Customer Reviews

E-Z-O

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With their kabuki makeup and production by Gene Simmons,it is easy to draw comparisons between E-Z-O and KISS. They are clearly their own rock band. Two songs, "House of a Thousand Pleasures" and "Mr. Midnight" were co-written by Jamie St.James, the lead singer of the band Black 'n Blue. My personal favorite is "House of a Thousand Pleasures". The production is richly executed and there isn't a weak track on the album. Interesting diversion for KISS fans.

When E-Z-O was released the Metal scene was already overhyped and garbage bands with no real talent were being given pop-metal to push for hits.

E-Z-O stepped up and nailed METAL on the head with this release. 9 songs, all very heavy and brooding tracks with fantastic production (ala Gene Simmons) and originality. I bought this on tape immediately after seeing it on Head Bangers Ball. I still have the tape, all these years later. I still play it with great frequency. It still whips on most "metal" I hear. Many bands sound silly 15 - 20 years after. E-Z-O sounds awesome.

If you are looking to find a very rare gem from the 80's that is worth every penny, get this one. When my tape does wear out I will definitely nab it on disk (I seem to have a magic tape, most of my 80's tapes died). I was listening to it in my car today and that's what inspired my quest to find info on the web (very little to be found)

This album has great vocals and sound from Japan. It is a very hard album to get. I spent 10 yrs trying to get it. Even while in Japan I could not find it. I recommend any 80's rock fan to get this album. If you enjoyed the lead singer, he is now the singer for Loudness.

this is definately one of the best albums i have ever heard from the 80's era. if you haven't heard this one it's a must hear! it's hard to find so get your hands on EZO's debut and check it out for yourself.

I saw this band open for Guns & Roses at the Lost Horizon in Syracuse, NY on Halloween 1988 in full kabuki make-up! They rocked. I can't wait to hear this CD again. Their follow-up, Fire Fire, has a few great songs, especially the way the singer sings "Nightcrawler"- what a throat!

With bands like Anthem, Earthshaker and especially Loudness, Japan was never a stranger to the world of hard rock and heavy metal, but EZO was probably their first "hair metal" export.

EZO took a fairly straightforward hard rock approach and added a fair amount of melody and some glam elements from the popular West Coast hair metal scene. The result is an album that's a bit heavier than the Sunset Strip stuff, and a bit less party-centric as well. There are some really good rockers here, like "Flashback Heart Attack", "Destroyer" and "Kiss of Fire".

The band soon fell under Gene Simmons' influence/control and amped up the glam elements in an attempt to reach the US market. The resulting album - 1989's Fire Fire - was moderately successful, but not nearly as rocking or enjoyable as the debut.

EZO's debut is a must have for fans of the Japanese rock scene, and a should-have for fans of 80's era hard rock in general. Unfortunately the CD version was only released in Japan, so if you want to check it out that means coughing up the cash for a pricey import.

Edition Notes: E-Z-O was reissued (again, only in Japan) in 2005 in a paper sleeve with remastered sound. If you're serious about getting this album, you might as well go with the version with superior audio quality.

This CD is awesome. This is "real" heavy metal. On this CD you won't find any of that bubble gum metal that littered much of the 80's and early 90's. Kiss of Fire, Here it Comes and Destroyer are my favorites, but they are all good. I've had EZO's "Fire Fire" for years now. It has always been one of my favorite tapes. Don't know why it took me so long to see what else they had out there, but I'm sure glad I did.

This is a really good late 80's metal CD. I first heard the Japanese language version of "Here It Comes" on a compilation that had a rare GNR track ("Shadow Of Your Love" if you care). Anyway one day when a little extra scratch came in I forked over the hefty sum of the (dollar amount) or so that this CD costs. It's a lot of money for 9 songs, but if you like late 80's metal this is an exceptionally good CD. The other Japanese metal band to come over to the US were Loudness who were a little more on the pop side of things, although they still had some dark moments.

E-Z-O are decidely darker though. That's probably what makes this CD so good. There's none of the gushy, chicky, lighter power ballads. And while there are good melodies there isn't the upbeat stuff of bands like Poison. Starting with "House of 1,000 Pleasures" you get 9 tracks that all have a sinister undertone to them and it really works. The other reviewers all appreciate this CD as well, and if you're looking for some late 80's metal to discover this is a good CD to pick up. Whether you want to spend the money is up to you, but if you'd like to get something that you'll almost assuredly like for (dollar amount), as opposed to an (dollar amount) gamble this is the place to look.

Essentially don't go hoping that Tuff had a decent song hidden on their CD. These guys are the real deal and it's a shame that this album didn't fo better over here. Loudness as well (before they got Mike Viscera who just didn't fit in right).

Destroyer, Big Changes, Kiss of Fire and Here it Comes are all excellent, heavy, original tunes. I fast forward thru the others to get to them. Because these four are so above avg. the album gets four stars. The rest are edible for the heavy-metal connoisseur.

Sure they sing in broken english and their attempt at "kabuki rock" is laughable, but their music isn't bad at all. The whole album is still fun to listen to even after owning it through those years when everyone laughed at me for liking it. Even met the guys oh so long ago and hung out with them. Good guys, although one drunken time they gave us this Japanese "dessert" that tasted like sewage. But, I digress - this is one chunk of good ol' fashioned metal here. (Metal - old fashioned - my god, I'm getting old.) Nothing earth-shattering, but it definitely makes you want to go on a caffeine bender and drive as fast as you possibly can down I-5.