No Generation Recent Press:
"Remember the first time you heard Soundgarden's Louder Than Love? OK, it's been awhile, but that doesn't mean local boys Lions weren't able to turn the bong-rattling bottom end of last year's No Generation into something totally their own. Total fucking riffage." – Michael Bertin, Austin Chronicle 2008 SXSW Critics Pick
"Not that the Blitz - or the Rock, I should say – is bloody likely to keep you abreast of such things, but Lions has been getting the kind of word of mouth that most bands would kill for. The question is whether or not it is warranted. In fact, the hype is pretty much on the money. Think of the generation of bands that were active right before grunge broke – i.e. Hiro Yamamoto-era Soundgarden and Bullet Lavolta – and mix that naïve, heavy groove with late '90s stoner metal. The result is Lions, a band to be reckoned with, and one smart enough to look for influences outside of the trends." – Rick Allen, The Other Paper
------------------"All roars and manes, Lions blends heavy riffs and explosive attitude
for a head-twisting take on ye olde denim rock, with guitars so eminently shred-worthy
that the band’s “Metal Heavy Lady” was chosen for inclusion
on Guitar Hero III. The band’s debut full-length, No Generation, is a
mix of explosive psychedelia and Texas-sized riffs, like a tab of LSD chased
with Southern Comfort."
- The Onion
"Lions are actually interested in dynamics, an all-too-rare trait in bands
of their beery ilk. This doesn't mean Lions have balladeer tendencies —
the guitars surge and thrust, while Matt Drenik's vocals sound like the result
of a drunk, horny demon screaming into a wind tunnel. The Austin quartet simply
knows how to build a hard-rocking tonal atmosphere, even in the spaces between
Jake Perlman's hammerhead drumming. Lions are the Eagles of death metal, had
they spent an entire adolescent summer with Black Flag's "In My Head,"
- Houston Press
"While there’s certainly plenty for Lions to rail against in the
world, the album doesn’t particularly lash against any specific political
or social force, but rather the lack of direction or purpose in all those forces.
Lions is first and foremost about rock, about dropping loud fuzz-bombs that
shake foundations, and while the guitars recall Rage Against the Machines’
monstrous thunder, the political intent springs not from diatribes, but the
need to let go and unleash any restraint, whatever it may be. The band doesn’t
seem to give a damn about provoking a call to action against anything, but more
produce an undeniable, straightforward demand for Action, for movement that
refuses detachment or indifference. No Generation therefore takes on the lethargy
of displacement and fills the void."
- - Doug Freeman, Austin Sound
"Totally cool, unaffected riff-heavy rock, but not sludgy, and full of
subtle hooks and an intelligence you don’t often find in this particular
genre. It sucks that this band is from Austin, because I’d love for Dallas
to be able to claim the members as native sons."
- Dallas Observer
"Lions draw blood on the outside arena with chant-along chorus’
and scorching guitars. Their 2007 release No Generation allowed the band to
voice their political views as well as display their rock n’ roll chops,
and their live shows aptly roar with energy and fervor."
- Austinist
"Packing heavy riffs and driving drum lines, Austin's Lions have tapped
into the raw sound and energy that makes metal heroes out of dudes in dank,
dirty rock bars."
- Lawrence Weekly
Volume One Press:
"Huffed any paint lately? Spend
an hour in the company of Lions, and you might answer different. Barely 2 years
old, the Austin quartet is one of Red River's biggest draws, tweaking the best
of Detroit rock city (Kiss, MC5) with rotten backwoods Texas attitude. Last
year's debut EP, Volume One, has some powerful fumes indeed."
- Christopher Gray, Austin Chronicle 2007 SXSW
(Critics Pick)
"If you saw the Lions set at
the Spanish Moon on Tuesday night, you probably got a good jolt of two things:
loud rock and sex-fueled showmanship from lead singer Matt Drenek.
"Loud and violent only alludes to the eardrum shattering and mind-blowing
experience that is Lions."
- Real Detroit Weekly
"If you were to believe the
foppish young lad (clad in black and on the prowl) to my right, the group at
times recalls Fugazi, if you were to believe the lovely lady standing to my
left, there were elements of Rage Against The Machine; and, sure, there's a
rawness behind the music of Lions that no doubt calls to mind both those acts
at their peak but Lions offers something different – something smoldering
and savory, mercurial and majestic, ornate but understated, restless and never
idle."
- Wichita City Paper
"Their sound is a ferocious
blend of fuzz, sweat and riffs, with a slinky Southern groove holding it all
together.'"
- Nashville Scene (Critics Pick)
"The image of the group parallels
the sound, as the members look like a collective of vagabonds who might or might
not pull a switchblade on you during a pool hustle... It's really quite delicious."
- Cincinnati City Beat
"The result is explosive, raving
and in psychedelic color."
- Kansas City Pitch
"I'm pretty fucking delusional,"
Lions frontman Matt Drenik told ATX Magazine in May. Maybe he should've said
ballsy. Drenik built a badass metal band in a month, climbed to the top of the
Austin, Texas, music scene and booked a release party — all before setting
foot in the studio to record his band's first album, in three sultry weeks above
a dirty bar. The result is explosive, raving and in psychedelic color. Tinged
with Metallica-influenced rhythms and ferocious melodies that bring Megadeth
and Black Sabbath to mind, the Lions' music is lyrically as cocky, vibrant and
grungy as the band members. Playing with the triumphant air of an act that knows
its own wild velocity, this sweaty foursome is not so much delusional as thrillingly
insane.
- Kansas City Pitch - August, 2006
Volume One is a psychedelic trip
through dive bars and crack houses where only the almighty riff survives."
- Dallas Observer (Critics Pick)
"Live, Lions are a full-on firefight,
Black Crowes Southern hemp twisted with PCP loud and violent."
- Austin Chronicle