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Sunday, August 25, 2024

THE FIRST 100


As of today, I’ve conducted and posted 100 video interviews—including 97 since I decided to go in this direction in earnest last October—on my YouTube channel:

I had resisted doing video interviews for years (as writers should write), but I’ve really grown to appreciate the format’s ease and convenience. Here are all the guests I’ve had on the channel so far. My thanks to all of them for their time and fantastic conversations:

100. Alan Tecchio and Frank White (“Jersey Metal” book)
99. Claude S. and Mike Z. of Anything Box
98. Reg Bloor (Glenn Branca Ensemble/Paranoid Critical Revolution/Solo)
97. Dave Travis and David O. Jones of Carnage Asada
96. Karl Agell (C.O.C./Seizure/Lie Heavy/The Skull/Legions Of Doom)
95. Troy Gregory (Prong/Flotsam and Jetsam/Killing Joke/The Witches/Solo)
94. Lindsey Anderson (The Kowalskis/Vatican Commandos/Coney Island High)
93. Sal Canzonieri (Electric Frankenstein/The Thing) – Part 2
92. Tom Wallace (Guild of Others)
91. B.T. (The Wretched Ones/The Burnt/Artesanz) – Part 3
90. Tommy B. (Squad Car Vandals/The Clubhouse)
89. B.T. (The Wretched Ones/The Burnt/Artesanz) – Part 2
88. Dan Lorenzo (Hades/Non-Fiction/Patriarchs In Black)
87. John Bomber (Seizure/Sonic Supercharger 66/Dumpster Dive zine) – Part 2
86. John Bomber (Seizure/Sonic Supercharger 66/Dumpster Dive zine) – Part 1
85. Ron Keel (Keel/Steeler/Black Sabbath/Solo)
84. B.T. (The Wretched Ones/The Burnt/Artesanz) - Part 1
83. Chip Z’Nuff (Enuff Z’Nuff)
82. Rev. Chad Wells (The Jackalopes/Cricketbows/The Creepy Crawlers)
81. Afzaal Deen (Crisis/Stalwart/Master’s Ashes)
80. Matt G. Paradise (The Accusation Network)
79. Tracy Bonham
78. Victor Poison-Tete (Rat At Rat R)
77. Chris Frieri (My 3 Sons/Buy Our Records/Ghost Limb Films)
76. Phil Caivano (Monster Magnet/Blitzspeer/Shrapnel/Solo)
75. Sal Canzonieri (Electric Frankenstein/The Thing) – Part 1
74. The History Of The Pipeline (Newark, NJ) with Emilio – Part 3
73. Alex Smith (Music Journalist/Blogger)
72. Mark Burgess (The Chameleons)
71. Eerie Von (Danzig/Samhain/Solo)
70. Dave Tree (TREE)
69. Ben Christo (The Sisters Of Mercy/Diamond Black)
68. Doug Vizthum (Pleased Youth/Bad Karma/Lunar Bear Ensemble)
67. Mick LoMauro (Flatus/Frankie Goes To Dollywood)
66. Jim Foster (Adrenalin O.D./Electric Frankenstein)
65. Myke Hideous (The Empire Hideous/Misfits/Spysociety99/Solo)
64. Dave Scott Schwartzman (Adrenalin O.D./Pleased Youth/Lucy's Trance)
63. Dan Canzonieri (Electric Frankenstein/Shadow Project/Empire Hideous)
62. Diane Kamikaze (WFMU/Children In Adult Jails/Rockers For Life)
61. Larry Mezzacca (Niblick Henbane/M-60)
60. Mike Fintzy (Iron Duke/Broken Heroes/The Cement Shoes)
59. Jim Wilson (Rollins Band/Mother Superior/Motor Sister/Daniel Lanois)
58. Bob Bert (Pussy Galore/Sonic Youth/Lydia Lunch/Bewitched/Solo)
