Drive, She Said: Pedal To The Metal

Disappointing, he said.

By
( )
published
Drive, She Said Pedal To The Metal album cover

You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.

Drive, She Said were tipped for stardom in the 1980s. But despite tapping the talents of Benny Mardones, Aldo Nova, Fiona Flanagan, Bob Kulick, Kenny Aronoff and future Saraya man Tony Bruno, boardroom changes condemned the duo’s glittering self-titled debut to the folder marked ‘cult classic’.

Since then, activity has been sporadic and results inconsistent, but with keyboard player Mark Mangold rediscovering his mojo at Firefest in 2014, here’s album number five.

Alas its haphazard mix of finely polished pomp-rock gems (Pedal To The Metal, Love Will Win In The End), replica Stones (Said It All) and budget store counterfeits (the ghastly I’m The Nyte, Lost In You) suggests that DSS are unlikely to re-scale the heights of their debut.

Dave Ling
Dave Ling

Dave Ling was a co-founder of Classic Rock magazine. His words have appeared in a variety of music publications, including RAW, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, Prog, Rock Candy, Fireworks and Sounds. Dave’s life was shaped in 1974 through the purchase of a copy of Sweet’s album ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’, along with early gig experiences from Status Quo, Rush, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Yes and Queen. As a lifelong season ticket holder of Crystal Palace FC, he is completely incapable of uttering the word ‘Br***ton’.