WILDEST DREAM ‘DEMO’ (DEMO)
WILDEST DREAM is a new duo situated in Germany,
consisting of multi-instrumentalist Arin Vahanian and
lead singer Tony Vendel. Both have had quite some
experiences the past 10-15 years, and the demo they
produced is definitely a very good one. The demo features
3 songs in the AOR style, very much like JOURNEY. Opener
“Believe” has a clear “Waiting for love”-ALIAS
riff, so midtempo AOR, but also reminds me of HUGO,
JOURNEY, STREET TALK, BAD ENGLISH, yet with a less strong
production. Also following track “Never say goodbye”
is good midtempo AOR, while closing track “Every
time” is the typical obligate semi AOR ballad. This
is a good attempt in bringing back good-time AOR like
JOURNEY used to make. More info at: http://utenti.lycos.it/wildestdream and e-mail them at: wildestdream@lycos.it
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
SCOTT
SUDBURY ‘GET
THE PICTURE’ (BAD MOTOR SCOOTER RECORDS)
Guitarist/Vocalist SCOTT SUDBURY returns with the release
of his 2nd CD ‘Get the picture’. Although the
style is still good clean fun melodic Poprock, Scott has
updated his sound to a slightly Nu Breed Poprock
approach. Happily, the melodic are still catchy, but don’t
expect anything like his debut which saw him playing pure
80s Poprock a la RICK SPRINGFIELD/BRYAN ADAMS. This new
CD is a very modern inspired Poprockalbum which is still
much better than anything in the charts right now.
Highlights include Poprockers like “Good enough for
me”, “I’m her freak”, “Too bad
so bad”, the semi melodic rockballad “If you
still love me” (a la BON JOVI) and “I’ve
heard it all before” (classy EDDIE MONEY).
Recommended to fans of quality Melodic Poprock with a
modern touch. More info at: http://www.scottsudbury.com
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
FORCES
WORK ‘COLDHEART
CANYON’ (INDEPENDENT)
The German band FORCES WORK was formed not that long ago
by members of the bands THOUGHTSPHERE (excellent Prog
Metal), DONE BY DAWN and POINT OF NO RETURN, and this is
their first release, the CD ‘Coldheart canyon’,
which contains 6 tracks. I had hoped for a continuation
of the Progressive Metal style of THOUGHT SPHERE, but
unfortunately FORCES sounds slightly different. The
problem is that lead singer Andreas Lohse is singing very
aggressive and that’s a pity because instrumental
this is very good Progressive Metal. The best songs are
“Forces work” (great Prog Metal with normal
singing) and the instrumental “Fused confashion”.
Nevertheless, it’s a quality release with decent
songs, but it isn’t as strong as THOUGHT SPHERE.
More info at: http://www.forcesatwork.de and e-mail them at: adrian@forcesatwork.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 GAIA EPICUS ‘SATRAP’
(SOUND RIOT RECORDS/ROCK INC./BERTUS)
The Norwegian band GAIA EPICUS has already been discussed
by us some time ago when they released a demo. Well, now
they have finished their first full-length CD titled
‘Satrap’ and without a doubt, this is a great
release. The mastering was done by Mika Jussila at
Finnvox studios in Finland, the same studio of NIGHTWISH
and STRATOVARIUS. The music of GAIA EPICUS is
straight-ahead European Melodic Power Metal with big
guitars, keys, singable choruses and a very fast rhythm,
comparable with STRATOVARIUS, SONATA ARCTICA,
HELLOWEEN... There are 11 tracks on the CD, and it takes
up to almost 70 minutes, so this is definitely worth your
money when purchasing a copy. The band got help on the
bass by Morty Black from TNT. Like I said most of the
songs are fast uptempo Melodic Power Metal tracks, of
which the highlights can be found in the shape of “Heavens
gate”, “Fire and ice” (although a bit much
like STRATOVARIUS), “Star wars”, “Freedom
calls” (very catchy!), “Watch the sky” and
“Cyber future”. This is definitely quality
Power Metal, although the high level of STRATOVARIUS and
SONATA ARCTICA isn’t reached unfortunately, but
nevertheless, it’s still a recommended piece if you’re
a fan of such bands.
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 SILENT EDGE ‘THE EYES OF THE
SHADOW’ (DVS RECORDS/ROCK INC./BERTUS)
SILENT EDGE is a Dutch band, formed 6 years ago, and
‘The eyes of the shadow’ is their debut CD.
After hearing just a few seconds, I noticed that I was
listening to something really sensational. The music of
SILENT EDGE is Melodic Progressive Metal with
Neo-Classical Metal influences, so excellent melodies,
keyboard versus guitar solo’s and lovely vocalwork.
The band sounds like a mix between VANDENPLAS, SYMPHONY X
and ARTENSION, with a bit of MALMSTEEN thrown in for good
measure. It’s hard to pick favourites, as all the
songs sound very sensational, but I really need to
mention fantastic Melodic Prog. Metal songs like “Through
different eyes” (wonderful chorus), “Savage
symphony”, “Wasted lands” (pure SYMPHONY
X), “For ancient times” (excellent Melodic Prog
Metal like KANSAS meets ROYAL HUNT, with a break of 3
minutes), “Under a shaded moon” (uptempo
Melodic Metal) and “Rebellion” (fast Power
Metal a la STRATOVARIUS/SYMPHONY X with a very long
exciting instrumental part). Concluded, this CD is a
total must for anyone into Neo-Classical Melodic Prog
Metal a la KAMELOT, VANDENPLAS, SYMPHONY X... and it
might become one of the best releases in the year 2003!!!
(Points:
9.5 out of 10)
 BRAINSTORM ‘SOUL TEMPTATION’
(METAL BLADE RECORDS)
The German band BRAINSTORM returns with the release of a
new CD titled ‘Soul temptation’ and after
giving it a few spins, it became clear to me that this is
their strongest effort so far. The album bursts out of it’s
Power Metal sound with strong references to the 80s US
Power Metalbands. 11 songs long you can enjoy BRAINSTORM’s
own approach to the revival of Power Metal, starting off
with the midtempo “Highs without lows” to the
fantastic “The leading” and “Fading”
right to the highlights of the album, the superb “Rising”
and “Dying outside” (catchy chorus!). Without a
doubt, this is a must-have Power Metal release!
Especially if you liked last year’s SYMPHORCE’s
CD...
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
JOHN
ARCH
‘A TWIST OF FATE’ (METAL BLADE RECORDS)
The former FATES WARNING lead singer has released a
solo-CD, and I am not sure if this is a mini-CD or a
full-length album, because only 2 tracks are included.
Nevertheless, both songs are very long, and so we can
enjoy almost 30 minutes John’s movements these days.
And I must say that it sounds damn good, both songs (“Relentless”
and “Cheyenne”) are fantastic Melodic
Progressive Metal songs in the style of DREAM THEATER
with a touch of FATES WARNING. John is still able to sing
very well, maybe even better than in his heydays with
FATES WARNING, so this is interesting to check out if you’re
a Prog Metal fan.
