Hanoi Rocks Press

Some say Hanoi Rocks could have eclipsed Motley Crue had they not flamed out in 1985, but the Finnish band's punky glam was too good for anything beyond cult status. Not much has changed on this phoenix album. Hanoi's best assets-guitarist Andy McCoy's slutty double-stops and smooth-sloppy riffs. Michael Monroe's impassioned yowling and the group's songwriting-still shine like new 17 years later and demonstrate to current and forthcoming glam upstarts just how it's done. - Guitar World

There were many who wonder whether this reunion between only two of the band's original members could produce anything approaching their past glories. We need not have worried as Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy have produced a 17-track affair that shows other bands of the sort how it's really done. Said to be the inspiration from everyone from Guns N' Roses, through Motley Crue and of course acts like Backyard Babies. Hanoi specializes in loud, brash sleaze rock, not seen since the demise of the New York Dolls. This stuff is melodic and catchy as hell. First released in Finland late last year, this version has four bonus tracks. You get poppier stuff like "A Day Late And A Dollar Short", which is the first UK single as well as darker glam in the form "In My Darkest Moment" (a song about the death of Monroe's wife). In an era of boring rock showing up on the charts and in shops, this stuff certainly is a welcome change. Considering how good this is, it will be interesting to see what the band can deliver once the new members have settled in a bit. Hey if you are waiting for the new GNR record, this will make a damn good stopgap and let's face it, it will probably be a hell of a lot better. - Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles

There's A snake coiled around a rose on the cover. It's called "Twelve Shots On The Rocks". It's played by men who defy the odds by still looking badass and, after years of whiskey and amphetamine, strangely healthy. Yes, Hanoi Rocks have not changed on iota. And thank God, because these Finns were leagues ahead of the '80s glam-rock contemporaries, mixing up Clash-like melodies with the good-time swagger of The Faces and New York Dolls. And what singer Michael Monroe lacked in talent he made up for in charisma and attitude. No surprises here then, but plenty of larger-than-life rawk 'n' rolls - "Obscured" and "A Day Late A Dollar Short" displaying a hunger that age and obscurity can't quell as Hanoi pull off the impossible sounding as fresh as daisies. - Kerrang!

Why does Hanoi rock? "Party Secretary for the South" Mai Chi Tho explains: "Youth in Saigon are considered too easily influenced, while youth in the North are stable and safe. When Southern youth are trained in socialism they will be influenced less. While rock music is seen in the South as an American instrument to subvert the Vietnamese and records and tapes have been confiscated, in the North there are dozens of coffee shops with loud rock music." This may have changed, however, as this information comes from a really old Playboy; don't know the date but it must be early '80s as the chicks all have pubic hair, i.e., before they were "pressured" by the combined might of Gillette and the Rexall dental-floss division. (Although if Curtis LeMay had his way, Hanoi would've "rocked" a lot more than it did.) Just like RIAA pressure is the reason all 'Nam flicks feature the VC, not the NVA. The NVA had better tunes and they wanted to move those Doors box sets without competition from the Cat Soup Serenaders. How does Hanoi rock? With an airbrushed Euro feel just like "new" Playboy models, i.e., like they always did, i.e., like Ian Hunter (whose CDs have also been reissued by Classic Rock Records in the U.K. Get You're Never Alone With a Schizophrenic and Short Back'n'Sides; they're really good). 12 Shots on the Rocks has the weirdest intro since "Strange Boys Play Weird Openings" from Back to Mystery City, although the "mystery" here is the title, considering that there are 14 tracks on "CD proper" plus three bonus (including a Hall & Oates cover!!!), which equals 17! Less "mysterious" is how much "Bad News" sounds like fellow Norma Jean queens Roxy Music. Bryan Ferry made a series of records about woeful unrequited desire before his real-life wife left him in public for Mick Jagger, while Hanoi Rocks sang "Dead by Xmas" and "Self Destruction Blues" and ended up on page 130 of The Dirt! It's a mighty long way down rock 'n' roll, if your name goes cold just down a shot and say "Skol!" Here they are again, so roll away the stone: responsible for 'Nam-obsessed Scandies Turbocopter and Hellanegroes, back with more Orientalism to spin Ed Said's head 'cept Ed Said's dead. (Goddamn, I've gotten irresponsible since writing for Hell's Inky! Ha-ha, geddit?) - Village Voice

