Slave to the Grind

Skid Row were a great band that came out at the wrong place at the wrong time.The band had the indignity of becoming big just as the era of hair metal was coming to an end and grunge was about to explode. Many hair metal bands, like Slaughter, Poison, Great White and Faster Pussycat, deserved to be wiped off the face of the world but many others, like Skid Row, Cinderella, Motley Crue and Tesla, did not deserve to be lumped into one grotesque category. Slave to the Grind, which came out in 1991, the same year Nevermind was released, was living proof that there was more Skid Row than the hair.Anyone who thinks of Skid Row as a pedestrian hair metal band clearly did not listen to this album. The entire record, from top to bottom, is loud, raw, pummeling and savage to the core, a complete contrast from the glittery, polished sound of Bon Jovi, Whitesnake and even Skid Row's self-titled debut album. Slave gets off to a fiery start with a pummeling triple threat: the vicious opener "Monkey Business", adrenaline-rushed title track and rollicking "Threat". Like a cross between Aerosmith, Guns N' Roses and Pantera, these songs are a ferocious assault on the senses and they set the mood for the entire album: "Livin' on a Chain Gang", "Riot Act" and "Mudkicker" are legitimate ass-kickers with a political bite and ballads like "Quicksand Jesus", "In a Darkened Room" and the spine-tingling "Wasted Time" have more character and grit than any of the so-called power ballads from that era. At this point, Skid Row had come a long way from singing songs about remembrance, spending 18 and life in prison and youths going wild.That the album hit #1 at the Billboard charts was no accident: fans were craving for rock bands that were authentic and raw in their content, not pristine and glossy in their form. Skid Row, at least temporarily, fulfilled those wishes and the success of Slave to the Grind paved the way for many brilliant metal albums going #1 like Metallica's Metallica (1991), Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion I and II (1991) and Pantera's Far Beyond Driven (1994). When all was said and done, it seemed like Skid Row were set to become one of the biggest rock bands of the 1990's.Then grunge came along and Skid Row's success was forever derailed. They made one more album afterwards but the writing was on the wall. It's a crying shame because Skid Row were a league above the poodle haired deadbeats who placed their emphasis on their looks over musicianship. Slave to the Grind provides evidence that Skid Row were a great band in the making. It also serves as a sad reminder of just what Skid Row could have achieved hit if grunge didn't happen.Strongly recommended.

Someone once described Skid Row's sound as "hungry." There's not a better word in the English language for their sophomore album. Harder and possessing more bite than other hair metal albums (including Skid Row's first album), Slave To The Grind combines a razor sharp edge that echoes of the best of Guns N' Roses with the Row's own stellar sense of melody. The entire album flat out rocks, and rocks hard, but it's the delicate touches than make it a superior effort to their first outing. The desperation and overwhelming sadness in lead singer's Sebastian Bach's voice in In A Darkened Room, the instrumental bridge in Psycho Love which just seems to stop time before exploding back outwards, the sheer ferocity of Get The F!ck Out, all combine to create an album that's not easily forgotten. I'll admit it took me a bit of time to warm up to Slave To The Ground, as I guess I came in expecting lighter hair metal like Steelheart and Def Leppard. But once I listened to it through, I realized just how damn good a job Skid Row did with this CD. The drum build-ups, the pitch perfect guitar solos, and Bach's vocals which are belted out with such aggression that it's a miracle the man remembered to breathe, all of this is what makes Slave To The Grind worth a serious listen. It's not as immediately accessible as Def Leppard or Motley Crue, but I have the feeling that for that very reason, Skid Row's second album is infinitely more durable.

I am going to show my age here but I knew I had this already from skid row and as I went looking for it I remembered that I am extremely old and had it on a cassette. This CD is just incredible. Everything about it is good. All the songs are good and Sebastian's voice is like no other. This CD By Skid Row is well worth the purchase. I highly recommend it.

The case was extremely rough however the CD was in great shape.

A little harder than the debut. Very good fun to work out to.

What can I say...METAL 🤘

When is Skid Row‘s best Album

very good