Track By Tracks: Speed Limit - Cut A Long Story Short (2023)

1. Shine Brigther Than The Sun:

The opener of the album was mainly written by Joe (Eder - guitarist) and offers a bombastic twin lead intro before it takes off in a galopping riff. During the song, there appear quotes of Winston Churchhill (blood – toil - tears, and sweat) and a quiet sing-a-long chorus. The basic message of the song is to get your ass up, fight average, start doing things, and not fall into lethargy by life ́s demands – and pull all strings to shine brighter than the sun.

2. New Horizon:

The main attraction of this song is an intense classic heavy guitar riff repeated between the mighty chorus on one side and two different verses of a more relaxed mood on the other side. Chris (Angerer, guitarist) loves the style of combining great melodies with varieties of heavy and clean guitars. The Song is about the deep euphoric feeling when you could turn a nearly hopeless situation into a positive ending. There's A video to that song (2nd single) with footage from Dublin to Dover and the band rocking a school gym.

3. Eye on you:

A mid-tempo guitar riff of dark vibrancy backed by a pumping bass line and straight grooving drums, exciting, and powerful, leading into a fine, melodic chorus. But it wouldn‘t be Chris (Angerer, guitarist) if there wasn‘t an intermediate part adding half-time drums with a stunning crunchy guitar theme and very emotional vocals. The lyrics are more generating images in your mind than telling a real story.

Lady Is On Fire is an uptempo boogie about a night out and meeting a man eating a female. Joe(Eder - guitarist) came along with this song not being quite sure if it fits into the Speed Limit context. After the second try everybody on board was smiling. Being Speed Limit they chew the song up, spit it out and it turned out to be perfect for the band. A little bit of Priest, a neoclassical very thin lizzyish double lead, and everything fell into place.

4. Notorious:

This is about the f..ing stupid, intolerant, and malicious people all around the world, but especially the ones in your neighborhood. If you’re different in any way you will often be expelled from the community. Chris (Angerer, guitarist) assimilates modern metal riffing in this song with a polyphonic chorus and finishes with a long Maiden-like twin guitar lead while the powerful bass guitar and drums raise a storm

5. Destiny´s Calling:

A let's say typical Chris Pawlak idea of an old-school hair metal chorus and melodic stairway building up to it. Usually, Joe (Eder - guitarist) and Chris (Pawlak- bassist) wrack their brains to work out those ideas musically while Joe also delivers appropriate lyrics. It tells a story about a man down in the dirt but he gets his head up high again. Not exactly an all-purpose remedy but a song full of hope drawing a silver lining in a cloudy sky. The intro leads played by Joe and Chris (Angerer – guitarist) is nailing the main solo.

6. The Wind Blew In A Memory:

This is a little outstanding song from the rest of the album driven by Joe´s (Eder – guitarist) affection for dramatic kitsch. Starting like a ballad but developing into an epic 7 minutes monster with chanting and a fiery guitar solo in the interlude. Hannes (Vordermayer – lead vocals and drums) is given the opportunity to prove himself as a respectable balladeer. A song of a long-gone love and the memory blew in through the balcony door on a mild mid-summer evening.

7. Hit The Wall:

The first single of the Cut a Long Story Short album delivers an ear-catching chorus after building up with a cinemascope intro and driving guitar riff in a true story of never-ending devotion and unbreakable effort. It features stunning drumming and heart-pounding vocals of Hannes Vordemayer and a finale furioso sing-along. Again a song based on an instrumental idea of Chris (Pawlak, bassist) completed with bits and pieces and lyrics by Joe (Eder, guitarist). In the final chord, you can spot a piano sample of Beatles`A Day In A Life. Watch out for the video clip to that song which was shot at the Salzburger Festspielbühne at Hallein, directed by Walter Fanning.

8. Sweet Morphine:

A live performance of a song from the last album „Anywhere We Dare“was recorded on August 27 th, 2021 at Seeham/Austria. There are live video clips of these live bonus tracks on Youtube released together with the Hit The Wall single where you can feel the energy of a Speed Limit live gig.

9. Retired Hero:

Again a live performance of a song from the last album „Anywhere We Dare“ from that mentioned gig at Seeham/Austria. It also showcases the hard work of Hannes Vordermayer as a singing drummer. On this particular occasion, Hannes had an accident in the morning and had to play the show with a smart eye bandage. Also documented in the video clip on youtube.

10. Ways & Means:

Another bonus track but this time a studio outtake from 2019. Having started the pre-production of the new album, Speed Limit embarked on a short anniversary tour through Austria celebrating 35 years. This song written by Joe (Eder, guitarist) was released with a video clip on youtube to shorten the wait for a new album. The live footage on that clip was taken from that tour´s last show at Rockhouse Salzburg in December 2019 before the big pandemic gap stopped all live and studio activities.

11. Head Over Heels:

A Speed Limit classic from the very early days. This recording was made to celebrate the 35 years anniversary in 2019. There is also a quite funny video clip on youtube available. The song had been released before on the Perfect Inspiration album in 1992 but ist origin reaches back to the early 80s.