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
DRAGONLAND
‘THE
BATTLE OF THE IVORY PLAINS’ (HOT ROCKIN’)
Although we reviewed last year DRAGONLAND’s 2nd CD
‘Holy war’, a fantastic Power Metal release
from this Swedish band, DRAGONLAND released one album
before ‘Holy war’. The Japanese recordlabel HOT
ROCKIN’ RECORDS sent me that first CD of DRAGONLAND,
and so therefore a review, even though the album was
released 2 years ago, but as it never got a review by us,
here we go... Like I said, DRAGONLAND is playing typical
Swedish Euro Power Metal with Neo-classical influences,
kinda like NARNIA, old EUROPE, MALMSTEEN, STORMWIND and
you name it... ‘The battle of the ivory plains’
is an excellent release in this genre, and if you didn’t
get it the first time, then I must highly recommend you
this lovely CD, which contains many lovely Melodic
Prog/Power Metal songs like “Storming across heaven”,
“Ride for glory”, “The battle of the ivory
plains”, “Braveheart” (FANTASTIC!), “A
secret divided” and “World’s end”.
The Japanese release has 3 Bonus Demo Tracks. Get your
copy through http://www.hot-rockin.com
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
SPOCK’S
BEARD
‘FEEL EUPHORIA’ (INSIDE OUT MUSIC/CMM MUSIC)
SPOCK’S BEARD returns with the release of yet
another new CD. Last year we were surprised by a 2-CD set
of the American Progressive Rockband, and a few months
ago there was the departure of lead singer NEAL MORSE.
Now the band has released a new CD and although the
musicstyle hasn’t changed that much, I must inform
you that this album is definitely less interesting than
it’s previous double CD. The problem is the lack of
good songs, because there are too many useless songs on
‘Feel euphoria’, such as “Onomatopoeia”
and “Feel Euphoria” that even reminds me of
DAVID BOWIE! Also, the change in lead vocals, with now
drummer/guitarist Nick D’Virgilio singing leads, is
not really an improvement. Happily, there’s also
good 70s inspired Progressive Rock on the album in the
classic SPOCK’S BEARD style, such as “The
bottom line” (even KANSAS references here), “Shining
star”, “Ghosts of autumn” (good
vocalwork), “Same old story” (straight-ahead
rocker a la RUSH) and closing track “Carry on”
(a bit like ENCHANT. It’s not a bad CD at all, but
on the other hand probably SPOCK’S BEARD least
recommended album. It’s better to wait now a few
years before releasing another new record, but if you’re
a fan of SPOCK’S BEARD, this is still worth checking
out, but don’t expect anything huge here...
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
PARLOR
TRIXX
‘STEP INTO MY PARLOR’ (INDEPENDENT)
Out of Canada comes PARLOR TRIXX, a great 80s inspired
Party Melodic Hardrockband that sounds like an excellent
mixture between SLAUGHTER, FIREHOUSE, RATT and WHITE
LION. The band has a very good lead singer, Kyle
Bottcher, who also plays guitar. 10 songs are included,
and especially opener “Step into my parlor” is
a very catchy tune, as this is great uptempo Melodic
Hardrock with a very melodic sing-a-long chorus like
STRYPER meets GREAT WHITE meets FIREHOUSE. This band is
bringing back the late 80s LA Metal sound in it’s
best shape, and besides that fun opening track, other
highlights are “Queen city Saturday night” (fun
uptempo Party Hardrock), “Second chances”
(great typical strong late 80s Melodic Rockballad) and
“Hidden identity” (catchy uptempo melodic
hardrock). Great band this PARLOR TRIXX, recommended to
fans of 80s LA Metal. More info at: http://www.parlortrixx.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
CREATURE
‘WAY
TO PARADISE’ (KARTHAGO RECORDS)
Finally, a label doing re-issues of rare independent
Melodic Metal from the 1980s. KHARTAGO RECORDS is a
German labels and so far they have done 7 releases.
CREATURE is their latest release, which is a band that
released an LP in 1989, which has now been re-issued
through KHARTAGO RECORDS. The album is titled ‘Way
to paradise’, and besides the 9 original tracks,
also 3 unreleased Bonustracks are included. The CD also
has a nice booklet with pictures and info on CREATURE.
Basically what you get here is good old clean German
Melodic (Hard) Rock in the style of MAD MAX, STORMWITCH,
TALON, FARGO... Instrumental very impressive and also the
songs sound pretty good, but the vocals could have been
stronger I think, because singer Alexander Schmitt sounds
a bit forced sometimes, however, towards the end of the
CD the vocals are better.
Anyway,
the CD has a very good sound/production, and for anyone
who digs good old German Melodic Hardrock this band is
interesting to check out. Highlights on ‘Way to
paradise’ are the midtempo sing-a-long rocker “L.O.V.E.”,
“Liar” (catchy uptempo melodic rocker), “Creatures
of love” (fantastic Symphonic AOR Rocker like 80s
MAGNUM, with nice keyboardwork and very good lead
vocals!) and the catchy uptempo aor/melodic rockers a la
RAGE U.K./GRAND PRIX “Against the warmachine”,
“Criminal”, “Now it’s over” and
“If tears should fall” (great keyboardwork).
Needs to be said that the band used a lot more keys than
most other German bands in the melodic rockscene, so
sometimes CREATURE borders with the AOR genre, but I
guess that’s not a problem at all. More info can be
found at: http://www.karthagorecords.de
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
CONSPIRACY ‘THE UNKNOWN’
(INSIDE OUT MUSIC/CMM MUSIC)
CONSPIRACY is a new duo formed by (Ex-) YES members CHRIS
SQUIRE and BILLY SHERWOOD (also known for his work with
WORLDTRADE). Together they form CONSPIRACY, whom just
released their first CD on INSIDE OUT MUSIC. The music is
somewhere between WORLD TRADE and YES, with a strong 80s
hi-tech Poprock vibe added to the sound, that even
reminds me of MR. MISTER at times. There’s some
really good material on this disc, such as the YES
orientated song “1/2 A world away” and the
uptempo Sympho Rocker “I could”, but on the
other hand you can also find a handful of very poppy
tunes on this album that might even surprise the YES fan.
However, if you’re a fan of the band you must
certainly purchase this record, but don’t expect a
YES copy here, as this is far more like WORLD TRADE or
even more Hi-Tech Pop orientated.
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
REDSTORM
‘NO
EXEPTION OF A VICTIM OF CRIME’
(KARTHAGO RECORDS)
REDSTORM was the brainchild of the Swedish
multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter STEVE REDSTORM.
