Blue Oyster Cult - Secret Treaties

180-gram vinyl reissue

Back in the days of hard rock and surrounded by fierce competitors with such great names as The Doors, Black Sabbath and the Rolling Stones, a band had to attract attention with far more than histrionic pathos, biker boogie, an adept lead guitarist and a sharp-tongued singer. The band Blue Öyster Cult, founded on Long Island in 1971, possessed all this and much more, relating short scenarios in their lyrics, which conjured up people's imagination.

Rolling Stone magazine enthused that it was like listenin' to Hitchcock and Kubrick swap stories about their wet dreams, and that the group mix aesthetics and ass-kicking rock to such good advantage.

In their third studio album Secret Treaties, BOC reached the pinnacle of their musical evolution with such memorable songs as "Career Of Evil," "Subhuman" and "Astronomy." The lyrics have literary value but are certainly not intended for sensitive souls — the phrases are direct and intentionally drily articulated. The music is as blatant and extroverted as the lyrics: The guitar sound is steely and straightforward, occasionally padded out with a see-sawing Hammond groove, and topped again and again by wonderfully rough string solos that speak the language of hard, merciless and full-bodied rock.

Recording: 1974 by Tim Geelan and Jerry Smith
Production: Murray Krugman and Sandy Pearlman

 

Side 1

Career Of Evil

Subhuman

Dominance And Submission

ME 262

Side 2

Cagey Cretins

Harvester Of Eyes

Flaming Telepaths

Astronomy

Customer Reviews (4.00 Stars) 1 person(s) rated this product.

Speakers Corner vs. BOC posted on 09/29/2014 4 Stars Reviewer: audiofan Like all the other SC vinyl I have purchased, this disc is perfectly quiet & flat. Compared to my near-mint Columbia original, this version has a slight (but noticeable) boost in high-frequency - those with a 'bright' system may find it a bit "hot" - but also reveals slightly more detail. I try to bypass the tone controls in my system; on both the original as well as this reissue, the main thing one notices is the (somewhat) anemic bass, which is apparently true to the master. Overall, I slightly prefer the Columbia original; the overall sound seems smoother with better balance, but let's face it...early '70s hard rock albums will probably never be 'demo' material. If you love BOC and can locate a clean Columbia pressing, then pass on this. Or buy this SC version & turn the treble down a bit. Now how about their debut?

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