Lordi – “Recordead Live – Sextourism In Z7” [Live Album Review]

Lordi is always going to be a band that rock fans will either love or hate. Luckily, I happen to love them, but I appreciate that they are not for everybody. Having released nine full-lengths, and currently working on their tenth, the group has been around for over twenty-five years but have barely released any live records, unlike their defining influence, and live-album pushers, KISS.

After many years of waiting, diehard Lordi fans have finally got their wishes with Recordead Live – Sextourism In Z7 (pre-order here). Recorded in one of their mainstay venues (the Z7 in Switzerland), Recordead is the heralded arrival of Lordi live. With a set list full of fan favourites such as “Missing Miss Charlene,” “Evilyn,” the rare “Mr Killjoy,” and the equally rare “Slashion Model Girls,” the band have made sure there is a wide range of material from their current album, as well as the past eight. Borrowing heavily from a mix of the most recent release, Sexorcism (see our review here), and 2006’s popular The Arockalypse, Lordi have made sure old and new fans alike are catered to.

These Finnish monsters have worked hard for eight months since the tunes were recorded, and, for the most part, the sonics are nicely presented, with only Mr. Lordi’s ramblings cut out due to time constraints. However, if you want a studio-perfect album then look elsewhere within their impressive catalogue. This CD/DVD has all of the live Lordi nuances including interactions with the braying audience, the occasional missed note or lyric from guitarist Amen or vocalist Mr. Lordi respectively, and all of the atmosphere and crazy visual effects the band creates from scratch.

Here’s Recordead’s lead single, “The Riff.”

It’s hard to pick out the tracks that really pop out for the listener, but “It Snows in Hell” and “Blood Red Sandman” are definitely up there as age-old classics that continue to deliver in a live environment. On the flipside, “Rock the Hell Outta You” and “The Riff” are not well-captured in this instance, but the now-classic “Slashion Model Girls” is as good as it gets, with the audience feeding on the song’s focused energies.

Unfortunately, Lordi have chosen To Beast or Not to Beast favourite “The Riff” as the lead single for this new live album, which does little justice to the spectacle of seeing this classic group live in the flesh. The vocals are a little garbled, the instrumentation drowned and devoid of energy, and the overall impact is just flat and lifeless.

However, the reality is that diehard fans will love this release and should check it out to relive memories of past shows, or amp up some enthusiasm to see them for the first time. But, if one is looking for an introduction to Lordi, then look elsewhere; this is not the record for that. Try The Arockalypse or 2015’s Scare Force One for sublime studio tastes, and 2007’s Bringing Back the Balls to Stockholm (if it can be located) for a truly great live album. Better yet on that front, just see them in person for the fully immersive experience.

Here’s Lordi performing ”Hard Rock Hallelujah” in 2006:

Recordead Live at Z7 Track Listing:

01. Sexorcism
02. Would You Love a Monsterman?
03. Missing Miss Charlene/House Of Ghosts
04. Your Tongue’s Got the Cat
05. Heaven Sent Hell on Earth
06. Mr. Killjoy
07. Mana Solo
08. Rock the Hell Outta You
09. Blood Red Sandman
10. It Snows in Hell
11. Hella Solo
12. She‘s a Demon
13. Slashion Model Girls
14. Naked in My Cellar
15. Rock Police
16. Ox Solo
17. Hug You Hardcore
18. SCG9: The Documented Phenomenon
19. Evilyn
20. The Riff
21. Amen Solo
22. Nailed by the Hammer of Frankenstein
23. Who’s Your Daddy
24. Devil Is a Loser
25. Hard Rock Hallelujah

Run Time: 01:34:29
Release Date: July 26, 2019
Record Label: AFM Records