imports section and you'll find "No Exit [IMPORT]" and the 'original' "Face To Face [IMPORT]" - and you'll see all those great extra tracks you're missing out on by only settling for this compilation.

I was fortunate enough to be working at a free-form rock station in Missouri when this album was released. You better believe it got a lot of play on my shift. The music is mostly tighter and faster than AC/DC, a similiar band, and their lyrics tended to be not as dark. Wherever I've played it since for friends, the band has won a new fan here and there, and often the comment is made (as in reviews here) "Why have I never heard of these guys?" Take our advice and take a chance by picking up a copy of this hidden hard-rock gem.

Angel City, also know as the Angels in their homeland in Australia has recorded approximatley 20 CD's over the past 20 years. Their latest, Skin and Bone was recorded last year and is in release in Australia and soon in France. I contacted their bassist and told them to contact amazon.com., give them a list of their CD's that are available so they can be ordered in the United States. Their music is foot stompin', old fashion rock and roll. You'll love 'em.

One of the great mysteries of our time is not whatever happened to Amelia Earhart, but why the heck Angel City never clicked in America. Reportedly huge in their native Australia, Doc Neeson, the Brewer brothers, and crew seemed poised for world domination when this album was released back in the 80's, but their career seemed almost stillborn in the States. Sporting a Young brothers-like attack on guitar and the gruff vocals of Neeson, who sounds like he gargled with razor blades, the first five songs alone on this album are worth the price of admission. "Marseilles" is a hard rock masterpiece (sample lyric "Get my French from the girl next door/Teaches me night and day"). Fans of AC/DC, and hard rock in general, don't know what they're missing.

Although at the forefront of Australian rock and roll throughout their career, The Angels (AKA Angel City) have always been difficult to classify. This of course is the case with many bands from Australia and New Zealand.

Musically speaking The Angels are a pretty straightforward 2 guitar band and wear their late 70s roots on their sleeves.

A sort of new-waveish, more melodic version of AC/DC, frontman Doc Neeson does a nice line in dementia, and the original Australian Face to Face included "Live It Up" a track that reminded one of 70s pub blues bands such as Dr. Feelgood.

Lyrically, The Angels can get quite poetic (as in "Am I Ever Going To See Your Face Again") and usually manage to avoid rock-pig cliche'.

Although this album does NOT contain the original track list, it does not contain filler either. This is a good introduction to a band whose contradictions make it truly interesting.

The Angels/Angel City/The Angels From Angel City(titles can be found under all 3 names) were one of the great "hidden gems" of the late 70's and early 80's rock scene. Contemporaries of AC/DC, they never were as big, but definitely had the songs to be. I first got into Angel City in high school after noticing every local garage/bar band was doing a cover of Marseilles. The songs are straightforward, in your face guitar rock. After listening to any Angel City album, you could honestly picture them playing at and peeling the paint off your local band bar.
I feel Face To Face is their best overall album. The songs are all great, start to finish, with some classics as well. Take A Long Line, Marseilles, After The Rain, Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again, Shadow Boxer and Out Of The Blue are all excellent.
If you are new to Angel City, this is the place to start. Other great albums are; Darkroom, Night Attack and Beyond Salvation. It may take some searching because of the different names, but it will be worthwhile.

Angel City fans Two Minute Warning is available, right here on Amazon. Just type in "Angels" as the artist and look for the title.It is only available as an import.And it takes a few weeks to get,but it's worth it.Your search is over.

FACE TO FACE, by the Australian band the Angels (known as Angel City in the states), is a uniquely Australian blend of the traditional hard rock of AC/DC, Montrose, Grand Funk, Foghat, the J. Geils Band, Nazareth, Aerosmith, and Ted Nugent with new wave inflences. Like Cold Chisel and a number of other Australian rock bands, the Angels' music celebrates good times while carrying around a strong sense of foreboding, which is clearest on the dark rocker "Can't Shake It." I take this feeling of the need for caution, which shows itself in the vocals and the guitar riffs, as a warning that if I don't look at pictures of TV and movie hotties as a deterrent to self-indulgent behavior, I could find myself in dire trouble. The band members' belief that the young Australian tourist convicted in Indonesia last spring on drug-smuggling charges was a victim of a grave injustice makes this CD an essential purchase for both your ears AND your conscience

AC/DC Attitude meets Beatles pop sence. Can we cay a**-kicking classic rock. Subtle innuendo and humor. Its all here. Any wonder Axl Rose loved to cover (take me away to) Marseille in Concert? The first time I heard the Angels, as I knew them then, I knew here was a band that was irresistable. I love exposing my friends to the angels and watch their reactions while they sway to the music and try and figure out who the hell this is? All around good disc to anyone who digs on AC/DC (Bon Scott era that is), the Ramones or any other simple but solid music.

I remember seeing these guys on tour in the US in the early 80s and I was always surprised that they were not as popular as many of their contemporaries. I bought this album right after the show, and I was certain that they would be the next big thing. Not sure what else I was certain about back then, but I am sure my reaction was on par with the rest of my interests. Years went by and I found myself having a flashback of sorts, so looked these guys up online as a curiosity (I love the web). I was curious to see that they were actually called "The Angels" and that their record company gave them an Ellis Island styled name makeover when they came to the states, and that this Album was a greatest hits of sorts. Too many surprises for me, so I decided to pick up the CD one more time and give them another chance.

I was in for one more surprise. I liked them as much as before. This is a great CD. I really like every song, and "Take A Long Line", "Can't Shake it", and "Marseilles" should all be [...] rock staples. There is an AC DC vibe to be sure, but this is in no way a copy. I recall that their stage presence had a real "New Wavish" attitude, and that their vocalist, Doc Neeson, had great charisma. When I think about all the crappy 80s rock bands I am certain that I was right, they should've been the next big thing.