Posted on: September 18, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Molly Hatchet – Live In Hamburg / 2006 SPV / http://www.mollyhatchet.com / http://www.spv.de /

There does not seem to be any better place for Molly Hatchet in a world context than a biker’s get-together in Germany. Of course, the visual production of “Live in Hamburg” is beyond reproach; this could be a movie if the producers decided to cast it in those terms. In much the same way, the sound of the concert is near-perfect, with only minor things making it obvious that this is a concert. To tie everything together, there is no loss in abilities by Molly Hatchet; everything is as interesting and catchy as it once was all those years back.

This means that individuals that attended the concert would have gotten more than their money’s worth, and individuals that pick up this DVD will be compensated justly. “Son of the South” is just one of the many sterling examples of Molly Hatchet tying together a classic sound with a streamlined approach that will bring newe listeners together with old diehards to create a great atmosphere. With tracks like “The Creeper”, it should be obvious that the influence that Molly Hatchet had on rock is not limited to their Southern-fried followers. “The Creeper” seems to bring Danzig most of eir influence for “III” and “IV”; there is more than a passing hint to “How The Gods Kill” in this track. The one thing that is great about Molly Hatchet’s music is that the tracks slide together perfectly; each song feels like it is only a minute long. The one thing that the lead singer should work on is the whole “Hell Yea” thing; I mean, four or five times is fine and dandy but twenty or twenty-five is pushing it a little bit. Still, for a band that has been around for such a long time, a problem that miniscule can be ignored for the larger picture of fun yet hard-hitting rock, something that sticks with listeners for well after the two hours the concert ran. There are even times during “Gator Country” where lead singer Phil even assumes the aura of another great Southern rock band – Lynyrd Skynyrd. Even if it is stuck at the tail end of the disc, one of the problems that “Live in Hamburg has is that the solos are all tied together.

This means that the keyboard solo moves into an instrumental and that moves into a guitar solo. Something that might have made more sense (and I’m not sure how possible this would be, considering this was one concert played straight through) would be to use the various solos to mark different sections in the action. The keyboard solo, regardless of how well it is down really seems to bring the tempo of the concert to a nearly-screeching heart. The guitar solo and “Dreams I’ll Never See” do much to restore it, but the band seemed to be in dire straights in the late space of the DVD. Still, this DVD is for fans of good, solid rock or of Molly Hatchet generally; the band has not lost a step since they started all these years ago.

Top Tracks: The Journey, The Creeper

Rating: 6.1/10

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