He released the CD under the name of REDSTORM back in
1989, and I glad KARTHAGO RECORDS has re-issued the album
onto CD, because I never heard this album and after a few
spins I noticed this was a great record. Musically it is
strong 80s type of Melodic Hard/Heavy Rock in typical
Scandi style, like LEVICITUS, MALMSTEEN, NATION... 9
songs are included on this CD, and the sound/production
is very impressive, and it still sounds fresh after all
these years. Remarkable tracks on the CD are opener
“Victim of crime”, a great 7-minutes counting
uptempo Melodic Heavy Rocker a la LEVITICUS. And also the
uptempo melodic rocker “Side of love” (a la
early EUROPE), the midtempo melodic rocker “Let me
go” (Steve’s vocals are very good on this tune)
and the uptempo melodic heavy rockers “Watch
yourself”, “Take me back” (Bonustrack) and
“Rise up” are all sensational pieces of high
quality Hardrock/Metal. This is a very impressive release
and thanks to KARTHAGO RECORDS we are able to hear it on
CD after 14 years. More info can be found at: http://www.karthagorecords.de
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
STEVE
HACKETT ‘TO
WATCH THE STORMS’
(INSIDE OUT MUSIC/CMM MUSIC)
The amount of solo-albums of guitarist/singer STEVE
HACKETT is rapidly growing, making ‘To watch the
storms’ his 13th release so far. On each new album,
the former member of GENESIS and GTR is stepping away a
little further from the music that made him popular,
Progressive Rock. This new solo-CD is no exception to the
rule, with only the songs “Mechanical bride”
(good Prog Rock) and “Brand new” being
interesting for the average YES fan, because the rest of
the CD is quite wicked and extraordinary, combining
elements of 20s/30s Mood Music, Jazz, Acoustic Pieces and
even Theatrical/Comedian parts, so this CD is more like
an adventure that a real Progressive Rockalbum. Only
interesting for die-hard STEVE HACKETT fans!
(Points:
- )
DICE ‘COSMIC PROG LIVE’
(SCENE RECORDS)
The German band DICE returns with the release of their
9th CD release. The band exists for 25 years now and has
always brought us nicely performed Progressive/Symphonic
Rock a la ELOY, CAMEL, MARILLION... Although the vocals
were not always really that impressive, the songs of the
band were quite nice, and on this live-recording, which
took place in Munich last year, the band is definitely
playing on a high level. Best songs are prog rockers like
“Full moon”, “Strain in vain”, “Under
candlelight” and “Save me” (the only
uptempo rocker) that will please fans of ELOY, JADIS, IQ,
MARILLION... More info on this legendary German Prog band
at: http://www.scene-records.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 ROYAL HUNT ‘EYEWITNESS’
(FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
The Danish Symphonic Melodic Metalband ROYAL HUNT has
always been one of my favourite bands, but their new CD
‘Eyewitness’ is quite disappointing. There are
only a few songs that can compete with the older ROYAL
HUNT material, such as “Burning the sun” (a la
STRATOVARIUS), “5th element” (instrumental) and
“Game of fear”, but even the most enthusiastic
ROYAL HUNT fan must admit that this is the bandthey
started about 10-15 years ago. The ’s worst album
since band has made so many great songs, but none of them
can be found on their new CD, so I guess something must
change in the bandformula is ’s line-up, because
otherwise the over. I would be surprised if the band
still is able to make big sales in Japan, but I doubt if
this record will be remembered as a classic in ten years
from now. Among the 10 included, a lot of useless songs
are featured, such as and “Wicked “Help us God”,
“Can’t let go”, “The prayer”,
“Edge of the world” loungeeveryone was ”
(a weird roaring twenties Jazz type of sax dominated
song!). This is not the album waiting for, so it might be
over and out for ROYAL HUNT, and thatbecause the 2 ’s
really a pity, previous CDs of the band on FRONTIERS
RECORDS proved to be winners, but I donknow what to
’t do with this new release...
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 JEFF SCOTT SOTO ‘LIVE AT THE GODS
2002 CD’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
Last year the legendary lead singer JEFF SCOTT SOTO
performed at the Gods in the UK. His performance was
quite excellent, and therefore FRONTIERS RECORDS decided
to release the album as a CD and DVD Live recording and
now 1 year later the results are stunning. The sound is
perfect and so was the performance that night. Besides
Jeff on vocals, the rest of the band consisted of Alex
Papa (Drums), Gary Schutt (Bass) and Howie Simon
(Guitars). Together they brought (and bring us on this
CD) a nice collection of songs Jeff sang on the past 20
years, ranging from MALMSTEEN, TALISMAN, AXEL RUDI PELL,
EYES to songs from Jeff’s solo records. The only
pity is that the setlist could have been better, because
not much TAKARA or AXEL RUDI PELL material was played and
these were some of the best recordings Jeff sang in his
career. Instead we get average songs like “Let me
entertain you” (isn’t this a ROBBIE WILLIAMS
track?), “Love parade” or the ROCKSTAR tune
“Stand up”. Nevertheless, the MALMSTEEN medley
and the TALISMAN tunes “Break your chains”,
“I’ll be waiting” and the PELL track
“Warrior” are outstanding, and therefore alone
this Live album is highly recommended! Fans of JEFF SCOTT
SOTO must own this CD and the DVD, which will be
available soon. The CD comes with a studio bonustrack
called “Good love”, a nice slow Bluesy Melodic
Rocker, while the DVD has more goodies to offer, but that’s
told in the DVD review...
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
TREN
LOCO ‘RUTA
197’ (YUGULAR RECORDS)
The Argentinian Power Metal band TREN LOCO is quite
popular in their home country, and they have already
released 4 or 5 albums. Anyway, ‘Ruta 197’ is
their latest effort, and I must say I am impressed. This
band is playing very strong big Melodic Power Metal in
the style of 80s US Power Metal acts like HELSTAR, ANVIL,
RIOT, VIRGIN STEELE, HEIR APPARENT..., but also some
MAIDEN influences can be heard, and even a slight Thrash
Metal riff (“Ruta 197”). 11 songs are included,
and besides a fantastic production, most of the songs are
very good Melodic Power Metal tracks. Highlights are
“Pampa del infierno”, “Hoy”
(catchy!), “Identitad real”, “Endemoniado”
and the only English track “Apocalypse”.
