It’s not unusual for bands that enjoyed success during the glory days of glam-metal to still tour today. What is rare is finding any of these groups producing new albums that don’t sound hopelessly dated. An exception is Tesla, a bluesy, no-frills hard rock quartet that’s always favored solid musicianship and songwriting over image.

Maintaining its vintage sound, Tesla nonetheless achieves a modern, heavy feel on its first studio album in ten years, Into The Now. Loaded with hook-heavy, classic hard rock, it’s a remarkable comeback for Tesla’s career. Drummer Troy Luccketta agrees that avoiding trend-identification has kept Tesla’s music viable. “We weren’t on the covers of most rock magazines in the ’80s,” he admits, “because we never really possessed ‘That look.’ Now I think that’s worked in our favor. We’ve been able to survive on our music alone, and that’s great.”

Like one of his primary influences, Jeff Porcaro, Troy’s focus in Tesla is on keeping the groove strong. Into The Now also finds him playing in odd time signatures, particularly on the title track, which he wrote. “I enjoy experimenting,” he admits. “But there’s a fine line with Tesla. If I approached my playing from a real progressive point, it wouldn’t work. But if I go at it from a hard-hitting, strong groove side, the band relates to it much better.” Advertisement