Hanoi Rocks is back after 17 years and it's been almost as long since I've listened to them. After hearing their fine new album, Twelve Shots on the Rocks, maybe I shouldn't have waited so long. It's a solid slab of glam rock filled with good hooks, funky grooves, splashes of saxophone, killer harmonica, and some damn infectious harmonies. More importantly, it's a lot of fun. The boogie gets started with "Obscured," a hard-driving guitar rocker. Following close behind is the rockabilly-flavored guitar lines and wicked harmonica on "Bad News." I thoroughly enjoyed a nasty shuffle called "New York City" and its New-York Dolls-meets-soul delivery. "Delirious" is part punk, part rock and roll, and scorches with some kick ass lead guitar. Things get slicker and glammier on "Day Late, Dollar Short" and its beautiful saxophone lines, while the piano-driven "Darkest Moment" mellows out even more with a 70s nostalgia vibe. The best parts of this album come when the nastiness creeps back in on songs like "Watcha Want," a chug and roller with loud guitars and big attitude. Things really start rocking on the track when the pace kicks into overdrive and you hear the sounds of guitar squeals and smoking harmonica. Twelve Shots on the Rocks actually includes 17 songs, five of which are bonus tracks. Quite frankly, four of the five could have easily made the cut on the formal part of the album ("Laku" is simply a brief drum piece). Worthy of specific mention is "Designs on You," an acoustic guitar and piano ballad that mixes 70s glam and early Rolling Stones, the kind of Stones song that flirted with country and western twang. Also included is a bonus CD-ROM video. Interestingly enough, I found myself enjoying Hanoi Rocks on this album more than I ever remember digging them in the past. It's probably due to the fact that I don't hear music like this out there today. It's refreshing to say the least. -- Electricbasement.com

Back in ’84 Hanoi Rocks released quite possibly the greatest glam rock album of all time in Two Steps From The Move. However, cruel fate stepped in when drummer Nicholas “Razzle” Dingley hopped into the car with Vince Neil at the wheel for that fateful beer run, thus resulting in an accident, killing him, RIP. Fast forward to 2003. Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy have put the past behind them and recruited a new band of bad asses. The result is a collection of pure Hanoi: A little vintage punk, a little alcohol, a little eyeliner, considerable swagger and a shitload of attitude. Without Hanoi Rocks, there would have been no Guns N’ Roses. Remember back in the early ‘90’s when Axl Rose reissued Hanoi Rocks’ early albums on his own Uzi Suicide label? High praise indeed. Yes sir, Hanoi Rocks are legends. - HARDER BEAT

Slowly but surely, rock is creeping back into the psyche of pop culture. So it’s only fitting to see one of the great cult bands of the past get back together to show the new kids just how to do it right. During the early ’80s, Finland’s Hanoi Rocks were the bridge between punk and classic rock, falling somewhere between the Stones and the Pistols. Now, 19 years later, Hanoi Rocks have reunited and released Twelve Shots On The Rocks. And it’s a volatile cocktail of 100-proof rock’n’roll numbers served straight up from start to finish. “Obscured” is an in-your-face rocker with some blazing guitar work courtesy of maestro Andy McCoy. “People Like Me” is quintessential Hanoi, replete with nasty licks and razor-sharp sarcasm. Other stand-out cuts include “New York City,” “Whatcha Want” and “Watch This.” In actuality, this album came out in Europe last year, but the band wasn’t quite happy with the mixes and went back to work. This revamped version includes bonus tracks plus a video. Twelve Shots (there are 17 tracks, to be exact) ought to be required listening—for anyone interested in true rock’n’roll, made with real guitars and tons of guts. - ZERO MAGAZINE

I approached this listening experience with some concerns and not a little trepidation. I mean, these guys were heroes of mine who produced several holy discs back in the good old days. What if time and years apart had reduced them to mere note bangers with feet of clay? Well, I shouldn't have worried, all the glam glory and sneering rock attitude that floored me before is still there, in spades. No other band epitomized the glitzy rock decadence of the glam rock 80's like Hanoi Rocks, and this CD sounds like they just pulled their signature sound out of some Einstein-Rosen bridge rockin' time travellin' wormhole (read some Hawking, I'm gonna start putting Wino style recommended reading lists in my reviews). Hopefully, now that HR is back, the world will embrace real glam rock with the same enthusiasm that they accepted minor league substitutes like Motley Crue and Guns N' Roses during HR's 17 year sabbatical. Michael Monroe's voice is still rock perfection and Andy McCoy still scatters sparkling riffs like sonic sequin glitter. Rock royalty has returned to reign over the faithful. Long live the Kings. - Tangerine Mag.

