Agentz – Stick To Your Guns

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Brannick Records
Produced by Jose Ferro

The debut album from Agentz was originally released in 1987 in Europe only on Dream Records/CBS, but has since been out of print and was never issued on CD. Coming out now, it fills a gaping void in rock music where this kind of good time hard rock has been watered down to the likes of Buckcherry and Backyard Babies. With a title like Stick To You Guns it also embraces the spirit of hard rock perfectly, steadfastly sticking to what you believe in and resolutely refusing to be broken down by the industry.

The usual ’80s mix of keyboards, riffs and melodic choruses is here, but the strength of the songs (and of the riffs, incidentally) sets it apart from some of the more generic music that emerged from the scene at the time. The opening brace of the title track and Don’t Tread On Me set the standard for the next half-hour with heavy riffs and keyboards from Tommy Tindall that enhance the songs, instead of standing out too much and overpowering them like, say, Dio‘s Rainbow In The Dark.

Time Will Tell sounds similar in approach to something from the early Bon Jovi records, while Take A Chance On Love starts like a slow Judas Priest track before dipping into similar Bon Jovi territory. Agentz sound much harder than Bon Jovi, and even late-’80s Judas Priest for that matter, because the riffs are heavier and slightly closer to mid-pace, and vocalist Patrick Dubs has a voice that sounds more like recent power metal singers such as Andy B. Franck, which means power and range without scraping the stratosphere all the time. It adds a toughness to every song instantly, especially with the bass and drums being so high and strong in the mix, courtesy of Jose Ferro and John Cappadonna respectively.

Another ’80s rock clich&eacute avoided here is the over-indulgent guitar solo, which Agentz guitarist Jason Sabo doesn’t do. His solos are all short and tasteful. Being pretty light on the usual clich&eacuted lyrics as well really does make this album a joy to listen to, and had it been released comprehensively in ’87 there is no reason why it couldn’t have been huge. It also wouldn’t take much adjustment to the sound to make Agentz relevant again (although it would take huge adjustment to that CD cover!). Until Skid Row it’s hard to think of a hard rock band from that time that sounded as heavy as this, and it would be great to see them active again.

“ power and range ”

Tracklist: Stick To Your Guns / Don’t Tread On Me / Time Will Tell / Take A Chance On Love / Bite The Bullet / Fire In The Heart / When The Axe Falls / Waiting In Vain

Written by Andy Lye
More: Albums, Hard Rock, Re-release, Agentz