Prophets Of Addiction Face The Music CD Review

I’d never heard of the Prophets of Addiction until their latest album, entitled “Face the Music” hit my box. I quickly scanned the info, and I read the word ‘Glam’ and that was all I needed to know and then I went to play it immediately. I’m from that era, that’s my shit and it’s where I feel most at home musically. According to the bio/info that came with the album, the band leans heavily into the late 70’s era of Glam Rock. I’d be inclined to agree with that sentiment, I’d also say the band tosses sleight of hand of Punk vibes in the mix for good measure too. Think Dead Boys, The Heartbreakers and bands of that nature.

I’m late to the party with the Prophets as FTM is their 4^th album, I haven’t listened to the others so I can’t really compare them. What I can tell you is this, it’s a really good album if you’re from the Glam/Punk side of the tracks. Another thing to mention and this is a big deal to me, if you’re a fan of the Dogs D’amour or their frontman Tyla’s solo albums, this album will fit right into your collection/playlist perfectly. Frontman Lesli Sanders sounds very much like Tyla, he has that same gruff, drunken like approach vocally. I know not everyone digs being relegated to sounding like someone else, but this is a compliment of the highest coming from me – Tyla is a GOD and his work in Dogs D’amour is some of the finest music to ever be released. So, when I say this is similar in sound and lyrical approach, it’s a compliment of the highest order.
 
There are so many great moments on Face the Music – “Last one in the Bar”, “Hollywood”, “Wasted Tears” and there’s a killer cover of Rod Stewart’s “Maggie May” that nobody could see coming. The album is brilliantly recorded/produced, I wouldn’t have known this was released in 2024 if I didn’t have the info here. This sounds like it could’ve been released in 1987 on one of those killer import labels that I use to see ads about in the back pages of Circus and Hit Parader. I really miss those days; I found so many great bands from those ads.
 
To the naked eye and the random passerby, the Prophets could be seen as Indy artists, but the band is comprised of Phil Soussan (Ozzy/Billy Idol) Phil recorded the album, and he plays bass and several other stringed instruments here. Front man Lesli Sanders also use to play in Pretty Boy Floyd, he was also the bassist in Marky Ramones band and has toured with the immortal Phil Lewis. Everyone on the album is accomplished in every manner possible and Sanders brings it all together with his vocals and his incredible lyrical approach. There’s not a tune on the album that I don’t relate to personally, which makes it even more enjoyable – I’ve lived a bunch of these songs. See the track “Last one in the Bar”. This is a sleeper album and had it came out earlier in the year it would’ve made its way into my top ten of 2024. I can’t stress how much you need to pick this album up.

~Black Angel