Teeze - "Teeze", 1985

Teeze was a hard rock/glam metal band from the Philadelphia area that started out pretty early in the scene, despite not being from the Sunset Strip. In its short lifespan, the band managed to self-release its one and only self-titled record in a couple thousand copies during 1985 before being picked up for distribution by Greenworld Records in the USA and Roadrunner Records in Europe. Those labels repressed the album with new graphics and an extra track, while the band kept making the rounds within the local underground scene and building a name for itself thanks to its energetic live shows, shock-rock antics, and outrageous "shredded rags" stage costumes. Unfortunately it didn't stand a chance: Greenworld Records went bankrupt shortly after the album's release, and it was forced to stop distributing the record, with all copies getting seized. Disillusion ensued, and brothers Brian and Kevin Stover called it quits while the rest of the band decided to soldier on with two new members added to the line-up; luck wasn't on its side though, and after changing the moniker to Roughhouse, due to another band claiming a similar name, it managed to release another record in 1988 - not without further setbacks - and dissolved shortly afterwards.

Teeze certainly showed more than a likeness to early Mötley Crüe; for starters, frontman Luis Rivera sounded a lot like Vince Neil - even though he possibly was an overall better vocalist - and some of the band's riffs were eerily similar to Mötley's material too, most notably on "Midnight Madness", pretty much a rip-off of "Live Wire". This said, Teeze certainly knew how to write great songs of its own too, and the album is far from a sterile clone of the Sunset Strip's bands. The guitar team of B.C. Rich-wielding demons Gregg Malack and Brian Stover was a force to be reckoned with; they both penned songs and shared solos, and they did a great job at that. Mixing a late-70s punk rock approach with early 80s heavy metal riffs and a slight mid-80s glam metal finesse, Teeze managed to craft a record that was potentially palatable for a larger audience, and the band members looked good enough to intrigue the female fanbase.

While songs like the punkish opener "Party Hardy", the aforementioned "Midnight Madness", or the Kiss-inspired "Crank It Up" (a bonus track for the European press) were rather simplistic and derivative - while enjoyable - crowd pleasers, a track such as "When the Moon Is Full" revealed Teeze's potential; a slower-paced number featuring some exquisite metal riffing, it starts up with an acoustic guitar intro, and it manages to build up a ravishing nocturnal atmosphere. Without any doubt, it's the best song on the record, and it showcases the importance of Brian Stover's contributions to the songwriting. Stover also penned the album's closer, "Going Away", another of the album's highlights, displaying his penchant for more classic metal riffs.

The darker "Leave Me To Burn", the faster number "Hellraiser" and "On the Run" (the latter featured exclusively on the US press) also qualify as strictly metal material, certainly more akin to WASP than to Mötley Crüe; "Looking For Action" and "Somewhere Someway" are probably the most accessible songs, with the first sounding a little like something Ratt could come up with and the latter being the only proper power ballad on the record, while still retaining a certain dramatic metal flair to it.

The album's production is a rather crude, low-budget affair, mostly bathed in reverb and probably rushed, displaying a rather booming sound and grimy guitars; still, it retains that familiar mid-80s ambiance that shouldn't bother whoever's acquainted with the genre and the time frame.

The self-titled (and only) album by Teeze is an extremely solid debut that would have deserved larger recognition. While derivative at times, it features good enough songs to stand on its own; the band's musicianship is adequate, and the songwriting efforts showcase a variety that makes the album an engaging listen. It's one of those unsung records that could easily qualify as one of the most underrated titles among the barrage of 80s glam metal/hard rock bands spawned following the success of Mötley Crüe, Ratt, WASP, or Quiet Riot. While the 1988 follow-up under the Roughhouse moniker was a respectable album in its own right, Teeze's self-titled is the real deal, as it retains the spontaneity of a bunch of teenagers having fun and reclaiming their own space in the scene.