Hoodoo is a typical Krokus release, straight ahead hard rock/traditional metal packed with big hooks and arena ready anthems. “Hoodoo Woman” is one of those anthems, with huge melodies and a catchy chorus. There have been about a million cover versions of “Born To Be Wild,” and Krokus tries to put their spin on it, with mixed results. Storace's voice does the song justice, and in a live setting might be great, but on CD it just sounds dated.
“Rock 'n Roll Handshake” regains the momentum, a groovy AC/DC vibed song that's instantly memorable. A lot of the songs on Hoodoo are similar to AC/DC, especially "Shot Of Love," a "Highway To Hell" doppelganger. After some lower pitched vocals at the beginning, “Ride Into The Sun” kicks into power ballad mode with another strong performance by Storace. The remainder of the album alternates mid-tempo groovers with more intense tracks such as “Keep Me Rollin.”
It's always nice to hear veteran bands that still have passion and energy and aren't just phoning it in. Krokus has a lot of miles under their belt, but their musical engine is fine tuned, and Hoodoo shows they are still firing on all cylinders.
(released May 25, 2010 by Sony Music)
