Afterburner

1985. Afterburner. The Eliminator takes flight.

Dusty once referred to Eliminator and Afterburner being one album, i.e. Afterburner merely an extension of the former. I think they are quite different. Different goals, different concepts, different sounds.

The effect of Eliminator was hundreds of thousands of new fans, millions. The album eventually went Diamond (10 million sold). It was one of the first albums to be certified with this status. I would surmise Warner Brothers, and perhaps the band to a slightly lesser extent, wanted to capitalize on the wave of success and continue with another giant record. Afterburner was born.

Following a show in London in late November '83 the band returned to the US and set about to try to follow up Eliminator. Luckily there were still some creative and progressive ideas in Billy's mind and songs began to form.

Eliminator featured synthesizers. Many fans cried foul. Afterburner added sequencers to the synthesizers. Many fans bailed out altogether.

A number of top hits came from the album. "Sleeping Bag", "Rough Boy", "Velcro Fly" and "Stages" all hit the top 10. These songs formed the basis of the record. There are lesser quality songs as well. "Can't Stop Rockin'" was a tune originally composed and demoed during the Eliminator recordings, but was deemed too simplistic and was shelved. "Delirious" was a throw away tune from the "Deguello" period, originally a trippy freak out piece. "Woke Up With Wood" is catchy, but ultimately an exercise in guitar practice. "I Got the Message" is perhaps the most keyboard driven and 80's synthesizer induced song the band ever did, sounding unlike anything else in their history. "Dipping Low" is extremely similar to "Gimme All Your Lovin'", too much so. "Planet of Women" is awesome however, and the space out guitar intro reminds the listener of how inventive Billy can be in the studio.

Despite my critique, I love the album. Billy went into the studio knowing exactly what sound he was looking for, and exactly what sound he needed to make to sell more records. The band would not record another album for five years. In my opinion they never fully recovered from Afterburner, and in the years following the album the group lost their identity. Should they make a record to satisfy their '80's fans, to satisfy the fans that were there from day one, or satisfy themselves? Not until 1996's Rhythmeen did the band regain the confidence and swagger to push the envelope and do what they wanted to again. Sadly Rhythmeen did not move copies anywhere near Afterburner.

The 80's truly were the bands heyday, but at what cost. Personally I could not imagine Eliminator and Afterburner not existing, and enjoy the atmosphere and image the songs create. They are extremely different from the 70's version and 90's version of the band, and this stark contrast in music is perhaps unmatched by any other recording artist. Let it be said, when Billy puts his mind to it, he can make and compose any sound/concept/record he wants. When the Rolling Stones and Neil Young were perfecting country rock, what did ZZ do? Tejas of course.