57. David Humphrey (PiL/Sparks/Mike Oldfield/Solo)
56. The History of THE PIPELINE (Newark, NJ) with Emilio – Part 2
55. Lenny Sblendorio (Bedlam/Hearse/Buy Our Records)
54. Rob Kabula (Agnostic Front/Cause For Alarm) and A.G. of Dead Blow Hammer
53. Jersey Pete (Broken Heroes/Vibram 94)
52. Scott Wilkins (Verbal Abuse/Electric Frankenstein/Infamous Stiffs)
51. Paul Richard (Adrenalin O.D./The Kowalskis/Sux/Fear Gods)
50. Mike Peters (The Alarm)
49. Steve Kilbey (The Church)
48. The History of The Pipeline (Newark, NJ) with Emilio – Part 1
47. Jason Shapiro (Redd Kross/Verbal Abuse/Celebrity Skin)
46. Martin Bowes (Attrition/Pigface)
45. Pete “Joyless” Jones (PiL/Brian Brain/Department S/Solo)
44. Rikk Agnew (Christian Death/Symbolism/The Adolescents/Solo)
43. Eric McWhorter (Modiviccan/Project .44/W.O.R.M/Pigface)
42. Jack Steeples (Adrenalin O.D./Fear Gods/Mental Decay)
41. KAV (Blitz Vega/Happy Mondays/Solo)
40. Courtney Taylor-Taylor (The Dandy Warhols)
39. Gaelynn Lea (Solo/Pigface/The Murder of Crows)
38. Bruce Duff (Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs/ADZ/45 Grave/Twisted Roots)
37. Tim Miller (Blanks 77/Broken Heroes)
36. Becky Wreck (Lunachicks/Teknofear/La Muerte/Witch Rose)
35. Meg Lee Chin (Pigface/Teknofear/Crunch/Solo)
34. Mark McKay (Slapshot/The Long Wait)
33. Willie “Loco” Alexander
32. Jesse Hunt (Cyanotic/Pigface/Hunt Hent Hawk)
31. Jack Russell (Jack Russell’s Great White)
30. Naomi Yang (Galaxie 500/Damon & Naomi)
29. Frank Verga (Impulse Control Disorder)
28. Larry Kelley (Kilslug/Groinoids/Ointment/Up Your Bucket)
27. Hugo Burnham (Gang of Four)
26. John Steele (Voice Of Doom/Electric Frankenstein)
25. Rob Moss (Government Issue/Artificial Peace/Solo)
24. Mike Reidy (W.O.R.M/Pigface/TR8)
23. Tommy Koprowski (Mourning Noise/Bedlam/Sux/Mental Decay)
22. Charles Levi (Thrill Kill Kult/Pigface/The Urban Soundtrack)
21. Gitane DeMone and Paul Roessler
20. Chris Haskett (Rollins Band/Pigface/Solo)
19. Bellhead
18. Craig Gray (Lazy Giants/Toiling Midgets/Negative Trend)
17. Roger Ebner (Pigface/Bile/Solo)
16. Tony Marsico (Cruzados/The Plugz/Martini Kings/Solo)
15. Steve Silver (Author/Tour Manager: Ministry/Killing Joke/Pigface)
14. Tristan D’Graves (Incendiary Device/Sunchild/The Undead)
13. Loren Molinare (The Dogs/Little Caesar/Cruzados/Slamdinistas)
12. Martin King (Pigface/Test Dept/Dogtablet)
11. IGAF sequoia
10. Steve Zing (Danzig/Mourning Noise/Samhain/Blak29)
09. Matt Schultz (Pigface/Lab Report/The Division)
08. Richard Duguay (Personality Crisis/Duff McKagan/Solo)
07. Drew Stone (Musician-Filmmaker-Author: Incendiary Device/NYHC Chronicles)
06. Frank Meyer (Director: “Freestyle 101: Hip-Hop History”)
05. Greg Kuehn (T.S.O.L.)
04. Jack Grisham (T.S.O.L./Tender Fury)
03. Michael Abdow (Fates Warning/Ray Alder/Solo)
02. Fred Schreck (The Ancients)
01. The Viking (Warkings)



