Krokus circles the wagons and delivers the goods with "Hoodoo"

Krokus, Hoodoo
(SIN/Sony Music)
By Thom Copher

Every time that a band, especially one whom I dig, decides to regroup or reform the “classic” lineup (or what ever it’s called this week), I enter the listening room with open ears as well as a mild bit of speculation. Foremost, the “does the band still have the right stuff” factor comes into play. After all, there is nothing more disheartening than witnessing a favorite outfit simply issuing an album that goes through the motions, thus rendering said outfit to little more than a nostalgia act.

The legendary Swiss rockin’ juggernaut Krokus has laid to rest any of my reservations with its latest opus, Hoodoo. The buzz surrounding the re-mobilization of the One Vice at a Time-era personnel has been huge and the new album more than lives up to the hype. Hoodoo has, in fact, achieved the difficult task of preserving the true Krokus vibe while sounding fresh and vibrant against the present-day hard-rock landscape – in short, it has brought the past into the present.

From the opening riffage of “Drive It In,” the band makes no bones about cementing its classic pub-rock boogie. Heavy hitters “Rock N’ Roll Handshake,” “Too Hot,” “In My Blood,” and “Firestar” lay credence to the claim that Hoodoo could easily have been the follow-up to ‘83’s monster Headhunter album.

That perspective observed, there are striking similarities between Hoodoo and The Blitz (Headhunter’s 1984 successor), namely the tight, no-frills production (courtesy of bassist Chris Von Rohr) and slick engineering; the difference here is that Hoodoo is a steamroller which never loses its momentum. “Hoodoo Woman” (the album’s first single) has a moody bayou aura which exemplifies a maturation (if I may use such a term in the presence of seasoned rockers) while “Born to be Wild” shows a crafty veteran twist on an old standard. “Ride Into the Sun” could easily be mistaken for the twin of “Screaming in the Night” and firmly puts the “power” in “power-ballad” – definitely no cheese here!

The musicianship on Hoodoo is exactly what one should expect from master veteran rockers. Guitarists Fernando Von Arb and Mark “Koki” Kohler interweave their fretwork in much the same vein of fellow boogie titans, AC/DC’s Angus and Malcolm Young – they understand the importance of the groove, never overplaying or trying to shred for gratuitous reasons. Freddy Steady, evidenced here as highly under-rated from behind the drum kit, lays down a foundation which he and bassist Von Rohr pave for their mates. And vocalist Marc Storace… he ain’t called “The Voice” for nothin’!

Consider this with the fact that Krokus has been a revolving door of players since the mid-80s. Nine studio albums featuring various performers have appeared since the One Vice days; throw in a couple of live sets and compilations… there’s been no shortage of output under the band’s banner. Hoodoo proves that time does heal personal differences and that the brotherhood-bond of music can, years after the fact, bring out the best from within the best.

Orchestrating from the production chair, Von Rohr has expertly crafted the structural simplicity of good, meaty rock and roll into that which is (thus far) my frontrunner for rock album of the year. The Krokus players have obviously approached Hoodoo as a labor of love for their craft with the focus clearly on their strengths – there are no hints of trend-following or trying to sound like The Belle of the Headbanger’s Ball.

Hoodoo’s grooves (or digital imprints, as it were) are straight-forward and infectious. The 28-year gap between One Vice and Hoodoo hasn’t handicapped this fab-five one iota – the Swiss masters are simply gettin’ down on the gettin’ down… and the gettin’ is all good.