Without a doubt, this is a great Melodic Power Metal with
those high pitched vocals you want to hear in this type
of Metal. Hopefully more on them soon, as they have
already a large discography behind them. For now, more
info at: http://www.trenloco.arg
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
NITRO’S
JIM GILLETTE ‘PROUD TO BE LOUD’ (RLS
RECORDS)
Out of the US came NITRO, a Party Metal band from LA that
played like so many others in the 80s in the style of
CRUE, TWISTED SISTER, WASP, CINDERELLA. RLS RECORDS, the
recordlabel of TUFF singer Stevie Rachelle, has re-issued
one of the NITRO albums, and added 5 bonustracks. Unlike
many Glamrockbands at that time, NITRO had a unique
singer, who sang some very high notes, which was more
common in the Power Metal genre. Anyway, the Melodic
Party Metal still sounds very fresh, even though the
recordings took place some 15 years ago. Highlights are
“Flash of lightning” and “When the clock
strikes 12”, good uptempo melodic Party Metal tunes,
but also the fast Power Metal of “Never say never”
is worth mentioning. However, the absolute highlights are
the more melodic tunes, such as the DEF LEPPARD
orientated midtempo semi-melodic rockballads “Angel
in white”, “Show down” (AUTOGRAPH style)
and “Proud to be loud”. I know the NITRO LPs
are very hard to get these days, so this re-issue is
quite interesting, and I remember magazines back then
saying that NITRO was a band that might attract fans of
both Poser and Power Metal, because their style fits
somewhere between and I guess they were right, so now it’s
up to you to decide if you agree. More info at: http://www.rlsrecords.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
TUFF
‘LIVE
IN THE U.K.’ (RLS RECORDS)
The Party/Glamrockband TUFF has a new CD out, it’s a
live recording that took place in the UK last year. Once
seen as a POISON copy, TUFF has proven to be more than
just a one-day fly, because the past 10 years or so they
have hold on to their tough late 80s Party Hardrocksound
that sounds rougher than POISON and has more in common
with the stuff SKID ROW, CRUE and RATT used to make. This
live recording sounds very good, not only the production
of this CD, but also TUFF shows they can make a good show
live. Highlights on this Live CD are tracks like “Good
guys wear black”, “So many seasons”,
“Tied to the bells”, “The all new
generation” and the ballad “I hate kissing you
goodbye”. All TUFF fans should surf to: http://www.rlsrecords.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
MYTHOLOGIC
‘STANDING
IN STILNESS’ (PMM)
MYTHOLOGIC is a new band featuring members of the
American progressive Rockbands ANDEAVOR and LEGER DE
MAIN. I am glad to inform you that the CD they have
released is very impressive and a must for every fan of
high class melodic Progressive Rock/Metal. Female lead
singer Melissa Rodler has a wonderful voice and the music
sounds like a mix between QUEENSRYCHE and LANA LANE, with
a bit of ENCHANT thrown in for good measure. Without a
doubts, the 7 songs on this CD are very sensational, and
to me, the absolute highlights are “In solitude”,
“Standing in stillness”, “A dim too dark”
(starts calm, but later develops into a fantastic uptempo
Symphonic Melodic Heavy Rocker a la LANA LANE) and “Truth
undiscovered”. The conclusion is quite simple here,
this CD is highly recommended to fans of quality
Progressive Rock. More info at: http://www.pmm-music.net
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 KIRK ‘THE FINAL DANCE’
(POINT MUSIC)
KIRK comes out of Switzerland, and their first (?) CD
‘The final dance’ is actually quite impressive.
The album has a fantastic big sound/production, done by
DENNIS WARD and musically this is prime-time German
uptempo Melodic heavy Rock/Metal like a mix between PINK
CREAM 69 and HELLOWEEN. Most of the songs are very strong
and sensational at times, with as highlights “Part
time lover”, “Center of the universe”,
“Shattered dreams”, “Ashes”, “Like
a thunderstorm” and “Vampire breakfast”. I
can highly recommend this KIRK to you, especially if you
like typical German Melodic Rock/Metal!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 EMERALD RAIN ‘SHORT SIGHTED’
(POINT MUSIC)
After a few years of silence, the Canadian band EMERALD
RAIN has returned with a new CD. The CD is titled ‘Short
sighted’ and released on AOR HEAVEN/POINT MUSIC
instead of Frontiers, the previous label of the Canuck
band. Anyway, musically nothing has changed (happily!),
so again we can listen to a great Melodic Hardrockalbum
in the style of the first two HAREM SCAREM classics. Most
of the songs are in the same style, which is uptempo and
easy to remember with catchy singable choruses. Best
tracks include “Second sight”, “Everyday
hero”, “Beneath the blue” and “Need
to fly” (could’ve been on the debut of HAREM
SCAREM). Fans of EMERALD RAIN or HAREM SCAREM can easily
purchase this very good new record.
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 BARROS ‘GEMINI’
(POINT MUSIC)
TARANTULA is one of Portugal’s most popular
Hardrockbands, and after releasing records on and off the
past 15-20 years, the bandmembers have now been focusing
on side-projects. The name Luis Barros has been seen on
many Portuguese productions lately (MARVEL, NORDICA and
FAITHFUL), and now it’s time to introduce tou to
BARROS. This is the new band/project of the brothers
Paulo and Luis Barros, both known of being bandmembers of
TARANTULA. Their CD has been released on POINT MUSIC, and
although I am a huge fan of TARANTULA’s music, the
BARROS stuff is a little bit weaker, but not bad at all.
The musicstyle of BARROS is clearly Melodic (Hard) Rock
with clear similarities to DOKKEN, WHITE LION, PC’69,
XYZ and TYKETTO perhaps, but unfortunately they don’t
succeed in making it a sensational record. However, the
CD still offers you good quality Melodic Hardrock in
songs like “Escape from the lies”, “Guardian
angel”, “Talk tomorrow”, “A soul of
fire”, “Night fall” and “Praying for
the lord”. I wonder what will happen with TARANTULA,
can we expect a new CD soon? Anyway, in the meantime all
fans should check out BARROS.
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
EVOLUTION
‘DARK
DREAMS OF LIGHT’ (POINT MUSIC)
The German band EVOLUTION has a lead singer who sounds
like a younger brother of METALLICA frontman James
Hetfield, but musically things get a little more to the
melodic side, however it is still pure Metal and a
reference to the late 80s METALLICA is easily made on
songs like “Dark dreams”, “Hope”,
“Take time” and “Till the end”.
Although most of the CD is nice to hear, none of the
songs is really making an impact, but on the other hand,
this is a good alternative to the recent horrible new
METALLICA CD ‘Anger’!
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
TEMPLE
8
‘ENTER THE TEMPLE’ (RIGEL RECORDS)
Out of Ohio, USA comes TEMPLE 8, a very sensational
Progressive Rockband a la RUSH. Their debut CD ‘Enter
the temple’ has a playing length of more than 60
minutes, and is from start to finish quite impressive.
Leader of the band is KURT TISCHER, who is playing
guitar, bass, organ and also sang! Kurt has got a very
good voice, somewhere between DENNIS DEYOUNG of STYX fame
and GEDDY LEE of RUSH fame. Highlights on the CD are
“Ideas of the mind” (straight-ahead uptempo
Prog Rocker), “At the summit” (strong melodic
Pomprock chorus), “Danger zone” (great up-tempo
prog melodic rocker) and “The big picture”
(9-minute epic Progrock). This is a highly recommended
piece to Prog Rock fans, more info at: http://www.3rdear.com and e-mail them at: kurt@3rdear.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
NOBODY’S
FOOL ‘TEMPTATION’
(INDEPENDENT)
The Australian rockers NOBODY’S FOOL return with the
release of a new CD titled ‘Temptation’. This
one works in the same concept as their earlier
recordings, so we get to hear good late 80s influenced
groovy American Melodic Hardrock like TYKETTO, TESLA,
WINGER... Highlights on the CD are the semi-ballad “Forever”,
the catchy uptempo 80s melodic rocker “Hold on”
and the videoclip of the song “Inside out”.
