Song Reviews - Edge of a Broken Heart by Vixen

Warning - I'm about to admit to liking something that I should probably hate.

Long before I even attempted this blog, I was making fun of bad music videos and bad music, and one of my favorite punching bags was the mid-eighties all-girl pop/metal band, Vixen. It's sort of hard to see why, considering that nobody remembers them, but I can explain it, I think.

I recently got to thinking about why I chose to make fun of this briefly moderately successful and largely forgotten band. Is it because they’re all women? Absolutely not. I happen to like The Runaways and Girlschool, and they were both all-girl rock bands. Is it because they were a pop band? Hardly. I’m a huge fan of power pop, and this isn’t far off from mid and late eighties power pop bands like Enuff Z’Nuff and the latter day Cheap Trick, both bands that I like.

Is it because Edge of a Broken Heart sucks? No, actually. I’ve recently been able to admit to myself that I kind of like this song, to my eternal shame. It’s a guilty pleasure. And that's the reason - I couldn't admit to myself that I actually liked this, so I listened to it and made mean jokes about it.

I can also admit that these girls aren’t bad musicians. The singer has a good voice and if she let herself go a little more, she’d be very enjoyable to listen to. The instrumentalists aren’t bad, either. They aren’t extraordinary, at least as far as I can hear, but they’re a tight, professional unit. I love the guitar riff and the guitar solo here is quite good, and the bassline is noticeable, which is a plus – there aren’t enough good bass parts in rock music, and I always appreciate being able to say anything about the way a bass is played in a song.

The only problem I have with Vixen is that they’re bland. There’s no personality to this. I’m wondering if their handlers at the record label had them tone it down so as not to threaten their potential, largely male audience. It’s a possibility, and it’s unfortunate. Apparently, they were veterans on the Sunset Strip club scene for a long time before they got a record deal.

Admittedly, there’s also the possibility that they would have just been another lame hair metal band if given the chance to do what they wanted to. In fact, it’s probably pretty likely. But it’s a shame that they weren’t given the same chances as their male counterparts to make crappy music. At the very least, they would have stood out amongst the crowd of mediocrity. That’s not necessarily a good thing, but it’s something, I guess.

And yes, I know that this song was co-written by Richard Marx. I can't stand that guy. The other writer? Fee Waybill from The Tubes. If you know anything about The Tubes, that's kind of shocking and not surprising at all both at once. Do yourself a favor and click that link. That's The Tubes. You're welcome.