EMAIL JOEL at gaustenbooks@gmail.com


Thursday, July 18, 2024

Interview with CHIP Z'NUFF (ENUFF Z'NUFF)

Author/journalist Joel Gausten talks with Chip Z’Nuff about the current status of Enuff Z’Nuff, playing in Missing Persons and Adler’s Appetite, his friendship with singer Jack Russell (Jack Russell's Great White), performing and recording with the late Jim Ellison of Material Issue, and more.

Links in the Video Description 




EMAIL JOEL at gaustenbooks@gmail.com


Wednesday, August 16, 2023

Animals with Human Intelligence: Revisiting Enuff Z'Nuff's Overlooked Masterpiece





Who was Rolling Stone’s “Hot Band of 1991”?


If you guessed Nirvana, you’re wrong. Pearl Jam? Not even close.


When the magazine published its annual “Hot” issue on May 16 of that year—four months and eight days prior to the release of a little album called Nevermind— it bestowed its high honor upon Enuff Z’Nuff, a band that had already received weeks’ worth of critical acclaim for its second album, Strength.


Formed in Illinois in 1984 and initially heard by the masses via a self-titled 1989 album on ATCO Records, Enuff Z’Nuff—fronted by the duo of singer/guitarist Donnie Vie and bassist Chip Z’ Nuff—quickly became MTV darlings via a pair of bulletproof singles (“New Thing” and “Fly High Michelle”) that were accompanied by suitably glammy videos. (This was still the era of Aquanet-spraying dudes in lipstick, after all). Sure, the fellas were kitschy and fun, but the over-the-top image that accompanied their debut album often overshadowed the fact that Chip and Donnie were extraordinary Power Pop songwriters who could give Squeeze’s Difford and Tilbrook a run for their money. (Image “Fly High Michelle” without the outlandish video and the glossy production of its era. I rest my case.)


Strength was Enuff Z’Nuff’s opportunity to shake off its “Glam” tag and be considered for its actual songs—and for a short time, the move had paid off. Arguably the best entry in the group’s lengthy discography, Strength was a Beatles-meets-Badfinger-via-Bon Jovi tour de force that should be one of the albums readily on top of music lovers’ minds today when they think back to the year that spawned it. Of course, the music industry had changed considerably by the end of ’91, and Enuff Z’ Nuff's it-thing spotlight had already started to fade.  


Of course, nobody in the Enuff Z’Nuff camp knew that at the time. The band began recording what would become 1993’s Animals with Human Intelligence with the support if its new label, Arista. The band also had powerhouse manager Herbie Herbert—best known as the man who guided Journey toward stadium-level success—in tow. Famed Def Leppard engineer Nigel Green signed on to mix the record, and Arista head Clive Davis brought in Richie Zito—who had produced hits for Heart, Cheap Trick, and Poison—to put his finishing touch on the proceedings after the band had already completed a good chunk of the album on its own at the Chicago Recording Company. Hell, even the likes of Dweezil Zappa, Steve Stevens, Cinderella, Stevie Salas, Micki Free, and Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen would stop by the sessions to check out how things were going.


The above scenario was just too perfect for the world of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Naturally, it didn’t take long for things to go sideways.


“Unfortunately, Richie didn’t show up for some of those sessions because he was robbed at his house one night, kidnapped, and thrown into the trunk of his car with his wife! A neighbor heard him banging on it!” Chip recalls. “Obviously, it ruffled his feathers, but he ended up coming to do some stuff [with us] over at One on One Studios and A&M Studios in Los Angeles. We did overdubs [with him], but the guitar was too loud for Richie to handle."


To make matters worse, long-serving drummer Vik Foxx bailed at the end of the album’s sessions to take a gig with then-former Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil. Chip, Donnie, and guitarist Derek Frigo soldiered on with new timekeeper Ricky Parent.


Despite these bumps in the road, Enuff Z’Nuff ended up with another fantastic album.


“Clive chose the songs, and we provided him with strong material. Sonically, Animals with Human Intelligence is probably one of the strongest records we’ve ever recorded.”


Right from the first notes of album opener “Superstitious,” it’s difficult to disagree with Chip’s appraisal of the 12-song collection. Boasting hooks for days and expertly produced to power up its every note, Animals with Human Intelligence was a perfect album for Rock radio in 1993. “Black Rain,” “Master of Pain,” and “Bring It on Home” sat very comfortably next to Soundgarden or Stone Temple Pilots, while the record’s best number, “Mary Anne Lost Her Baby,” flawlessly married the sonic grit of the early ’90s with the ’80s glaze that had once made Enuff Z’ Nuff shine. Hell, even the album’s big power ballad, “Right By Your Side” —a track that stays in your head for days upon first listen—had enough balls to it to overcome any eye-rolls from the Siamese Dream crowd.*  


Not surprisingly, expectations within the Enuff Z’Nuff camp were high. Unfortunately, excitement over the album’s potential chart performance was short-lived.


“It was a solid record; we could tell we had something special,” Chip says. “But at the time it came out, there was a changing of the guard in the music business. You had Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Nirvana—all that stuff was coming in. Bands that were considered colorful and flamboyant were pushed to the side for a while—there was a whole new musical trend that was happening.”


