Lillian Axe Reissue First Two Albums Via Rock Candy Records [Review]

Home state hero Lillian Axe is one if the most underrated 80s rock bands on the planet. They definitely had a very respectable level of success, but far from what the band truly deserved. Lillian Axe has just re-released their first two albums via Rock Candy Records, and they sound better than ever.

Both "Lillian Axe" and "Love + War" are Special Deluxe Collector’s Editions,
fully remastered and shaped from 24 BIT digital technology. Each album also contains a 16 page full color booklet, a 3,500 word essay, enhanced artwork, previously unseen photos and new interviews. All in all it makes for a great experience for Lillian Axe fans to enjoy these albums again in a new, fresh and exciting way.

Album production back in the 80s was always a crap shoot. Some records sounded great, while some, not so much. With the new Rock Candy remasters, both records now have consistent, quality production from track to track, and from album to album.

The pictures and liner notes are fun as well, showing the band as most of us have never seen them.

I've bought quite a few remastered re-issues from Rock Candy in the past, and I've been pleased with them. Rock Candy doesn't over compress and play the loudness game to the extent other labels do. Looking at the sound profile of each Lillian Axe re-issue, the volume is increased and definitely compressed, but it's not over done. Some pretty good EQing has been applied to help compensate for any frequency loss. The albums have a nice punchy bottom end, good sparkle on the high end and the guitars seem to jump out a little better than the original recordings. I listen to music on professional grade studio monitors, Wav. form or original source material, and use a studio quality external sound card, and I really enjoy the way these Rock Candy remasters sound.

So, should you buy them? Absolutely. If you've been a fan of Lillian Axe, you're going to enjoy these. The sound quality upgrade along with the expanded packaging is a must for any fan. Unfortunately, there aren't any bonus tracks, but sometimes those just don't exist.

Tune in to the Saturday Night Hairball, Saturday nights at 6pm, and you'll be able to hear tracks from these and hear them for yourselves.

You can buy both albums via Rock Candy Records HERE