We Sweat Blood

by Danko Jones

Overview

All of the warning signs are right there on the cover: the band name in a jagged and stylized font, a close-up on someone playing an electric guitar, and dripping blood. Yeah, that's right, this is a metal album. It was pretty clear on Born a Lion that Danko Jones was already heading in this direction, with loud boogie-soaked riffs that owed more to AC/DC than the revved-up funk that served as the bedrock of the group's two early EPs. Not that you'd confuse We Sweat Blood for commercial-grade metal: there's very little bombast and absolutely zero hand-wringing earnestness here. The production is incredibly crisp -- instead of soaking everything in sight with reverb, most of the vocals are clean and the drums snap like whip cracks -- and the performance is very clean, with no pointless wailing from either the vocals or guitars. Everything has been stripped back to the basics: sex, Satan, and super-high volume. Sure, the lyrics are so over the top in places that it's almost like the band has become a cartoon: in the album opener, "Forget My Name," "She makes me forget my name" is followed up by "I wanna, I wanna, I wanna burn in Hell with you." Elsewhere, "Baby I want to put some mileage on your lovebike/I want you out on the road with my testosterone make you feel alright" is delivered with a straight face. There's even a tribute to one of fellow Canadian Neil Young's sillier lyrics. Deathless prose for the ages this ain't, but it doesn't really matter, because the groove is deep, the rock is hard, and those who aren't shaking their hips will probably be resisting the urge to follow along on the ol' air guitar. Yow. ~ Sean Carruthers

Product Details

Release Date:	10/06/2003
Label:	BAD TASTE
UPC:	7330169666735

Tracks

1. Forget My Name
2. Dance
3. I Love Living In The City
4. I Want You
5. Heartbreak's A Blessing
6. Wait A Minute
7. Strut
8. Home To Hell
9. Hotdamn Woman
10. The Cross
11. Love Travel
12. We Sweat Blood

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Danko Jones   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Matt DeMatteo   Vocals (Background),Vocals
Dave Pedro   Vocals
Lionel Pedro   Vocals
Paul Bozzi   Vocals
Damon Richardson   Drums
Helga Rossi   Vocals
Dregen   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
John Calabrese   Bass
Rosie Celano   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Fionnuala Jamison   Vocals
Melinn Chaban   Vocals

Technical Credits

Matt DeMatteo   Engineer,Producer
Victor Florencia   Mixing
Henrik Jonsson   Mastering
Danko Jones   Composer,Producer
Melinn Chaban   Group Member
Dave Pedro   Group Member
Lionel Pedro   Group Member
Paul Bozzi   Group Member
Jesper Lindgren   Photography
Helga Rossi   Group Member
Rosie Celano   Group Member
Fionnuala Jamison   Group Member