The Addictions

CDReviews.com -

Think country music and softer rockin’ indie SXSW bands dominate the Texas music scene? Think again. Austin-based quartet The Addictions is as good as power-rock gets, with explosive guitars and vocals that bring ‘80s rock into full circle. The Addictions sounds as if Chrissy Hines joined Judas Priest, minus the fluffy hair. There’s even a spot for non-fans of the ‘80s Ratt and Poison rock era—the Runaways, the Donnas, Joan Jett, Blondie are also evident on this record. Anyone who wants to rock out, there’s a little something for every kind of rock fan in The Addictions.

The Richards’ duo (Beth and Jason) take turns on vocals, with Beth growling in the fiery “Candy” where it sounds like Bif Naked with a much harder sound. “Downtown” is where Jason takes over with just as much intensity with underlying pop in the mix of distorted heavy guitars. Although this record is meant to be playful and fun, their tight mature punk sound proves that The Addictions are well-seasoned rockers mainly from Quatropaw fame, a local favorite who was known for their lighter pop sound. Through the transformation to The Addictions, it’s unlikely that you’ll hear any of these on the radio, and that’s just what keeps The Addictions much more special. They’re Austin’s best kept secret.

Although most of this album is in-your-face ballsy rock, this album isn’t entirely rock-out-with-your-cock-out kind of music. Songs like “Jaded” and “Wait” provide a more poppy side with smooth male/female vocals and sweeter hooks. But then the album gets right back to business Cheap Trick-style with tunes like “Toys,” “Roller Girl” and “Racecar” (there’s even a bitchin’ guitar solo!).

The Addictions have kept it simple on this record. Irritation of any kind ended up on the record. “Early Mornings” (“I, I, I’m so sick of early mornings yeah!”), “Jaded” (“I can’t get through/Are you shooting fire or are you jaded?”) and “Toys” (“You’re toying with my heart you see/…I want to play with boys/I want to play with toys”) all prove that the messages through their catchy intense sound come in loud and very clear.

Comprised of 11 brief tracks, The Addictions manage to bring the fun back in rock n’ roll and offers a pleasant balance between hair-flailing rock and the brooding/lyrically dense rock. If you’re ready to put your Radiohead and Jimmy Eat World records to rest for a bit, pop in The Addictions for some fun. Instead of heartache and moodiness, it’s sex, drugs and rock n’ roll for the Addictions, just like rock was intended to be. 

- Rachel Mercurio - CDReviews.com

Preying Lizard Music Ezine - Jan 05

Review - The Addictions self titled CD on Electric Factory Records

The Addictions are another Texas based band that helps prove my case that Texas is a boiling pot for great rock music. The band's performance is tight, powerful, punk rock with a pop twist. The vocals are awesome as they alternate female lead and male lead vocals with tight backing vocals. Your mind will go crazy with comparisons to Blondie, Garbage, the Runaways, and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts but you'll ultimately recognize that the Addictions don't copy anyone, they play what comes natural. There are even times when the band sounds like Trex and David Bowie during his Diamond Dogs era. In other words they are difficult to peg so don't even try. Turn your mind off and just listen. I bet you'll dig them.

"Candy" begins this explosive self-titled cd with distorted gutars and the charismatic vocals of Beth Richard. Her vocals are layered perfectly in the mix and her voice is well suited for rock music! Also singing on the cd are guitarists Jason Richard and Christopher Volloy. Speaking of guitars...they are tight and melodic distorted and hook driven. The leads are excellent and rocking! David Warren on bass and drummer Derek Hatley are just as equally talented and tight creating a excellent rhythm section for the rest of the band.