Fans of this style know what to do with this NOBODY’S
FOOL. More info at; http://nobodysfool.cjb.net and e-mail them at: nobodysfoolrock@yahoo.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
LEYENDA
‘LEYENDA’
(INDEPENDENT)
We’re back in Spain again with yet another new
sensational Melodic Rock/Metalband. This band is called
LEYENDA and they come out of Madrid. Their CD contains
only 3 tracks, but what we get to hear is of a very high
level. The first song “Y Veras” starts calm, as
a ballad, but develops into a great catchy uptempo
melodic rocker, not too far away from TIERRA SANTA and
AVALANCH. Next track “Leyenda” is a great semi
melodic rockballad and finally “Llegare al final”
is a very good uptempo Melodic Heavy Rock/Metal tune.
Concluded, this is another interesting Spanish Melodic
Hard/Heavy Rock/Metalband to check out. More info at: http://www.leyenda.es.mn and e-mail them at: leyenda_web@hotmail.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
REVIVER ‘OSIRIS EYES’
(INDEPENDENT)
The Dutch band REVIVER released a good Melodic Metal demo
a few years ago. Now they are back with a new mini-CD in
a different line-up. Most notable change is the coming of
new lead singer Patrick van Maurik, who used to sing in
the fantastic band MONTANY. Anyway, his entrance is
giving REVIVER’s songs a much stronger approach than
before, because Patrick is a great singer, who can easily
sings the highs and lows. Besides, the songs are better
this time, and so is the production, so in general the
band has improved a lot. Especially songs like “Another
day” and “Garden of Eden” are very strong
‘big’ Melodic Metal tracks in the style of the
80s sound of FATES WARNING and CRIMSON GLORY. You can
check out more on REVIVER at: http://www.reviver.nl and e-mail them at: info@reviver.nl
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 SATELLITE
‘A
STREET BETWEEN SUNRISE AND SUNSET’
(METAL MIND RECORDS/BERTUS)
SATELLITE is more or less the follow-up to the band
COLLAGE, a Polish Progressive Rockband that was quite
popular in the Prog Rockscene. The new band SATELLITE has
released their first CD on METAL MIND RECORDS, a Polish
label which is actually focused on Metal and Gothic, so
this is an exception to the stuff they usually release.
Anyway, the CD has beautiful artwork, done by Mark
Wilkinson (MARILLION, FISH) and also musically the
Neo-Prog of SATELLITE is really interesting. It is as
good as the British Neo-Prog acts like IQ, early
MARILLION, PENDRAGON… The CD counts 9 songs and with
a playing length of 72 minutes, it gives you enough
satisfaction after listening to the whole record.
Highlights on the CD are “The evening wind”,
“No disgrace”, “Now” and “and
sunset” (great 80s orientated keyboardwork). Without
a doubt, this is a A street between sunrise CD that will
be loved by the fans of quality Neo-Prog a la IQ, JADIS,
MARILLION, PENDRAGON, PALLAS...
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 TIM FEEHAN ‘TRACKS I FORGOT
ABOUT’
(MTM MUSIC/SUBURBAN)
The AOR singer/songwriter TIM FEEHAN has been active in
the music business for more than 20 years now, with a lot
of success through the years, although his biggest
success was at the start of his career when he scored a
massive hit in Canada and Hawaii with the band FOOTLOOSE.
In years to follow he released a lot of great AOR
solo-albums, of which ‘Full contact’, released
on MCA RECORDS in 1990, is his best effort. Other
successes include a performance at the wedding of famous
hockey star Wayne Gretzky, songs placed on several
soundtracks, such as a JAMES BOND movie and winning some
awards back in 1987.
Now
it’s the year 2003 and we can find a new CD of Tim
on MTM MUSIC. It’s not really a new album as the
title predicts, because it’s a collection of
unreleased songs and I must say it really rocks! The
slower groovy AOR Rock of TIM FEEHAN sounds a lot like
his last record ‘Pray for rain’ with the
difference that it’s a little less sensational, but
it surely rocks hard. 14 tracks are included and most of
them can be labelled as AOR and not Westcoast-Rock as
some magazines or even the label states. The best songs
are uptempo AOR rockers like “Call of the wild”
(duet with MIKE RENO), “Don’t need an
invitation”, “Gates of heaven” and “Even
if it hurts”, all sounding like STAN BUSH. Also
pretty good is the AOR ballad “You still breathe”.
Concluded, this is a recommended AOR album, although it’s
not as good as Tim’s 2nd record ‘Full contact’.
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 DOC HOLLIDAY ‘GUNFIGHTER –
THE BEST OF THE 90S’ (MTM MUSIC)
I have never been a fan of Southern Rock, and bands like
LYNYRD SKYNYRD, OUTLAWS, MOLLY HATCHET leave me cold, and
so does DOC HOLLIDAY, who have been releasing albums
since 1981. So, this album on MTM MUSIC is not that
interesting, unless you’re a fan swampy rootsy
Southern Rock with those raw vocals and slow songs that
make you feel like you’re in a hot desert in the
middle of nowhere, longing for a glass of water (or a
bottle filled with beer!). Only the first song “Never
another fight” rocks a little, as this is a great
uptempo 80s type of AOR/Radiorocker a la AXE, with a 38
SPECIAL riff. The rest is slow Southern Rock that sounds
quite average, but if you’re a fan of LYNYRD SKYNYRD
or MOLLY HATCHET, then this is your kind of band, but AOR
fans should stay away from this release...
(Points:
7.0 out of 10)
CLOSTERKELLER
‘GRAPHITE’
(METAL MIND RECORDS/BERTUS)
This band comes out of Poland, and they are HUGE in their
home country! They sold 500,000 copies, so then you’re
pretty big I think. Anyway, CLOSTERKELLER has already
released 10 albums the past 13 years, so they are
definitely not a new band, but it’s the first time I
heard about them through this new CD release ‘Graphite’.
They play a somewhat poppier approach of the immense
popular Gothic Metal style, and actually they remind me
of WITHIN TEMPTATION, yet with good DORO ish vocals. The
best songs are “Somewhere in between”, “The
mermaid”, “The ego game” and “Eve and
Adam”. A
recommended album if you’re into the typical Female
Fronted Gothic Rock/Metal!
