Hungry

Hungry is the second album, made after XYZ moved up to Capitol. The debut's success brought the majors in, and a US tour with Ted Nugent came before the sessions. Don Dokken had no part in this one. The sound is harder, the blues feel stronger, and the songs are direct hard rock with the decoration stripped off. Among the twelve, “Fire and Water” is a Free cover played as though the band had written it themselves. Terry Ilous's clean voice picks up a little grit and aggression, though the production is polished enough to tame some of the rawness that ought to have been there. The opener “Face Down in the Gutter” became the album's only video, directed by Michael Bay. Ilous's singing on “When the Night Comes Down” is as invested as anything in his career. But the era would not allow it. Drummer Paul Monroe later revealed that Capitol chose the singles, and recalled how the rise of hip hop and grunge made the label's expectations impossible to meet. The band stopped in 1992, and Diglio and Monroe were replaced by Tony Marcus and Joey Shapiro. A solid record, set down right at the close of pop metal.