SANTA CRUZ - Santa Cruz

March 27, 2015, 8 years ago

(Spinefarm)

Nick Balazs

Rating: 8.5

review hard rock santa cruz

SANTA CRUZ - Santa Cruz

It’s good to know rock ‘n’ roll still has some balls left. North America is in dire need of a swift kick in the ass and Santa Cruz are the perfect guys to give the boot. Their self-titled, second album is a no-nonsense, balls to the wall affair with flashy leads, big time choruses (they have mastered the “whoa oh oh” perfectly) and a middle finger attitude, which is present in the opener “Bonafide Heroes”.


It’s unfair to call them a new age hair metal band as while they certainly have the look, they also sometimes fall prey to certain modern tendencies with chugga-chugga riffs (“Velvet Rope”), but they do everything else so well that it can be forgiven. When a track such as “Let Them Burn” comes on, it’s hard not to sing it for days on end. Santa Cruz keeps the pedal to the metal and only slow things down with the mature “Can You Feel The Rain” and “Bye Bye Babylon” which evokes thoughts of a drifter on a never-ending road. When it’s time to party however, then party hard along with a bottle of Jack and put on “We Are The Ones To Fall” and “Wasted ‘N’ Wounded”. The attention Santa Cruz is warranted and the future is looking bright for these guys and if it takes four fuckers from Finland to wake up America then so be it.



Featured Video

KELEVRA - "The Distance"

KELEVRA - "The Distance"

Latest Reviews