Obviously, Enuff Z’ Nuff wasn’t the only band affected by the shift. Despite delivering one of their heaviest albums ever with 1993’s Revenge, the members of KISS quickly found themselves playing to half-empty arenas. Released the same year, Warrant’s decidedly unglamorous Dog Eat Dog got the era’s sound right but failed to connect with record buyers. The following year, a Vince Neil-less Mötley Crüe released a self-titled album that successfully captured the vibe of the times but ultimately stiffed in the marketplace. The party was over.


As great as it was, Animals with Human Intelligence didn’t stand a chance. For one thing, the album cover shot of Donnie, Chip, and Derek looked like a relic from a discarded era. Looking back now, it seems insane to assume that anyone in 1993 outside of the group’s devoted fanbase would have given the thing a listen. Before long, Enuff Z’Nuff would learn exactly how much the world had changed.


On the first night of the tour in support of the album, the band’s bus hit another car while pulling out of a venue in Iowa. Things got worse from there.


“Instead of playing to a jam-packed 800-seat venue, there would be 300 people there,” Chip reveals. “We were following around a band called Korn, and all their venues were 1,000-seaters. We just knew we were in big trouble. We sold about 250,000 copies of the album. Back then, that was considered a failure. We continued to move forward. We toured for a whole year on that record, and we went into considerable debt.”


Enuff Z’Nuff’s relationship with Arista didn’t fare much better. During the band’s showcase at the Roxy in Los Angeles for Davis and his constituents, Donnie stuck a dozen red roses between Davis’ legs as he introduced his new signees on stage—perhaps not the best way to endear yourself to a new boss.


To be fair, Animals with Human Intelligence did get a decent promotional push. The band performed “Superstitious” on Late Night with David Letterman, and longtime friend and fan Howard Stern still hyped the band on his airwaves. But it was too late.


As the dust settled, Herbert suggested that it was time for the band to part ways with Arista. Chip agreed.


“Herbie told us that we had confused motion with progress. In hindsight, I can see how Arista had trouble with Rock bands—Clive was used to signing bands that had Pop hits. We found ourselves in a position where we had to go somewhere else. We thought perhaps we’d go the indie label route.


“A lot of bands went away or took a break, but we continued to work and put out records,” he adds. “We were hungry, and we didn’t want to stop. We knew we had good music and songs and made solid records. It was just a matter of finding an audience that would listen to us.”


Fortunately, that’s exactly what Enuff Z’Nuff did. Although the crowds are smaller now than they were in the band’s ATCO heyday, Chip (who now fronts the band on vocals in addition to playing bass following Donnie’s departure a decade ago) has consistently released stellar music for the past 30 years—including five Enuff Z’Nuff albums and a solo release (Perfectly Imperfect) from 2016 to 2022 alone.


Sadly, Derek passed away in 2004, followed by Ricky three years later.


“Right By the Side” had some legs in the ensuing years. The song was covered with tremendous Pop aplomb by the Norwegian group The Tuesdays in 1995. Fourteen years later, Chicago-based rapper Malik Yusef—with Kanye West and Destiny Child’s Michelle Williams in tow—gave it the Hip-Hop treatment on his G.O.O.D. Morning, G.O.O.D. Night album.


In celebration of its 30th anniversary, Animals with Human Intelligence will receive a vinyl, digital, and CD re-release** by Deadline Music on September 29.


The cover of the upcoming reissue of Animals with Human Intelligence on Deadline Music. 


Will this upcoming reissue set the world on fire in 2023? Probably not. Should the album get some long-overdue attention and a belated acknowledgment of its greatness? Absolutely.


As far as this writer’s concerned, an Enuff Z’ Nuff gig at some shithole on a Thursday night is infinitely more rewarding than a sold-out Saturday night arena show by an artist with less talent and feeling. No question.


If you’re my age, you likely look back at the Hair Metal years with great fondness. You also likely know that a lot of that stuff was disposable garbage. But not Chip and Donnie circa 1993. If you give Animals with Human Intelligence a listen today, you’ll quickly realize that our generation’s Lennon and McCartney were hiding in plain sight all along.


*Although Enuff Z’Nuff may not have appealed to most of The Smashing Pumpkins’ fanbase, the same certainly couldn’t be said for the band’s frontman, Billy Corgan—a longtime fan who guested on Enuff Z’ Nuff’s 1999 album, Paraphernalia.


** “Fingertips,” a track that appeared on the Japanese issue of the original album release, is said to be included on the upcoming reissue.


