The Wildhearts

For a brief spell during the early 21st century, the Darkness seemed to have single-handedly brought back the gloriously stupid, guilty pleasure of anthemic metal. But there had been other acts who modeled their sound after the same arena rock acts that Justin and Dan Hawkins brothers grew up on, namely fellow British rockers the Wildhearts. Although they never hit it big Stateside as they had in their homeland, the Wildhearts have toured and released albums consistently since the early '90s, and the group issued their fourth live album overall (if you count a Japanese import) in 2006, Geordie in Wonderland. The set does a fine job of capturing the group's powerful yet sleazy hard rock, as evidenced by the Metallica-meets-Guns N' Roses "Greeting from Shitsville" and the Motörhead-esque "Suckerpunch," while "Sick of Drugs" wouldn't sound out of place on a Darkness record. As longtime Wildhearts fans will attest, the group is best experienced on a concert stage, and Geordie in Wonderland doesn't disappoint. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide