When the first Blue Öyster Cult appears in 1967 in Long Island, Donald Roeser is already in the band. This man, better known under the name of Buck Dharma, is one of the three guitarists of the band, pivot of the combo doubled of a very good singer. He will be, a few years later, praised as one of the best guitarists of his time as well as Blackmore or Page. The band, quickly reinforced by the rhythmic of the Bouchard brothers, the talents of multi-instrumentalists Allen Lanier and Eric Bloom (the nasal voice of the band, the clearer vocals being held by Dharma), scoured the road networks of Long Island, oscillating between hard-rock and psychedelic rock, and sometimes opening for Muddy Waters or Grateful Dead.
During this period, the band forged a sound, a genre, that is often described as "cold and razor sharp" rock. It should be noted that one of the strengths of the band is the quality of its lyrics, written mostly by ex-journalist Sandy Pearlman, the sixth member of the band. If we add to that the strong acronym of the cross of chaos that we will find throughout the career of the band, we have everything to found a mythical group.
Released in May 1972, "Blue Öyster Cult" will launch the Americans on the market. We find there several compositions which will become unavoidable, replayed almost with each concert since more than 35 years. The first one is 'Stairway To The Stars', a fast track with a catchy riff and a crazy solo. The unique rhythmic pattern gives this track a psychedelic feel. The following tracks are Rock definitions in themselves. 'Cities On Flames' with its eternal riff and its acceleration on the end of the title will quickly become a strong moment of the concerts just like 'Before The Kiss...', softer and more subtle paying even the luxury to propose a jazzy passage in its middle.
The last hit of the album is the magical ballad 'Then Came The Last Days Of May'. Sung by the spectral voice of Buck (who signs the title alone), this title gives a real feeling, a melancholy that almost gives you goosebumps. It must be said that the story told here is true and rather dark. We would almost complain to see the track ending after 3 minutes, this last one sometimes lasting more than 10 minutes in concert. But fortunately the album is not limited to that! The curious and musically rich 'Transmaniacon MC' and the bouncy 'I'm On The Lamb...' reinforce the surprise effect.
Defined as the American answer to Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, Blue Öyster Cult strikes a blow with this first album and imposes itself right away as a band to be reckoned with. And even if the sound has aged well, this eponymous album marks, with a certain nostalgia, the beginning of a great and rich era.