I don't hesitate to recommend the purchase of this cd. It rocks from start to finish. No long corny ballads or made for radio hits. This is the kind of stuff that would make any program director at any rock station drool. It's packed with great tunes for the punk/rock genre. Don't expect any heavy lyrics with answers to life's questions, this is party music made for the fun of it. But do expect great hooks both vocally and musically. It took me about ten listens to really appreciate The Addictions originality but on first listen I knew that they hold their on. Check them out at their website and listen for them on upcoming Pirate Radio shows here at Preying Lizard Music. - Praying Lizard Magazine

This hard rocking band from Austin, Texas and their self-titled CD do just that, rock hard! Energized is the word that best describes The Addictions and their music. Beth and Jason Richards balance out this CD by sharing the role of lead vocalist. They knockout the harmonies without the slightest strain. It is pleasantly refreshing to hear a well-executed guitar solo, and this CD has plenty of them. The CD starts off with the energized song titled Candy. Once the CD had finished I found myself migrating back to “Jaded” (their current single), “Wait”, and “Kiss Me.” I played the song “Kiss Me” again and again just after it had finished. They perform some catchy guitar work on this CD. I enjoyed hearing the drummer (Derek Hatley) stray away from the typical magnets of the set and do some tasty tom work throughout the CD. I hear what I believe is the influence of early punk running deep within the music of The Addictions. This CD is destined to become one of your favorites. Buy it at once!

- Harvey - Twin Dragon Records

SLAM! Party Rock Zine - November 2005
(Translated from Italian)

Band americana al debutto discografico che mette in luce influenze derivanti da gruppi come Cheap Trick, Donnas, Joan Jett e AC/DC. Dieci pezzi registrati ai Wire Recording Studio insieme a Stuart Sullivan (Sublime, the Butthole Surfers, The Meat Puppets) con la particolarità che alla voce si alternano Beth e Jason Richard.

--- American band's debut album that demonstrates influences from groups like Cheap Trick, Donnas, Joan Jett, and AC/DC. 10 tracks recorded at Wire Recording Studio together with Stuart Sullivan (Sublime, the Butthole Surfers, The Meat Puppets) with Beth and Jason alternating at vocals. ---

Fortunatamente il gruppo texano non scopiazza spudoratamente le band sopracitate come spesso capita, ma usa le proprie influenze per creare un suono abbastanza personale con pezzi che variano dal pop punk ad altri più orientati verso un grintoso hard rock.

--- Fortunately the Texas group does not blatantly copy the above named bands as often happens, but it uses its own influences to create a fairly personalized sound with tracks that vary from pop-punk to other more Eastern toward a gritty hard rock. ---

Si parte con DONNAS-iana "Candy" e di seguito uno dei pezzi meglio riusciti del CD e cioè "Emotional" dove iniziano a comparire i segni lasciati dall'ascolto dei dischi prodotti da Nielsen e Zander, stesso discorso che si potrebbe fare per "Racecar", con le chitarre di Volloy e le melodie delle coppia Richard a dettare legge.
Degne di nota anche il pop rock di "Jaded" e le più grintose "Downtown", "Roller Girl" e "Riding On Top", così come la conclusiva "Wait" che, insieme a "Emotional" sono a mio avviso i veri highlights del lavoro.

--- It begins with the Donnas-ish "Candy" followed by one of the best tracks, "Emotional", where we begin see the markings left by listening to discs produced by Nielsen and Zander. Could say the same thing for Racecar, where the Volloy guitar and the Richard duo's melodies rule. Worth note are also the pop rock of Jaded and the more feisty Downtown, Roller Girl, and Riding on Top. As is Wait, which together with Emotional are in my opinion the real highlights of the work. ---

Altro gruppo da segnarsi sull'agenda in attesa di sviluppi futuri.

--- Another group to put in the agenda in expectation of future developments. ---

- ML
- Moreno

Go to our website www.theaddictions.com to see our video now. - Jegar Erickson

Real Rock & More Magazine -

-- WOW! -- That’s a word that is not used too often here, but when we heard the amazing vocals of female singer Beth Richard, we knew we were hearing pure gold. This is alternative rock at it’s best and this is what alternative rock should be! The music is very addicting and the members of the band all come together in a fashion that makes everyone want to hear more and rock! Their self titled debut album is on Electric Factory Records and gives fans a good taste of what the future of alternative music is all about. Be sure and check them out at: www.theaddictions.com.

