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KILLER DWARFS

Score: 5 out of 5 Battle-Axes (more about rating system)

KiLLeR DwaRfs are one of my favorite hard rock acts to come out of the 80s. They were the poster-children for fun music, and if you ever saw their videos for "Keep That Spirit Alive" or "Stand Tall" you know what I'm talking about. Musically, Killer Dwarfs stood out from the pack too, as their sound was totally different than the Poison or Bon Jovi clones that existed in the latter part of the 80s. The band released five albums before calling it a day in 1995, succumbing to the power of the grunge movement. Lead vocalist Russ 'Dwarf' Graham launched KillerDwarfs.com in 1999, and its success, plus the current public interest 80s reunions, sparked the band to reform in 2001. Reunion Of Scribes - Live 2001 documents their reunion show in Toronto, Canada. The live cd sports thirteen favorites pulled from all the band's albums except the self-titled debut. The powerful "Dirty Weapons" opens up the show, and as soon as Russ opens his mouth it's clear that his voice is just as good as it was during the 80s. He can still hit all the high notes, and there are a whole lot in the Dwarfs' music. Fans of Dirty Weapons (1990) will be pleased to see that the band recognizes it as their best album, and delivers six of its songs during this live set. Surprisingly, Stand Tall (1986), the album that brought the band its initial attention, doesn't get as much time, with only the amazing title track, "Keep That Spirit Alive," and "Believe In Me" making it to the stage. Material from Big Deal (1988), gets just as much play, but I'm surprised that the guys chose so many tracks ("I'm Alive," "Startin' To Shine," and "Union Of Pride") from this recording because it didn't live up to the standard set by Stand Tall. However, all these songs sound better live than they did on Big Deal, probably because the studio versions were overproduced. Not too surprisingly, only "Hard Luck Town" was taken from Method To The Madness (1992), an album that was overlooked in the USA, but admittedly was not up to the level of its predecessor, Dirty Weapons. Overall, this is an energetic live offering that is a must-have for any Dwarfs fan or fan of 80s hard rock. The only negative that I can find is that the backing vocals seem to be hollow and not up-front in the recording in a few spots. It's a minor point, but it is one that you might notice. Aside from that, the sound is very good, and will inspire you to pull out the rest of their catalog. US fans should keep their eye out for the band, as they are going to be doing a few dates here in September 2003. (Chris Dugan)

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