Nothing quite warms the heart like receiving mail from a long-lost, almost-forgotten acquaintance during the holiday season. An icy afternoon is quickly thawed when you can sit visit with your friend and learn that, even after all these years, they're every bit as reliable, clever and riotous as you remember them. Time has been good to them. Okay, maybe the reindeer shit is getting a little deep here, but when this shiny disc arrived at my home from the swanky offices of Liquor and Poker, it sure felt a helluva lot like that first rambling paragraph. Having dissolved after the death of drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley at the drunken hands of Motley Crue vocalist/slurrist Vince Neil on December 8, 1984, it's been faaaaar too long since the world heard from Finland's most influential export. It seemed like Hanoi Rocks was around only long enough to teach the stewed Crue, Guns 'N' Roses and droves of others how it was done before fading away with only the occasional solo effort to keep the memory alive. Now, 17 years later, frontman Michael Monroe v(ocals, saxophone, harmonica, guitar - gasp - synthesizers, percussion) and guitarist Andy McCoy have pooled their creative forces and extensive Aquanet supply together once again and, with help from new inductees Costello (guitar), Timpa (bass) and Lacu (drums), will prepare to retake the tarnished and dented glam crown. Although available for over a year now in their homeland, Liquor and Poker eased the agonizing wait for TWELVE SHOTS by adding five bonus tracks ("Bad News" and "Moonlight Dance" being the best) to this particular version. The album has been received well for it's British release and, hopefully, the Yankee masses will be taken with it enough to bring the volatile Monroe/McCoy cocktail to the bars and clubs of these shores. Time HAS treated this duo well, evident by the fact that TWELVE SHOTS picks up right where '84's TWO STEPS FROM THE MOVE left off. Older, wiser, yes, and at the same time, even more devil-may-care and mindless than before. "Delirious", "Obscured", "Lucky" and the gravelly, Alice Cooper-ish "Watcha Want" make this point best, while well-picked singles "A Day Late, A Dollar Short", "People Like Me" and the hazy "In My Darkest Moment" drive the point home even deeper. So... a holiday toast to all of us - twelve of 'em to be exact. "Dead Before X-Mas" no more. The Rocks have returned, harder than ever before. Ho-ho-holeee sheeeeeit! - Horrorwoodbabbleon.com

1984 was the year that should have seen Hanoi Rocks blow up the music scene in the US. But tragedy struck when Vince Neil (Motley Crue) crashed his car killing Hanoi Rocks’ drummer Razzle Dingley effectively ending their soon to be US tour and what should have been world dominance for the originators of “Glam” Rock. Fast forwarding 17 years brings us to the release of Hanoi Rocks reunion album Twelve Shots On the Rocks on Liquor And Poker Records. For the US release L&P have remixed, remastered and added 5 more songs to Twelve Shots…. Effectively giving us long awaiting and long suffering fans 17 kick ass HR songs. Twelve Shots On The Rocks doesn’t break any molds, doesn’t reinvent the wheel, and probably won’t set the music industry on its collective ear. But it does allow Hanoi Rocks to do what they do best. And that is to take their “Glam” sound, throw in a heavy dose of Punk attitude, several shots of Hard Rock swagger, and a healthy peppering of Pop hooks and sensibility. As with previous efforts you will find several styles of music blended to HR perfection. Several songs on this album stand out as real winners. The lead off song “Obscured” has a great frantic feel to it, classic HR without an outdated sound or style. “Bad News” is all Hanoi Rocks attitude, with the best vocal track on the album. “Delirious” shows the boys at their punk best yet again. ”In My Darkest Moment” highlights one of the many facets of Hanoi Rocks in their entire splendor. This is the ballad, with all its clichés and pomp and circumstance, but it never sounds cheesy at least not coming from the originators of the “Glam Ballad”. ”Whatcha Want” explodes out of the gates with a vicious riff that cascades into the heaviest groove on the album providing the hardest and most solid song on the disc. “People Like Me” revisits the underdog theme that HR capitalized on for years with lyrics like “Radio and MTV you need people like me”. But again, coming from Hanoi Rocks it doesn’t sound as clichéd as it should or would coming from other bands. Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy have release several albums on their own for the last 17 years, but coming back into the Hanoi Rocks school of rock after that time off could come off sounding like a cash in on the name, a throw away at one last grab of the brass ring. But this album never comes off that way at all. All the classic HR themes and sound styles are here, but they never sound contrived, and never come off like several 80’s bands recent releases (cheese filled and stagnant). This is a solid release that transports you right back to 1984 but doesn’t make you feel guilty for it, or embarrassed for them. They have taken all that is HR and thrown in their personal maturity, musical sense and knowledge allowing the classic Hanoi Rocks sound to thrive and flourish without sounding crass, classless, or stuck in any particular time period. A great release to be had by any fan of Hair Metal, Glam Rock, or anyone that remembers what really started the scene to begin with, and wants to hear what it should sound like today. - N.C. Scene (North Carolina Regional)