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 3 WISHES ‘SHAKE BEFORE WELL
USE’ (TTS MEDIA MUSIC)
2 years ago we were surprised by a great debut CD of the
German band 3 WISHES. Well, now the band has released a
follow-up and although it’s another very good album,
it’s a little less sensational than their debut. The
main problem is that the band has chosen for a safe
typical German Melodic Hardrocksound a la BONFIRE and 80s
BON JOVI. Most of the songs are uptempo melodic rockers,
quite good, but nothing out of the ordinary here. On the
other hand that’s a good thing, because if you like
typical standard melodic rock with strong hooks and
catchy choruses, then this album is quite a pleasure to
listen to. 12 tracks are included, of which the first 3
and the last 3 are the highlights of the record. “Electric
bullride” starts the album, and this is a nice fun
uptempo melodic HR song a la BONFIRE. Next track “Lie
to me” is a great midtempo melodic rocker. “Never
say never” is a very catchy uptempo AOR/Melodic
Rocker in the BON JOVI 1983 style with the keys added for
perfection. In the same style we can find “Show me
the way” and “Ordinary man” (best song,
very good vocals). Closing track “Love don’t
lie” (great semi AOR ballad a la 80s REO SPEEDWAGON
ballads like “I can’t fight this feeling”)
is the final highlight of this rather good album. In
general, the sound and production of this new 3 WISHES is
much better than their debut and I can truly recommend it
to all AOR/Melodic Rockfans, but still the band’s
best songs so far can be found on their debut ‘Electric
bullride’ from 2001. Check out their site at: http://www.3-wishes.de and e-mail them at: contact@three-wishes.de
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 SHOOTING STAR ‘TONIGHT DVD’
(COW TOWN RECORDS)
The legendary AOR/Pomprockband SHOOTING STAR has released
a DVD, and it included a lot of interesting stuff. First
off, the DVD comes with the re-release of the band ‘s
latest effort ‘Leap of faith’, which contains 2
additional bonustracks (“Let’s roll” and
“Don’t walk away). The DVD itself contains a
live concert, recorded at the Ameristar Casino in Kansas
City on June 19th, 2002. The performance is quite good,
although both lead singers of SHOOTING STAR are not
always singing as good as they did 15-20 years ago. Also
the song selection is not outstanding, as nothing is
played from the band’s classic ‘Silent scream’,
nevertheless it’s nice to see the band performing
great songs like “If you want it” and “Last
chance” in front of a large audience. Also quite
nice to watch are the interviews with the bandmembers.
However, most interesting on this DVD are the 5 fantastic
Videoclips of the songs “Tonight”, “You’ve
got what I need”, “Summer sun” (the band’s
best tune), “It’s not over” and “Touch
me tonight”, which also showcases the different
styles the band played through the years, from classy
late 70s Pomprock, Progressive Rock, 80s AOR, SURVIVOR
ish material, KANSAS influenced stuff right to late 80s
90s American mainstream Melodic Hardrock a la
WHITESNAKE/DANGER DANGER and it was all done at a very
high level. Let’s hope in the future we will see
more new albums in the style of their impressive latest
CD release ‘Leap of faith’. More info at: http://www.shootingstarband.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP ‘ARACHNOPHOBIAC’
(MASCOT RECORDS)
Michael
Schenker doesn’t need any introduction, as the man
has been playing and making music since 1970, first with
the SCORPIONS, later with UFO, but best known for his
solorecords as MSG (MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP. Michael has
never had a real steady line-up, and especially the
change in lead singers is remarkable, with over 10 (!)
lead singers in 20 years, MSG just couldn’t find a
lead singer who could stay with the band for a long
period, except Robin McAuley who sang with Michael for 5
years. Anyway, the new record features lead singer Chris
Logan, who has got a soul vibe in his voice, a bit like
GLENN HUGHES. The music is back to the roots, which is
70s inspired UFO type of Melodic Heavy Rock. There’s
also some bluesy weaker material on the album, such as
“Into the sands of time” and “Weathervane”,
but the main deal here is good quality Melodic Heavy
Rock. Without a doubt, this is the best MSG album since
‘The Unforgiven’. Highlights are uptempo
melodic rockers like “Illusion” and “Break
the cycle”, the midtempo melodic rocker “Arachnophobiac”
(a la SCORPIONS) and the melodic rockballad “Over
now”. Concluded, finally MSG has released an
interesting good vocal album, recommended if you want to
hear some good old classic 70s Hardrock!
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 RICK RENSTROM ‘UNTIL THE BITTER
END’ (MASCOT RECORDS)
Here’s another amazing guitarist from the US of A.
His name is RICK RENSTROM and he has released an awesome
half vocal, half instrumental record filled with high
class Neo-Classical Melodic Metal. The instrumentals are
very well played, with as highlights uptempo pieces like
“Until the bitter end”, “Symphony #40”
(hello MALMSTEEN!), “The fire within” and
“Destiny’s call”. The vocal duties are
done by ROB ROCK (3 songs), MAT SINNER (1 song) and Wade
Black from SEVEN WITCHES/CRIMSON GLORY) on 1 song.
Additional musicians include bassists Stephen Elder,
Brian Gloddle and Mat Sinner, keyboardplayers Mistheria
and Ferdy Doernberg from AXEL RUDI PELL and ROUGH SILK,
while Richard Christy from ICED EARTH/DEATH did the
drumming. The CD is from start to finish high class
Melodic Metal, instrumental and vocally, in the style of
MALMSTEEN, PELL, IMPELLITERRI, ROB ROCK... If we listen
to the vocal songs, the highlights are the tracks where
ROB ROCK is singing, as his voice is really terrific, and
Melodic Metalsongs like “Kingdom for ransom”,
“Victim’s paradise” and “The king”
are good examples. Also “Towers of babylon” and
“Calling on vengeance” are great uptempo
Melodic Metal songs. Concluded, this record is a must if
you’re a fan of any of the mentioned acts, and Rick
is definitely someone to watch out for in the future!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
CONQUEST
OF STEEL
‘STADIUMS OF STEEL ‘ (SPLIT CD PROMO)
The demo CDR I received from the label NO FACE RECORDS
contains 2 bands, EVANESCE and CONQUEST OF STEEL. The
first band is not interesting, as this is Hardcore, but
CONQUEST OF STEEL is very interesting on the other hand.
The 4 songs on this split CD are classy 80s Melodic Metal
like MANOWAR meets JACK STARR meets IRON MAIDEN, with
some very good vocals. The best songs are “Born in
hell” and “Wenches can be warriors”. Later
this year there will be a full-length album for CONQUEST
OF STEEL, but in the meantime this demo CDR is a nice
sneak-preview of things to come! More info at: http://www.conquestofsteel.co.uk and e-mail them at: band@conquestofsteel.co.uk
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
PARALLAXE ‘PARALLAXE’
(DEMO)
6 long tracks are on the debut demo CDR of the French
band PARALLAXE. This band is playing instrumental
Progressive Rock/Metal of a very high level. The CDR
takes up to 60 minutes and it’s really a pleasure to
listen to such a quality record. If you’re a fan of
instrumental Prog. Rock/Metal you will love such songs
like the 17 minutes counting closing track “Indian”
and “Acousmatique”. Check it out for yourself
at: http://parallaxemusic@free.fr and e-mail them at: parallaxemusic@free.fr
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
PARADICE ‘PAIN AND PLEASURE’
(INDEPENDENT)
The Swedish Glamrockband PARADICE sent me a 4-track CDR.
