DIZZY MIZZ LIZZY — Forward in Reverse (review)

DIZZY MIZZ LIZZY — Forward in Reverse album cover

Album · 2016 · Hard Rock

5/5 · 2016-07-07
Time Signature

Dizzified in Paradise...

Genre: alternative rock / hard rock

One of the biggest hard rock names in Denmark in the 1990s, Dizzy Mizz Lizzy broke up in 1998 after only two albums in the form of the critically acclaimed "Dizzy Mizz Lizzy" and "Rotator". While rich in talent, the band members were too young to handle the fame and pressure that came along with the success and, while main songwriter Tim Christensen continued in the music business as a solo artist, the drummer Søren Friis and the bassist Martin Nielsen went on to more mundane jobs. The band briefly reformed in 2010 to play a major string of shows. Fast forward four years, and the band is reformed yet again, but this time in a more permanent form: this time they were working on new material which amounted to a full-length album "Forward in Reverse" which was released earlier this year.

So, is it any good or is it just a rehash of their golden age albums?

Well, in a way it is a rehash in the sense that Dizzy Mizz Lizzy return to the style for which they were known in the 1990s - that is melodic hard rock that combines influences from the alternative rock/metal of the 1990s and from The Beatles. The album title 'Forward in Reverse' is likely to be a reference to the album's retrospective outlook. But is this looking back to the past a bad thing? Fuck no! This album is awesome! To be honest, I found Tim Christensen's solo output a tad too boring for my taste, so hearing new material from Dizzy Mizz Lizzy which has the same energy and finesse as the two albums they released in the 1990s is great. Also, in all fairness, which the style on the album is decidedly retrospective, the trio does bring new things to the table.

The opening track is an instrumental in the form of the considerably heavy 'Phlying Pharao' which, not surprisingly, has a slight Middle Eastern feel to it and which, in my opinion is a bona fide heavy metal track. This is followed by the title track, which is an uptempo yet melodic hard rocker that emanates hard rock energy wrapped in Dizzy-esque sophistication. The next track 'Terrified in Paradise' combines a heavy, almost punky verse with a groovy and catchy - and memorable - chorus and features a very Dizzy-esque bridge accompanied by a groovy short instrumental section. 'Brainless' stays in groovy territory, as it evolves around a heavy main riff (reportedly originally written as a parody on death metal before the trio softened it up considerably) and a very melodic chorus. A ballad more in the vein of Christensen's solo material, 'Something so Familiar' is a softie, but it's pretty good and makes for a nice breather between the heavy rockers 'Brainless' and 'Love at Second Sight'. As with the other tracks on the album, 'Love at Second Sight' features a catchy sing-along chorus. Combining a melodic verse with a heavier chorus, 'Made to Believe' is yet another track that zeroes right in on what made the two first Dizzy albums so great. 'Frey' is a mellow acoustic instrumental, which gives the listener a chance to rest before the boogie-inspired groove-fest that is 'Mindgasm' - antoher instrumental - kicks in. 'Mindgasm' is followed by another uptempo rocker in the form of 'Fly bove the Radar'. The penultimate track is 'I Would If I Could But I Can't' and, while it is characterized by the trio's trademark melodic sensibilities, it is perhaps the band's heaviest track, as it builds on a groovy 90s alternative metal-inspired riff. The album concludes with another fine ballad entitled 'Say It To Me Anyway'.

The songwriting and musicianship are both top notch and, while Tim Christensen has definitely matured as a songwriter, the songs on this album have the same youthful character to them as the songs on "Dizzy Mizz Lizzy" and "Rotator". Of interest to metalheads is the fact that legendary metal producer and mastermind behind Invocator, Jacob Hansen, has worked on the production of this album and has been very successful in capturing the same twangy sound and overall production value that characterized the band's two 90s albums.

While there are metal elements on the album, "Forward in Reverse" is not a metal album. It is a bona fide hard rock album, though, that homes right in on the unique style of rock music with which Dizzy Mizz Lizzy laid Denmark, Japan, and parts of Germany to waste in the 1990s. To be honest, listening to this album, it's hard to believe that there's a 20-year gap between it and 1996's "Rotator". Fans of Dizzy Mizz Lizzy's first two albums are bound to enjoy this one, and - if you are into melodic hard rock generally - you should definitely give this album a listen.