Thunderbuck Ram/No Wheels To Ride/You Are One Of Us/Walking With A Mountain/I Can Feel/Threads Of Iron/ When My Minds Gone
Mad Shadows was the follow up album from Mott The Hoople which reflected their early hard rock style under the guiding spirit of melodramatic vocalist and songwriter Ian Hunter. (UK:48)
“Constant gigs apparently took its toll on the band in the studio, as Mad Shadows attests. The songs are dark psychodramas, set to heavy strum and drang arrangements. Ian Hunter's vocals are raw and strained from so many live gigs. The songs were recorded live in the studio with no overdubs, so mistakes mar but also led credence to the dark feel of the music. However, the songs themselves are more consistent than on their debut.”
“Round two of the Mott experiment opened at the dawn of a new decade, one in which the group would claim some credit for shaping the glam rock musical landscape of Britain in the early Seventies.”
“Their sound is starting to solidify and it shows. The vibe is cool Stones like medium intensity guitar oriented rock with a smooth but limited lead singer.”
“Thunderbuck Ram opens the album strongly, but the rest seem mired in mediocrity. This one showcases their typically passionate ballads, featuring Hunter's melodramatic vocals, but thankfully also includes a couple of decent prog rockers.”
“Mad Shadows has the deep texture of the debut, but does it much better. It has everything from Stones-rock, power ballads, and even heavy metal. No other group was able to merge Dylan and the Stones as well as Mott.”
"Walking With A Mountain became a Mott's anthem and remained a concert favourite throughout their career. Opener Thunderbuck Ram featured Mick Ralphs on lead vocal and is a suitably moody hard rock song. Threads Of Iron and You Are One Of Us are probably the two next best with the other songs being just okay.”
"Thunderbuck Ram is a deadly opener as is the power ballad No Wheels To Ride. The dynamics on the whole album are incredible, the mix is warm; the bass is very high, even by 1970s standards.”
“As they had already shown on stage, Mott The Hoople came to rock and they indeed rock hard here with a million electric guitars.”
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