The band has a raw female lead singer called MAGDALENA
who reminds me of BITCH/BETSY. The music is also raw
Hardrock with a 80s approach, like a mix between
BITCH/BETSY and early LITA FORD. None of the 4 songs
stand out, but on the other hand they are nice to listen
to. The songs are titled “Bad girl”, “Pain
and pleasure”, “Rock and roll” and “Tear
up the night”, 4 straight-ahead uptempo
Hardrocksongs like HEADPINS/BETSY. More info on this band
at: http://listen.to/paradice and e-mail them at: karl@paradice.zzn.com
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 REST IN PEACE ‘EVILUTION’
(BRENNUS RECORDS)
‘Evilution’ is the second CD of the French band
REST IN PEACE. They play very impressive Melodic
Progressive Metal like a mix between ROYAL HUNT and early
EUROPE. The band has a very good lead singer called Eric
Bevilacqua and their new album contains 13 well performed
tracks. “The child and the dolphin” starts the
CD quite well, as this is a great uptempo melodic heavy
rocker that combine 80s elements with today’s Metal
formats, and it has a strong catchy melodic chorus. The
next tune “Another rebirth” has some heavy
riffs and nice hammond work, but again features also
excellent melodies and is just a well-constructed
Progressive Metal tune (a la DREAM THEATER). “Widekind”
follows and is a great uptempo Progressive Metal like
BALANCE OF POWER, yet a level lower. Then comes one of
the best tracks, namely the fantastic Melodic Progressive
Metal song “Diary of a merchant man: part 2”
which sounds a bit like SYMPHONY X. The CD continues in a
rather good steady Progressive Metal style with one of
the highlights being the “The werewolf trilogy”.
Concluded, REST IN PEACE is yet another interesting high
quality band from France!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 DEAFENING SILENCE ‘EDGE OF LIFE’
(BRENNUS RECORDS)
This French band is clearly influenced by HELLOWEEN, so
what we get to hear on their debut is fast uptempo happy
Power Metal with strong high melodic vocals. The first
song “Deafening silence” is a very good
example, fast, melodic with excellent guitarsolo’s
and remarkable are the very impressive lead vocals by
singer Julien Milbach. In the same style is “The
black swansong”, very HELLOWEEN orientated, but
because of the strong vocals no doubt that it is a true
gem! Some might find it cliche, but also the following
tracks “Heavenly dream” and “Edge of life”
are very good faster uptempo HELLOWEEN melodic metal
pieces. And actually the rest of the CD continues in this
tyle, with as other highlights “Eden”, “Save
my soul” and “Terror and despair”. I can
easily conclude that this is a great band, recommended to
HELLOWEEN/EDGUY fans, and especially the fantastic lead
singer is giving this band a positive touch.
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
KAIZER ‘VICIOUS CIRCLE’
(DEVIL LYNCH RECORDS)
They come out of Japan, but they play European orientated
Melodic (Power) Hardrock/Metal. KAIZER is musically also
not far away from CONCERTO MOON, and MALMSTEEN influences
can also be heard. Anyway, the band released this CD
sometime ago, but after a few spins I knew that it should
be included here, as the CD of KAIZER is of a very high
level. This is quality Power Metal, not only the
production is very impressive, but also the songs are
catchy and very melodic, while instrumental everything
sounds perfect (pure MALMSTEEN) and even vocally it’s
pretty good, with of course high pitched lead and
harmonyvocals (TNT style). Concluded, this is a highly
recommended band, and the best songs on the band’s
only (?) CD are opener “Human wings” (faster
uptempo Melodic Power Metal), “Worry of love”
(uptempo Melodic Heavy Rocker like DOKKEN meets EUROPE),
“Purgatory” (great midtempo Melodic Metal) and
“Burning blood” (best song, fantastic catchy
uptempo Melodic Power Metal). So, this KAIZER is yet
another excellent Japanese Metalband. More info at: http://www.devillynchrecords.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 ZEBRA ‘4’ (FRONTIERS
RECORDS/BERTUS)
It took 17 years before the legendary band ZEBRA released
their 4th album ‘4’, but on July the 7th 2003
the Italian label FRONTIERS RECORDS will release their
album. Musically nothing has changed, and so Randy
Jackson and company continue making their own brand of
Melodic groovy Rock/Hardrock. This album sounds like a
mix between RUSH, LED ZEPPELIN and BAD COMPANY, but it’s
best recommended to those who enjoyed the band’s
previous 3 releases. Although I was never a huge fan of
the band, I can not deny that this is a quality release.
The music is pure ZEBRA, not as AOR based as their 3rd
record ‘3.V’, but still a great Rockalbum.
Highlights include uptempo rockers like “Arabian
nights”, “Light of my love” and “Free”
(pure 70s), the midtempo “Why” and the
semi-ballad “A world that is learning”. Well,
this is definitely a fine release for the ZEBRA fans, as
it easily can compete with the 3 other releases of the
band. However, for melodic rockfans it’s something a
little different than the usual stuff and therefore I
would prefer to give it a listen first. Nevertheless,
this is good return of ZEBRA!
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 MICHAEL SEMBELLO ‘THE LOST YEARS’
(FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
MICHAEL SEMBELLO will always be remembered as a one-day
hit wonder who scored his only hitsingle “Maniac”
in 1983, but the man did so much more, although mainly in
the popscene. However, in the year 2003 MICHAEL SEMBELLO
has released a pure AOR/Westcoast album on FRONTIERS
RECORDS. Musically this CD of him is very much 80s AOR,
like JOHN WAITE, STAN BUSH, RICHARD MARX etc. It’s
not heavy, but very melodic and rocking enough for the
average AOR fan. Especially the first track “Love
doesn’t live here anymore” is high class 80s
midtempo AOR in the style of STARSHIP, MARK FREE, MICHAEL
MORALES... The rest of the CD is a little less pure AOR,
and even contains some pure Pop orientated material (like
“Heavy weather”, “One planet, one people”,
new version of “Maniac”), but nevertheless
there’s some really good stuff on ‘The lost
years’, such as the following songs: “Tear down
the walls” (midtempo AOR, duet with JEFF PARIS), the
TOTO ballad “Black rain”, “What you really
want” (uptempo 80s AOR/FM-rocker) and “Burn it
up” (uptempo poprocker a la “Maniac”).
Concluded, about 6 tracks of the 12 included are highly
recommended to the AOR fans, but be aware that there’s
also some pure Pop stuff on this record! On the other
hand, it’s a total must if you like 80s artists such
as JAY GRUSKA, MICHAEL ZEE, DAVID ROBERTS, JOHN O’BANION...
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
ERIC
MARTIN
‘PURE’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
Last year ERIC MARTIN released a new solo-CD, and already
now he has a new one out on FRONTIERS RECORDS. The album
is titled ‘Pure’ and is actually a mini-CD,
although the playing length is still 36 minutes, with 8
included tracks and an additional videoclip of the song
“Fly”. That particular song is by the way one
of Eric’s best songs since the ERIC MARTIN BAND
release ‘Sucker for a pretty face’, a great
uptempo melodic poprocker with a catchy chorus. The
remaining 7 songs on the audio CD are acoustic versions
of songs of Eric from his entire career, from the early
beginning (ERIC MARTIN BAND), MR. BIG to his
solo-records. Songs from all decades are included here in
acoustic versions, nicely done, but I am moreover looking
forward to a future CD release of Eric with Melodic
Poprock in the style of “Fly” or his debut as
the ERIC MARTIN BAND in 1983, which is still his best
effort 20 years later now.