More on Enuff Z’Nuff on This Site


Enuff Z’Nuff Tour Dates


Enuff Z’Nuff Website

 



EMAIL JOEL at gaustenbooks@gmail.com


Saturday, July 22, 2023

“Sin” and Survival: Inside Enuff Z’Nuff's Latest Glam Slam



Photo courtesy of www.enuffznuff.com


A phone call with Enuff Z’Nuff co-founder/bassist/vocalist Chip Z’Nuff is perfect for summertime. Why? Because the whole damn thing feels like a rollercoaster.


Like every conversation I’ve had with the dude over the years, I held on tight during our latest chat as the Hard Rock veteran took me on a sprawling journey fueled by the kind of enthusiasm I’d typically expect from a teenager who had just recorded his first garage demo. Thirty-four years after his band’s eponymous debut album delivered “New Thing” and “Fly High Michelle” and put his band on the map, Chip’s still hitting everything he does at 100 miles per hour.


As always, he’s got a lot going on. Currently, Enuff Z’Nuff—Chip, guitarist Tory Stoffregen, drummer Daniel Benjamin Hill, and new guitarist Jason Camino (formerly of Nelson)—is on the road with the second installment of its Glam Slam Metal Tour, which launched in 2022 with Pretty Boy Floyd and The Midnight Devils in tow. This time around, the band is joined by British Rock veterans The Quireboys (for whom Z’Nuff is filling in on bass on this tour) and Boston-based band Bad Marriage, featuring former Tesla guitarist Tommy Skeoch.


With everyone and their mothers on tour these days—and with average ticket prices more expensive than typical monthly car payments—Chip and company are beating the competition by offering an affordable night of solid music. 


“Instead of people paying $100, $200, or $500 for a ticket, they can come out for $30 and see three great bands that have a long legacy of great Rock songs,” he says.




Enuff Z’ Nuff’s current tour follows the November 2022 release of its 17th studio album, Finer Than Sin. Described by Chip as “a potpourri of Rock and Pop,” the 10-song collection is the third Enuff Z’ Nuff record released since the summer of 2020. (Chip, who apparently never sleeps, also released his second solo album, Perfectly Imperfect, in March 2022.) Never one to rest on his laurels, he tells me that the songs on the new album (sans the spirited cover of The Sex Pistols’ “God Save The Queen,” of course) were all written “in five, 10 minutes” at his place in Blue Island, Illinois.


“A lot of songs come to me late at night when it’s quiet and there’s nobody around. I just fiddle around with my old 1962 Danelectro guitar while sitting on the couch and smoking a joint.”


This smoky creative haze yielded another classic release from a band that has never once made a bad album. Check out the album's first single, the outrageously catching "Catastrophe," below.



“[Finer Than Sin] showcases the world through my rose-colored glasses. If you listen to how the lyrics and the songs are put together, it’s basically a synopsis of how I see everything right now […] My inspiration was what’s on the plate for what we’ve got to deal with in society nowadays. I wanted [the album] to be aggressive; I wanted the album to be strong—big guitars, big drums, and fat bass. But most notably, I wanted good storytelling with some nice abstract harmonies and colors.”


“Aggressive” is the best word to describe the album’s most musically left-of-center track, “Lost And Out Of Control.”


“It shows a harder side of the band. The topic of the song is the same way, too. It’s about a guy or a woman who can’t be controlled—a person who lives their life on a shoestring and doesn’t know what to expect next. There’s a reckless abandonment to that song. It might be one of the heaviest ones Enuff Z’ Nuff has ever recorded.”


Chip’s recent music machine also includes a guest appearance on Born To Be Wild, the latest album by singer and film legend Ann-Margret. The bassist duets with her on a cover of Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers’ “Why Do Fools Fall In Love.”


“I got a call from Brian Perera over at Cleopatra Records, who said, ‘We’re doing a record with Ann-Margret.’ I said, ‘Oh, man! I’ve always loved her! She’s such a little Scandinavian goddess—just a wonderful singer and a great dancer.’ He said, ‘Would you like to play bass on it?’ I told him I’d love to. I went down to the studio and played bass on the track. They called me back a couple of weeks later and said, ‘It sounds great. Would you be willing to do a duet with her?’ I said, ‘I’d be honored!’ I wasn’t even sure I could do it, to be honest. But if someone asks you if you could a job, just tell them you’ll do it and then learn it right away and make it happen.”


Other guests on Born To Be Wild include Pete Townsend of The Who, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, and The Fuzztones.


