Album Reviews

Album Reviews: Whatever Gets You Off by The Last Vegas

The glitz and glam of LA’s Sunset Boulevard has been effectively bottled by The Last Vegas. While the quintet may originally hail from Chicago, Whatever Gets You Off could believably been raised amid the seedy underbelly of Los Angeles’ 1980s rock scene. Whatever Gets You Off sweats booze and good times from every riff and nasally, W. Axl Rose-influenced vocal. The Last Vegas aren’t shy about their AC/DC worship, either, as the opening title track comes on like gangbusters; albeit, gangbusters that studied at the Johnson/Scott/Young school of hard rock.

Whatever Gets You Off amalgamates glam metal, hard rock and punk rock into a combustible cocktail. The Last Vegas aren’t doing anything original, but they are most certainly culling inspiration from the spandex and Aqua Net heyday. It’s nostalgic without being a complete and total throwback; it’s sexy without being cheesy, which is notoriously difficult to pull off in this genre. Did we mention that we love vocalist Chad Cherry’s moniker?

Cultural leanings aside, guitarists Adam Arling and Johnny Wator rip and snort with solos and shredding. These two are the backbone of Whatever Gets You Off. Like any self-respecting glam-flecked, hard rock album, there’s a ballad, “Apologize,” which is tucked smack dab in the middle of the hedonistic swagger of “High Class Trash,” “Loose Lips” and “Cherry Red.” You don’t need to be perennially stuck in the 1980s to appreciate The Last Vegas. All that’s required is a love for an era gone by and an ability to accept an ever-so-slightly, modernized take offered up by a new band.

— Amy Sciarretto
05.14.09