- Dawn
- Real rock and More Mag

(Wichita, KS weekly)
On Your Feet or On Your Knees, Sprawl/Helvis/Addictions Bill makes for Perfect Saturday Night

If you thought that a bill promising Helvis, The Addictions, and The Sprawl would provide anything less than a brass-knuckled fist in the crotch then you are probably not right in the head. The trio of hot and spicy little numbers took the stage at John Barleycorn's this Saturday last for a little bit of sway and swagger, buzz and bustle and some good ol' scoodily zippity de bop de wah-ha-wah-ha. Let me explain. .....
The Addictions, up from Austin, took the stage next.
The fiery little quintet already had some show goers', um, hearts aflutter when they realized that Addictions vocalist Beth Richards wore boots that stopped a little below her knee caps and shorts that stopped and started much higher. It's a good ploy, but one that's been done — sometimes has disastrous results. For every band it works for there are scoodles of others that are loaded with nothing more than talentless tools plucked straight from Neanderthal camp backing an equally talentless, albeit voluptuous, toolette.
Not the case with the Addicitons.
It takes about three beats of an Addictions song for you to realize that this band doesn't fuck around.
The quintet hit the stage with "Candy," culled from its self-titled debut and proceeded to give a full throttling for the next hour or so, with guitarists Jason Richard and Christopher Volloy (both double on vocals) holding their own with their vocalist's boots and occasionally PG-13 stage moves.
There weren't any missteps in the set that included "Emotional," "Wait" (decidedly not the, uh, familiar White Lion toon) "Jaded" and a bursting reading of Motley Crue's "Live Wire," all of which the bursting-at-the-seams crowd at Chez Barleycorn's ate like long-starved pups being thrown a couple of kibbles from its master.
It's hard to make the case that the Addictions is the second coming of Joan Jett or the Rolling Stones, but the band sure has some catchy songs and delivers an unforgettable (and sweaty) rock 'n' roll show that elevates it beyond the status of mere bar band.
You can next catch the Addictions (rounded out by Derek Hatley on drums and David Warren on bass) at the Port of Wichita on Friday, Sept. 9.

- Jedd Beaudoin
- F5

San Marcos Scene -



CD Review - The Addictions (self-titled)
Brace yourself for this punk-rock explosion. Beth Richard's voice rings in the first track, "Candy," with anything but a sugar-coated ..... The album is a powerful conglomeration of distorted guitars, revved-up and distorted bass lines, driving drums, and a whole lot of almost-yelling. The Addictions will have you hooked by track two. By the end of the album, you might need rehab. They're not at all punk-pop, like so many bands have gone. They're hands-down rough, tough and rockin', and their self-titled album communicates that fact without a doubt. Two lead vocalists - one a woman, the other a man - make the album even more interesting. Both pound away with the lyrics and take the Addictions a step above the rest. The album isn't all distortion and screaming, though - the music is chocked full of unconventional chord changes and riffs that would make any guitarist blush. [Especially "Racecar" - a musical and lyrical palindrome.] Check them out at www.theaddictionsmusic.com (A)
- San Marcos Scene

Classic Rock Revisited

Thank god for The Addictions. Just when you thought there was no real rock bands left in music anymore these guys come along and prove that kick ass no frills hard rock is indeed still alive and well, you just gotta go to Texas to find it. If I had to describe their sound Iíd say it lies somewhere between the best melodic hooks and power pop of Cheap Trick coupled with the best elements of the garage punk of L7 and The Ramones. The songs are short, tight and to the point, eleven songs clocking in at just under 32 minutes but donít mistake quantity for quality because there is not one second of filler on this disc. The band is fronted by the brother and sister duo of Jason and Beth Richard who both do double duty on guitars and vocals. Bethís vocals at times were reminiscent of a young Patti Smith which is nothing to complain about, but she does have a unique sound and style that is all her own. Her brother Jason is no slouch either both vocally and on the guitar and thereís plenty of guitar on this CD. The lead single is ìJadedî, after repeated listens I felt almost any one of the tracks here could have been chosen in that regard, the CD is that good folks. If there is any big time major record companies looking to sign an honest sounding hard rock band then look no further. There are so many catchy hooks and grooves that will guarantee your house party keeps on rockiní long into the night, just keep the CD player on repeat. - Classic Rock Revisited