Killinger

Cougars are fashionable these days. Hell, they even have their own "beauty contest" now and those women need music they can relate to. Similarly, men of that age want to escape their reality: piggish wives and dead-end jobs. That's where a band like Killinger come in. While they're a heartbeat away from the same situation as their following, at least they're keeping the dream alive. Not unlike Brett Michaels, Ratt, Winger, George Lynch and the other throngs of once-amusing, now-sad '80s cock rockers, Killinger thrive on gritty, double-time rock with soaring vocals and dive-bomb guitar solos. It's a feat they nail easily on this, their recorded debut, captured by the likes of Mike Fraser (Aerosmith) and Ted Jensen (Lynch Mob, go figure), but even those names give you a pretty clear idea of what's going on here. When the band aren't searching for their own "Round And Round," they're breaking it down into bluesy ballads Cinderella might have fumbled through in their day. Again, Killinger hit their stride perfectly, but as is the case with say, crunkcore, there is a very specific crowd who adore it indelibly ― those that resemble Mickey Rourke's character in The Wrestler. If underwear on top of leopard print and platinum locks are your thing, give 'er. If you weren't old enough to drink when Van Halen split with David Lee Roth, reconsider.