Anyone who has ever applied hairspray to their teased mane or squeezed on a pair of leather pants knows the name Hanoi Rocks. The now legendary glam band was once know as the new Rolling Stones, the next Aerosmith, Finland's glittery great white hope. They had that Guns N' Roses kinda buzz before Guns N' Roses, know what I mean? For awhile though, they were known as the band that Vince Neil killed when the Motley Crue singer was charged with vehicular manslaughter for being at the wheel during the accident that killed Hanoi drummer Razzle and left at least 3 others crippled. Then briefly they were known as the band that used to feature Headbangers Ball glam-rock poster boy Michael Monroe. Then they were barely remembered at all. Recently though, over time, that their legend has grown and they are finally being recognized as the trailblazers, the leaders of the '80s glam movement who did it better, badder and cooler than all their imitators. It took 20 years, but finally the boozing, bloozing swagger of the late, great Hanoi Rocks is beginning to truly be appreciated. And just in time too… 'cause they just happen to be back in action with a vengeance. Twelve Shots On The Rocks marks the re-teaming of Hanoi Rocks leaders/chief songwriters guitarist Andy McCoy and Monroe, a union fans thought would never happen. After a heated split following Razzle's death, the self-proclaimed Cosmic Ted and Flashing Psychedelic Kid spent years bashing each other in the press and promising there would NEVER be a reunion. Monroe even told this reporter that he would never ever, under no circumstances work with McCoy again. McCoy was too dangerous, too fucked up and too volatile. Hmmm, seems like exactly the kind of character you want slinging an axe in a cutthroat rock n' roll band, right? Well, Monroe musta wised up 'cause the dynamic duo are back together again and in top form. The only question is where the fuck are guitarist Nasty Suicide and bassist Sam Yaffa?!?!? Well, hell hasn't froze over just yet I guess. The good news is that Hanoi fans will be pleased as punch as every cut on Twelve Shots On The Rocks is a winner and sounds like it could be off any one of their classic albums. The bad news is that… well, there ain't no bad news! Nope, this is one rockin' album through and through and proves once again that good bands don't die young, they just wait a coupla decades and come back swingin'. Twelve Shots On The Rocks is the perfect mix of the vintage Hanoi sound and more updated power-punk-metal sound ala contemporaries such as the Backyard Babies or the Hellacopters. Tracks like the dirty "New York City" or the Chuck Berry-on-crack "Lucky" have that immortal Hanoi strut and are every bit as good as anything off Self Destruction Blues or Oriental Beat. "A Day Late A Dollar Short" touches on the pomp new wave vibe the band captured on tunes like "Whispers In the Dark" or "Love's An Injection," while "Gypsy Boots" finds McCoy and Monroe in pure Glimmer Twins mode. Yet "Whatcha Want" is heavier than anything the band ever did in the past, sounding more like Monroe's post-Hanoi band Demolition 23 (which ironically feature Nasty and Yaffa). "Watch This" also sounds more current, adding some garage rock fuel to the power pop fire. A cover of the Heavy Metal Kids' "Delirious" rounds out the rockers and is a perfect choice, with its snotty charm and chugging riffs. Just like in the old days, the band slows down the pace a bit too and get a bit misty. A cover of Darryl Hall's epic (yes, you read that right) "Winged Bull" is a fine choice, sounding like the sequel to their own "Million Miles Away." "Designs On You" is a bit more upbeat but just as convincing nonetheless. Co-written by Monroe's now deceased girlfriend Jude Wilder, the song is a personal tale of love on the rocks but could just as easily serve as a poem from Monroe to his fallen love. "In My Darkest Moment" strives for the same touching, gentle spirit but falls a bit short. While the lyrics are heartfelt, they feel less natural, a bit awkward. However, the beautiful sax solo and thrilling McCoy-driven bridge more than make up for any stumbling during the verses. The U.S. version of the album (which was previously released in Europe and Japan in 2002) is a completely new mix and features several additional tunes. Apparently the band never approved the original mixes and felt they were too polished. The new version sounds a little dirtier, a little meaner, which is the way the Muddy Twins (Mike 'n' Andy) like it. B-sides like the moody "Bad News," the "Oriental Beat-sounding "Moonlight Dance," and the rockin' cover of Mink DeVille's "Are You Lonely Tonight" make this a must for fans who already scored this and need a new lipstick fix. Monroe is in top form throughout this effort. His sax and harmonica playing are top notch and his voice as strong as ever. His lyrics in particular (aided by McCoy, Wilder and others at times) are razor sharp and his wit in tact. He aims much of his venom at the music industry and scene and goes for the jugular on cuts like "People Like Me" ("Radio and MTV/You need people like me") and "Obscured." When he belts out "You'll never see me fail and you can't make me disappear," you know he means it. And any doubts as to whether McCoy -- the only guitar-slinger to rival Johnny Thunders for hardcore heroin use and live to tell about it -- has still got the fire will be bashed against the rocks as the "Tragedy"-like harmonics of "Obscured" come pouring through the speakers. Just check out the wicked harmony licks on the single "People Like Me" for a taste of that patented McCoy sound. He's got monster chops and can run neck and neck with any current or past guitar hero yet has that Keef/Thunders 'tude that keeps him grounded in sleaze and good taste. Less is more, get it? So for 12 glorious songs (and one short intro cut) rock n' roll is great again. It's as if all those years of bad metal, phony punk and force-fed MTV bullshit never existed. Like the world stopped in the early '80s just as music got really lame and corporate and everything that was good started to become trite. Back when glam meant Mott the Hoople, not Warrant. Back when a 13-year-old kid's favorite kind of music was actually rock. Back when the Motor City was known as the home of the Nuge, Iggy Pop and MC5, not Insane Clown Posse and Eminem. Back when Finland actually had a shot at producing the world's greatest rock n' roll band. Sounds crazy, huh? It was… it was... - KNAC.com

