Tygers Of Pan Tang: Noises From The Cathouse

In truth the only bands to truly benefit from being caught under the banner 'New Wave Of British Heavy Metal' were Iron Maiden, Saxon and to a lesser extent Def Leppard. All the other outfits bestowed that genre tag consigned to the fate of also rans, or these days, under appreciated heritage act. Which when you take into account the excellent output over the years from countless acts such as Praying Mantis, Diamond Head and, of course, Tygers Of Pan Tang, is nothing short of a travesty. Originally released in 2003, Noises From The Cathouse is seen as the TOPT 'lost album' due to its 'now you see it, now you don't' release on Communique Records. By this stage guitarist Robb Weir was the band's only original member left standing, and yet joined by frontman Ritchie Wicks (ex of Angelwitch), second guitarist Dean Robertson, bassist Brian West and drummer Craig Ellis (who is still amongst the Tygers number to this day), the band crafted an album that merely nodded to their past, while instead striding boldly forward.

Don't get me wrong, "Master Of Illusion" and its chunky riff is an out and out metal monster, although it's more happy to sit in the Black Sabbath role, rather than churn out tired NWOBHM cliches. However with "Three In A Bed" (whatever could that be about?) an out and out homage to Roth fronted Van Halen through its bouncy beat, party like chorus and Wicks' deep, leering spoken word section, there's much more to this version of TOPT than you may think. "Bad Bad Kitty" keeps up the (ahem) tasteful lyrical themes, yet while the words may hint more at the eighties than the noughties, what Tygers have done here is to keep the essence of their sound while spreading their wings to add influences as wide and varied as Extreme, Faith No More and in the case of "...Kitty" a more sleazy slap.

All this comes armed with three bonus cuts in the shape of "Highspeed Highway Superman (Two Wheeled Version)", which is slicker and smoother than the main album take (which I guess would be the unicycle mix…?), the pulsating "Slave To Freedom" and suggestive "Don't Touch Me There"; the band's debut single reworked by what Tygers' main man Weir reckons is the fourth different singer! All three were recorded to help promote a 2004 'Far East' tour and indeed bring excellent extra value to what is already a seriously good album.

In many ways the NWOBHM tag has been a curse for countless bands and Tygers Of Pan Tang are no exception. Here they prove once again that they have many more strings to their fret boards than the sub genre suggests. Noises From The Cathouse is a rediscovered album genuinely worth the time taken to rediscover it.

See more about this release on our recent YouTube show!

Track Listing
1. Bad Bad Kitty
2. High speed Highway Superman
3. Cybernation
4. Boomerang
5. Running Man
6. The Spirit Never Dies
7. Three In A Bed
8. Déjà vu
9. Godspeak
10. Master of illusion
BONUS TRACKS
11. Highspeed Highway Superman (two wheeled version)
12. Slave To Freedom
13. Don't Touch Me There

Added: March 7th 2016
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Noises From The Cathouse on Angel Air Records
Hits: 2489
Language: english

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