On the Prowl

In the 1980s, Loudness was one of the top heavy metal units in Japan, which was an extremely strong market for metal and hard rock. The band, however, never received much attention in the U.S., and On the Prowl was far from the commercial breakthrough the headbangers were hoping for. When this CD came out in 1991, Loudness had a non-Japanese lead singer, Mike Vescera, and was going for a slick sound that was sort of Mötley Crüe-meets-Ratt-meets Warlock. Not fabulous but usually decent, the album does have its moments -- most notably, "In the Mirror," "Deadly Player" and "Find a Way." What On the Prowl didn't have was a major hit that would make Loudness a big name in the U.S., where the vast majority of headbangers had never even heard of the band.