DNA - Party Tested

Name: DNA
Album: Party Tested
Year: 1983
Style: 80's Arena Pop, Metal
Similar Bands: Huey Lewis, Robert Palmer, Rick Springfield, Foriegner, Squeeze, Twisted Sister
"One-Word" Review: "redneck dance party"
Based Out Of: LA or NY, probably
Label: Pasha Productions, Boardwalk Records,

Party Tested: Cover & Sleeve

Party Tested - Back & Sleeve

Party Tested - Record

Party Tested (1983)

1. Doctors of the Universe 4:10
2. Intellectual Freedom for the Masses 3:58
3. Rock & Roll pt 2 5:30 /
4. The Song That Wrote Itself 4:02
5. Party Tested 4:53
6. The Recipe for Life 3:55
7. What About 4:25

Album Rating (1-10): 7.0

Members & Other Bands:

Carmine Appice - Drums, Percussion, Synth, Vox (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus)

Rick Derringer - Bass, Vox, Synth, Guitar (Steely Dan, Johnny Winters, Weird Al, The McCoys, Cyndi Lauper, KISS)

Duane Baron -Engineer

Spencer Proffer - Producer

Jimmy Johnson - Bass
Duane Hitchings - Synthesizer, Keyboards
Alan Miller - Management
Jake Hooker - Management
Mikey Davis - Engineering Asst
Karen Chamberlain - Engineering Asst
George Marino - Mastering
Carol Peters - Coordination
Lyn Corey -Benson - Coordination
Ann Sumner-Davis - Admin Asst
Randy Bishop - Backing Vox
Danny Spanos - Backing Vox
Tommy Faragher - Backing Vox
Bart Bishop - Backing Vox
Danny Johnson - Backing Vox
Nigel Bauer - Backing Vox
Jay Vigon - Art Direction & Design
Kathy Gerrity - Art Coordination
Ed Goldstein - Photography
Debbie Thomasina - Stylist
Ronn St Pierre - Stylist

Unknown-ness: I’ve never heard of this band, but I was very interested in it with the Party vibe of the cover, and the pseudo scientist lab coats researching…rock! Or so it seems, with the Hall & Oats look, and a 1983 date, I was hoping for some sort of party rock music. Covering Gary Glitter’s Rock & Roll pt 2 is probably the best example of what I would be looking for, and there is a cover of it here. This seems silly, rock driven, and an overall fun atmosphere. I hope it translates that way in the music too.

Album Review:“Doctors of the Universe” starts out powerful, driving and aggressive. Like a song you’d listen to, in order to pump yourself up for a big sporting event. It has revving, building guitars, and an 80’s stylized tinkling keys that you’d expect to be in some training montage in a Rocky film (actually the keyboard alone reminds me of the Goonies). The vocals are dual layered giving it an urgent, crisp, and harmonic delivery. Its an overall fun song, with somewhat ridiculous lyrics.“Intellectual Freedom for the Masses” had a guitar hook that gives me the image of elementary school bully mockery. It’s hard and cutting, but it is still playful, and with a make-fun-of tone. The rhythm of the song, as it is based on the guitar hook, has a start stop feel to it, and the whole song feels stripped down. The dual vocals remind me of what Squeeze does, but it is not backed by incredible music
“Rock & Roll pt 2” is the Gary Glitter cover. It is pretty straight forward, with the only changes being a little heavier guitar, and a bigger, echoing vocals. It comes off as a little more sinister, darker. Also, thanks to Appice, bigger drums.

“The Song That Wrote Itself” introduces itself with drums, then adds down & dirty guitar and equally scraggily echoing, layered vocals. It does not feel like it was crafted especially caringly, it has the feel of a short drum and bass looped with repetitive shout/chanting vocals.
“Party Tested” has a nice stomp drum beginning. Synth keys are added in this side to side sway/stomp. The Goonies synth sound is utilized again, and it just sounds so familiar like it’s been sampled in other songs, or has such a specific sound / time period, that it is very familiar. This sound has more of the shout/chant vocals. Altogether, it feels like Twisted Sister, if they decided to write less catchy sports arena pep songs and redneck dance party jams, and only used background vocals. “The Recipe for Life” has more of a Robert Palmer feel to it with the use of the synth. We revisit the urgent vocals from the first track, and adds that feeling of a poor man’s Difford & Tillbrook. It’s just heavier than Squeeze.
“What About” begins with a fun dancy bass beat, that brings feels a tinge of disco. The chorus, as repetitive as it is, has the most uplifting and positive mood on the album. It is paralleled & bolstered by a fun bursting guitar hook solo. The vocals are still that shout/chant. Some of the verse sections have juxtaposing dark, militaristic tones. But the chorus breaks free of the darkness, like the power that only comes from rebelling mass mob.

Stand-Out Track: Doctors Of The Universe

Links:

Discogs

Party tested audio, You Tube

Wax fm

Allmusic