Sideburn
Loaded – Best of
Label: SideRec
Out: 12 September 2025
Playing time: 01:06:12 / 01:11:38
Sideburn are a Swiss Hard Rock band. Founded in 1985 by singer Roland Pierrehumbert and guitarist Fred Gudit under the name Genocide. They kept this name until 1996. One year later they changed their name to Sideburn. This was accompanied by a change of style, from Classic Heavy Metal to riff-heavy Hard Rock in the tradition of AC/DC, Rose Tattoo or fellow countrymen Krokus. Two studio albums were released as Genocide. Eight more followed later. The last to date, ‘Fired Up’, was released in June 2022. A best-of album was released in 2006 under the name ‘Archives’. So it’s nothing new for the band. In September, “Loaded – Best of” was unleashed on the fans. A double CD full of the band’s material from 1997 onwards. 37 songs in total with well more than two hours of playing time. The first CD contains songs from the period between 1997 and 2011, some of which have been re-recorded, as well as one new song. The second CD contains the period from 2012 to 2022 as well as some live recordings.
The first CD starts with the new song ‘Devil’s Daughter’. You can immediately hear the trademarks of the Swiss band. Hard riffs, slide guitar and the raspy voice of Roland Pierrehumbert. There is also a tight guitar solo. Very much in the tradition of Rose Tattoo, Krokus or AC/DC. The band remains true to its sound. ‘Ghost Of 1980’ is a tribute to the prematurely deceased AC/DC singer Bon Scott and comes from the 2008 album ‘Cherry Red’. This song was re-recorded for this compilation. The guitars here are AC/DC-like. And the vocals are logically a little raspier. And of course another great guitar solo. The newly recorded ‘Gangster Lover’ (‘Gasoline’, 2003) features Gotthard singer Nic Maeder as a duet partner. Another guest from their Swiss Hard Rock colleagues can be heard shortly afterwards. On ‘Hell On Wheels’, the band jammed together with Leo Leoni (also CoreLeoni). You can hear this especially on the insane guitar solos. A highlight of the first CD for me is the Rose Tattoo cover ‘Rock’N’Roll Outlaw’. This is one of my favourite songs anyway. And the version by Sideburn is very authentic. Again and again, as in the original, a slide guitar can be heard. Oh yes, I could go on and on with the list of songs played. A mixture of original recordings from the earlier albums and re-recordings.
Sideburn released five studio albums between 1997 and 2011. Between 2012 and 2022 there were ‘only’ three. This means that only half of the songs on the second CD are studio recordings. Three each from ‘Electrify’ and ‘Fired Up’ and two from ‘#Eight’. So there is a lot of room for live recordings on this CD. Firstly, ‘Get That Way’ (from the album ‘Sell Your Soul for Rock’n Rol’ 1997) recorded live in 2022, as well as the following ‘Give Me A Sign’ (‘#Eight’, 2017). You can see that the band is still playing songs from all their creative periods at concerts. Impressive testimony to the live qualities of the current line-up. Of course, the guitar solos also work live. But older live performances have also been recorded on this CD. For example, in 2012, with songs from their early works, such as ‘Crocodile’ (album “Crocodile”, 2002) and ‘Slave To The Core’ (album ‘Crocodile’). These are also very high-quality recordings. Listening to them makes me want to see Sideburn live.
It was a great pleasure for me to enjoy this best of collection from Sideburn. The musicians have been playing at a high level since 1997. They keep the Rose Tattoo flag flying high. And as already mentioned, AC/DC are a recurring influence. Not to mention their compatriots Krokus, who they certainly don’t need to hide from. Every fan of the aforementioned bands should definitely listen to this showcase from the band’s almost thirty-year history.
Sideburn – Call Me A Doctor: https://youtu.be/G4uvE6m-ywg?si=__cxsxUH2_xtgrew
Lineup:
Roland Pierrehumbert – Vocals, Harmonica
Wil Remond – Guitars
Sickyy Lyo – Guitars, Backing Vocals
Thierry Nydegger – Bass, Backing Vocals
Lionel Blanc – Drums, Backing Vocals
Track list:
Disc 1 – 1997 to 2011 and New Re-recorded songs:
- Devil’s Daughter (New song)
- Ghost Of 1980 (to Bon Scott) 2023
- Gangster Lover 2023 (featuring Nic Maeder)
- Jail
- Hell On Wheels 2023 (jamming with Leo Leoni)
- Rock’N’Roll Outlaw 2023
- Sign It In The South
- Six Feet Under
- One Night Stand
- Voodoo Girl 2023
- Cherry Red
- Rockin Chair
- Baby Don’t Care
- Gimme The Way 2023
- Giov In L.A.
- Knockin’ At The Wrong Door
- Long Beard And Boogie
- Rip It Up
Disc 2 – 2012 – 2022 and Live songs:
- Frontline
- Call Me A Doctor
- Free Ride
- Turn Away
- Devil May Care
- Feel The Heat
- Never Get Down
- Heading On Down the Road 69
- Get That Way – Live 2022
- Give Me A Sign – Live 2022
- Crocodile – Live 2012
- Slave To The Core – Live 2012
- Never Kill The Chicken – Live 2012
- Standing In The Headlines – Live 2023
- Live To Rock – Live 2013
- Restless Call – Live 2022
- Driving On The Mainline – Live 2017
- Laisy Daisy – Live 2012
- Bite The Bullet – Live 2013
