Zoetrope ‎"A Life Of Crime" CD

- Italian pressing.
- According to drummer Barry Stern & guitarist Ken Black, Louis Svitek did not play on this recording despite being pictured on the back cover as its guitarist, and both have verified Ken Black actually played guitar on the disc alongside Kevin Michael.

An outstanding debut is not only a good launching pad for the further career. As always, there are two sides of the coin. To meet again the high standard that you have set yourself also marks a burden. Zoetrope´s first album was such a debut so that the band was challenged to create a more than just good second full-length. Fortunately, the band proved its ability to make the right decisions even when working under pressure. The guys did not make a radical change of direction. As a result, "A Life of Crime" sounded (almost) as fantastic as their first album. The self-confident four-piece presented itself in a more matured way without denying its roots. The band did not speak of "Hardcore Street Metal" any longer, but its sound was still metallic and the lyrics dealt with down-to-earth topics one more time.
The album did not only shine with its highlights. Of course, the depressing "NASA" was excellent. Its lyrics thematized the tragic explosion of the "Challenger" that happened on 28 January 1986 in a very worthy manner. The brilliant riffing of the mid-tempo number emphasized the shock and the desperation of a whole nation. A lot of bands blabber that their lyrics are sociocritical without noticing that they are just stupid as hell. This tune shows them how it works. It was more difficult to define the climax of the B side. However, "Pickpocket", for example, represented the strengths of the band. Once again, the gripping riffs created a dark aura. Furthermore, short up-tempo parts increased the dynamic of the song significantly.
But "A Life of Crime" also convinced because of the remarkable fact that each and every song achieved a good level. No downers had crept in and Zoetrope avoided any kind of repetitiveness successfully. The band came straight to the point without being afraid of performing a somewhat more commercial number ("The Company Man"). Nevertheless, the four criminals were still full of energy. Fantastic speed eruptions such as the final track called "Hard to Survive" with its original guitar lines proved this in an impressing manner. Generally, it can be said that the work of the men at the six strings marked a major advantage of the album.
With regard to the production, there was nothing to grumble. The fresh sound set the focus on the aggressive guitars as well as on the boozy and raw voice of Barry Stern, the agile lead singer behind the drums. His vocal style lent the necessary credibility to the band. He did not possess the biggest voice volume, but he was authentic. Perhaps the same can be said of the musicianship of the whole band. Its members did not try to score with superfluous antics. They were focused on the songs that they kept relatively simple yet very effective. And it seems that they did not lack of courage.
The design of the full-length was phenomenal. The vinyl had two outer sleeves. One of them appeared in the form of a grid. When being pushed into each other, they created the impression that the band members were landed behind bars. Considering the album´s title, this was exceptionally a pretty nice gimmick. But unfortunately, the here described output was the last inspiring album of the seemingly promising band.

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