Not surprisingly, Chip will be keeping busy once the current tour wraps up. Work on a new Enuff Z’Nuff studio album is already underway, and the band plans to release a live album (recorded at LA’s legendary Whisky a Go Go) in the not-too-distant future. Not bad for a band that’s scratching at the door of its 40th anniversary. In an industry not known for inspiring longevity, Enuff Z’Nuff—and its sole remaining original member— won’t be throwing in the towel any time soon.


“It’s a blessing from above to still be able to move forward. We believe in the legacy of Enuff Z’Nuff. We’ve done six records in the last six years, and I still think there’s gas in the tank. At the end of the day, we’re a real Rock ‘n’ Roll band that shows up and kicks ass whenever we play. We don’t know when it’ll end or when the last show’s going to be, so we just want to leave an indelible mark wherever we go.”


More on Enuff Z'Nuff on This Site


Enuff Z'Nuff Tour Dates


Enuff Z'Nuff Website

 



EMAIL JOEL at gaustenbooks@gmail.com


Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Why Enuff Z'Nuff Is THE Band to See Live



Photo by Alex Ruffini



It ain’t always easy being one of the best bands in Rock ‘n’ Roll.

As seen in this website’s coverage of Enuff Z’Nuff in recent years (links below), this long-running band is still out there releasing stellar albums decades after their late-’80s commercial heyday. Fronted for nearly a decade now by bassist/singer and sole original member Chip Z’Nuff, the quartet (completed by former Ultravox frontman Tony Fennell on guitar, drummer Daniel Hill and guitarist Tory Stoffregen) recently hit Laconia, NH on the Glam Slam Metal Jam Tour with Pretty Boy Floyd and The Midnight Devils. Thirty years ago, Enuff Z’ Nuff was on Arista Records and playing on Late Night with David Letterman. Now, the fellas are signed to an indie label in Italy and just played in the Granite State for about 30 people on a rainy (and surprisingly cold) June night. Now, there are plenty of still-running bands from the ’80s Glam Metal scene whose lack of substance deserves such a cruel fate, but Enuff Z’Nuff isn’t one of them.

While some releases in the band’s 20-plus album discography are stronger than others, these guys – regardless of the lineup – have never once written a bad song. And these aren’t just disposable Glam/Hair Metal songs, folks. At its best, Enuff Z’Nuff gives its Illinois brethren Cheap Trick a run for its money. Take a close listen to 1991’s Strength, a masterclass in Powerpop songwriting and an album that stands up to – and, in terms of quality, often eclipses – the most celebrated records of the decade. (There’s a reason why Rolling Stone named Enuff Z’Nuff “The Hot Band of 1991.”) Hell, if Nirvana hadn’t dropped Nevermind about six month after Strength’s release, there’s a very strong chance Enuff Z’Nuff would have ended up filling arenas instead of playing mostly to the bar staff in Nowhere, New England in 2022. Enuff Z’Nuff’s lack of long-lasting mainstream success is one of the biggest crimes in music history.

Fortunately, the small crowd size didn’t seem to matter in the slightest to Chip and Co., who delivered a flawless headline set that leaned heavily on Strength, 1989’s Enuff Z’Nuff and last year’s Beatles tribute album Hardrock Night with a couple of deep cuts (including “The Love Train” off 1993’s Animals with Human Intelligence) thrown in for good measure. Musically, the band was in top form. (Full marks to Hill, whose solid, meat-and-potatoes drumming kept the energy flowing throughout the set. Any band would be lucky to have him.)

Image has always been a blessing and a curse for Enuff Z’Nuff. The dayglo Glam of the classic video for 1989’s “New Thing” earned the group plenty of attention, but it also stuck the guys in time. Unfortunately, most music fans listen with their eyes first, which has made everything this band has done in the past 30-plus years an uphill climb. Interestingly, today’s Enuff Z’Nuff looks almost nothing like it did way back in the ’80s. Sure, Chip still dons the big sunglasses and dresses like an acid trip in corporeal form (and I love him for that!), but the rest of the band’s look is decidedly low-key. If anything, they look like any other bunch of nondescript musicians you’d find at a local club on a Saturday night – and this is actually a great thing. With the pomp and poses stripped away, the current incarnation of Enuff Z’Nuff has only the quality of its material to win over a crowd – and that is and has always been more than (ahem) enough.

Do yourself a favor and see this band live at your earliest opportunity. This is as real as music gets.


More on Chip Z'Nuff/Enuff Z'Nuff on This Site:










EMAIL JOEL at gaustenbooks@gmail.com