I’m introducing Quickshots with this post. These are albums that I’ve heard recently but didn’t inspire me to write much of interest. Many are albums that I like quite a bit, so it’s not just a case of poor musical content. I’ll try to batch musical styles accordingly. Hopefully it helps some of you with your eternal music quest!

Buffalo – Dead Forever. 1972.
Connexion – s/t. 1975.
Alacran – s/t. 1971.
Megaton – s/t. 1971.
Acid – s/t. 1974.

Buffalo were Australia’s most powerful hard rock band, and maybe its most known until AC/DC came along. “Dead Forever” is their debut and contains a mix of Sabbath heaviness combined with the usual boogie rock that is the trademark of the Australian rock scene. Not bad, and they were to improve on the follow-up “Volcanic Rock”. Now available as a beautiful tri-fold CD through Aztec Records. Connexion were a one-off band from Quebec. Usual style of straight ahead blues based hard rock, though sung in French which makes it slightly more interesting. Originally released on RCA and no legit CD has surfaced. Alacran is considered one of Spain’s rarest albums alongside Maquina’s “Why?”. Despite a strong Santana vibe, most of this album is pretty average hard rock, and the vocalist is (no good way to put this) terrible. Remarkably, you can find a legit CD on the Disconforme label. Megaton, despite being on a major label (Decca) and sporting a beautiful cover, ends up being quite a disappointment. Ultimately they’re trying to ape Led Zeppelin circa their first 2 albums – but without demonstrating any talent, energy or creativity. It’s a thumbs down. No CD and doubt anyone cares. Even worse is Austria’s Acid, a band who somehow managed to get two albums out (on CBS no less). I’ve only heard the first and that’s enough for me. Other than a couple of promising horn rock moves, recalling Birth Control on “Rebirth”, what we have here is plain Jane boogie rock ‘n roll. Many cover tunes and not an ounce of creativity. An awful album really. And no CD (I suspect and hope it will stay that way).