ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, APRIL 15, 1983
By Steve Newton
While we’re on the subject of riff-riddled hard rock, take into consideration the latest UFO release, Making Contact. The man who now holds Michael Schenker’s old position on lead guitar, Paul Chapman, is no lightweight when it comes to intense blues bastardization. UFO is another band that likes to funnel the brunt of its energy through a wall of steaming Marshalls, so lovers of classical and easy-listening music will not likely be too turned on by Making Contact.
While not any better than the previous UFO albums–No Place to Run and The Wild, Willing and the Innocent—Making Contact will quite possibly satisfy those with a taste for the aggressive. The let’s-get-it-on-ness of “Push, It’s Love” gets to be a bit much, but “Blinded By a Lie” and “When It’s Time to Rock” are cool enough and full of energy.
UFO rocks with the best of them–I’ve been a fan of theirs ever since the brilliant Phenomenon LP of 1974. And while they don’t really seem to be getting much better, they’re going to have to get a lot worse before I’ll give up on them.