17 years after their untimely demise, Finland's own Rock n' Roll outlaws HANOI ROCKS return from the dead to take up where 1984's "Two Steps From the Move" left off. Heavy heart, riff eclectic, punk fueled Rawk n' Roll. Legends in the underground, they once tarnished the mainstream rock world by influencing everyone from Guns and Roses to Smack to even the "Oi!"-est of Streetpunk bands around. On this slab of digital damage, you're treated to 17 songs of some of the best damn rawk to come out in a long time, plus a bonus video to boot. Musically, these boys run the gamut. I detect a bit of Deadboys type angst in "Obscured", David Bowie-ish (Spiders from Mars era) melodrama in "In My darkest Moment" and all the over the top glitzy-trash you've come to expect from these ground breaking iconoclasts. They still hold in tact their rock roots paying homage in style to the New York Dolls, Johnny Thunders, The Stones and the assorted lot of rawk royalty and miscreants. The reason for re-banding… I believe they're here to save rock n' roll. Michael Monroe has always been the top Rawk Punk crooner since the days of lore and to be teamed up once again with axe man Andy McCoy to terrorize the guitar rock community is surely a treat to hear. Why these guys stopped playing together is beyond me. This stuff is volatile and quickly reaching critical mass. Catch them before they self-destruct, there is indeed a fire brewing. - Americore Magazine