It’s been over a decade since Boston’s sickest hard rock band, Extreme have done a new album. Many musical changes have happened during the interim years. Guitarist Nuno Bettencourt became Rhianna’s guitarist. Their brand of hard rock has sunk even further down the hierarchy ladder. But there’s still a big enough fan base to keep bands like Extreme touring. And that’s mainly what bands from that era do. Every once in a while though, they give us new material. And Extreme have done just that with the great and not so great ‘Six.’
When the album hits, it hits really hard. The intense one, two, three punch of ‘Rise,’ ‘#Rebel’ and ‘Banshee’ is one of the bands best opening outings ever. Nuno’s guitar work is not only in good shape. He’s as good, if not better than he was during Extreme’s early 90’s prime. A true master never keeps his craft up. And Nuno is no exception. The songs are energetic. Beefy. Catchy. Everything that a fan of excellent hard rock would want. ‘Other Side of the Rainbow’ is a strong ballad. The mid tempo works perfectly with elite pop melodies. One of the best ballads the band has ever done.
However, the album takes a sharp turn for the worse with ‘Small Town Beautiful.’ It’s just a little too much ballad cheese. And unfortunately, the album has more than it’s fair share those moments. But not all of the slower moments are lost. ‘Hurricane’ is a great John Mayeresque moment. But the penultimate track ‘Beautiful Girls.’ Along with the album closer ‘Here’s to the Losers.’ Are a clear move to try and sound current in 2023. And it just doesn’t work. Who knows. Maybe Rhianna rubbed off on Nuno. It sure sounds like it at times.
There are some other great deep track rockers though. And they do possess a certain amount of innovation at times. But with the rockers, it works. ‘Thicker Than Blood’ might be the best track on the album. It’s a hard decision. But it’s certainly in the running. The aggressive keyboard riff works seamlessly with Nuno’s sick guitar tone. The lyrical subject material? Topical and on point. ‘Save Me’ is the heaviest song on the record. And a clear reminder that Extreme aren’t here to just write pop oriented fluff. They’re a hard rock band first through and through. ‘X Out’ is in the same vein as ‘Thicker Than Blood.’ The keyboard melody establishes the riff. But it’s still a kick ass riff. And the guitar work blends in perfectly with what’s happening.
Overall, ‘Six’ is a pretty damn good album. But the overall results are mixed. Much more so than previous outings. The band itself sounds on point. Gary Cherone’s voice has aged very well. Especially considering where many of his frontman peers are. Pat Badger is, as always, in fine form. K. Fig adds his usual groove flair. And Nuno? Well, I don’t think I need to tell you all how endearing his guitar playing has been over the decades. All in all, ‘Six’ is a strong album. But when it’s weak, it’s really weak. But that shouldn’t stop anyone from supporting the band on their new endeavors. It’s imperative that this style of hard rock endures. And ‘Six’ is a more than decent notch on the hard rock belt. Three out of five stars. Crank it, live it, love it.