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 BRAZEN ABBOT ‘GUILTY AS SIN’
(SPV)
Finally, after 6 years of waiting, a new BRAZEN ABBOT CD
is released. The long-awaited 4th CD of the Bulgarian
composer/multi-instrumentalist NIKOLO KOTZEV continues
the same Classic Melodic Hardrocksound of the previous
records. Also again we can enjoy the vocals of such
excellent lead singers like JOE LYNN TURNER (RAINBOW,
DEEP PURPLE), GORAN EDMAN (STREET TALK, MALMSTEEN) and
JORN LANDE (MASTERPLAN, MILLENIUM). Together with the
instrumental perfection of Nikolo Kotzev, this BRAZEN
ABBOT CD is as good as the 3 previous released. Nikolo
composed, produced, mixed and mastered the ‘Guilty
of sin’ record at his own Nitrax Studios in
Mariehamn on Aland, Finland (the same small island where
the label LION MUSIC is situated), and the result is
impressive, because the 12 included tracks sound awesome,
making this a true gem in the style of RAINBOW and
MALMSTEEN. Highlights include melodic rockers like “One
life to live”, “Slip away” (fantastic
chorus!), “Mr. Earthman” (RAINBOW meets DEEP
PURPLE), “Bring the colors home” (semi-ballad)
and “Supernatural”. Concluded, this release is
a must for all BRAZEN ABBOT/NOSTRADAMEUS fans! Expect an
interview with leader NIKOLO KOTZEV soon...
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 RAMOS ‘LIVING IN THE
LIGHT’
(FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
Late July will see the release of the first RAMOS CD, an
album that will appeal mostly to THE STORM/TWO FIRES
fans. The music of RAMOS is pure AOR in THE STORM style,
with the additional fact that leader of the band is
guitarist JOSH RAMOS, who played in afforementioned
bands. Anyway, ‘Living in the light’ contains
12 tracks and is from start to finish an excellent AOR
record in the best 80s tradition, yet with an updated
sound, so it doesn’t sound dated at all. The lead
singer of RAMOS is MARK WEITZ, a great singer who sang
previously with ODIN, MALICE and EYES. The CD was
produced by KELLY HANSEN from HURRICANE, and he did a
great job! The CD is featuring a great mix of uptempo,
midtempo and (semi) ballads, all in the AOR style, like
THE STORM, but also comparisons to SURVIVOR and JOURNEY
are notable. Best songs are “Living in the light”
(fantastic HUGE AOR a la ALIAS, THE STORM), “Don’t
go” (great semi AOR Ballad), “Seize the day”
(HAREM SCAREMish catchy uptempo melodic rocker), “The
dream is alove” (great AOR ballad like FREDDY CURCI
fronting SURVIVOR/JOURNEY), “Tell me why”
(lovely high class uptempo AOR), “You’re so far
away” (awesome semi AOR ballad). So, all AOR fans
should purchase this CD as soon as it is released late
July!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
AVIARY
‘AMBITION’
(AV RECORDS)
In the 1970s a band named AVIARY went on to become a big
name in the Underground scene. Their only LP release on
SONY MUSIC was loved by many, but never became a big
success. In 2001 the album was re-issued onto CD after
being hard to get as vinyl release for 22 years. Recently
LANA LANE covered one of AVIARY’s tunes, and because
of all this renewed interest in the band, a new CD of
AVIARY was released. The CD is titled ‘Ambition’
and it contains material recorded between 1975 and 1979,
so in the 4 years before the album release. Musically it
is in the same vein as their debut, so a mix of Pomprock,
Progressive Rock and Theatrical Popmusic, combining vocal
harmonies, exceptional lyrics with a sense of humour, big
keyboard and guitarsounds into a big epic sound that
sounded like an unique mix between QUEEN, STYX and YES
with a late 60s BEATLES influence here and there. This CD
is a must for anyone who likes AVIARY, and even though
everything was recorded between 1975 and 1979, it doesn’t
sound dated at all, and more importantly, the production
and sound quality of the CD is very impressive.
Highlights are “The sun, the sand” (great 70s
Pomprock at it’s best), “You” (very good
uptempo AOR/Pomprocker), “Desert songs/Pharaohs
March” (11 minutes counting Progressive Rock with a
YES influence), “Yes and no” (pure early 70s
QUEEN) and “I should of known” (pure 70s
Pomprock). Concluded, this is a must for all
Pomprockfreaks and AVIARY/STYX/QUEEN fans! More info at: http://www.bradlove.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
JEFF SCOTT SOTO ‘LIVE AT THE GODS
2002 DVD’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
If you’ve read the CD version of this Live recording
by JEFF SCOTT SOTO, you will already know what is on this
DVD, as the recording is the same as on the CD version,
just like HAREM SCAREM, which was the first release of a
serie of DVD’s to follow after last year’s
‘Gods of AOR’ festival in the UK. JEFF SCOTT
SOTO’s release is the 2nd DVD, and like I said the
recording is the same as on the CD version, with of
course the difference that this is a DVD, so you can
watch the entire show Jeff did back at the Gods. The
concert is of course a great deal of fun to watch, as
many of Jeff’s past songs are played, ranging from
TAKARA, TALISMAN, EYES, his solo stuff right to the
MALMSTEEN 2nd album ‘Marching out’ on which
Jeff started his career as a 17-year old boy! Now almost
20 years later the performances of these MALMSTEEN
classics (and of course the rest of the setlist) is very
impressive, with Jeff’s vocals still being superb,
but also compliments to Jeff’s backing band which
include bassist GARY SCHUTT, guitarist Howie Simon and
drummer Alex Papa. Anyway, besides the performance, this
DVD also includes some extra goodies that are quite fun
to watch. 2 Videos are included, “Eyes of love”
and “Holding on”, both excellent quality videos
of 2 fantastic AOR/Melodic Rocksongs, probably the best
of Jeff’s latest solo-CD. Also a good laugh is the
extra behind-the-scenes parts and last but not least, an
interview of 75 minutes (!) with Jeff and co. Concluded,
this DVD is offering a lot for the fans of JEFF SCOTT
SOTO, so get it a.s.a.p.!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
 MORDIGGAN ‘METAMORPHOSE’
(BRENNUS RECORDS)
MORDIGGAN from France feature a male and a female singer.
The male singer (Jerome) is able to sing well, but who
really shines on this CD is the fantastic female lead
singer (Sophie), who also happens to play Flute. Her
voice is very impressive and I hope she can sing
everything on future albums of MORDIGGAN. The music
included here is very good Melodic Prog/Power Heavy
Rock/Metal in the style of VANDENPLAS, SILENT EDGE and
SHADOW GALLERY. All the songs are duets between the male
and female singer, and although I prefer the female
singer, none of the songs is really weak, and so it is a
pleasure to listen to the 10 included tracks on ‘Metamorphose’.
Higlights are “Devenir”, “Peur de vide”,
“Retour du mal”, “Que la lumiere soit”,
“Viking” and “Dieu du tonnerre”, but
actually all songs are great. The female singer steals
the show here, and therefore I can recommended this CD to
all fans of Female Fronted Rock/Metal, but also
Prog/Power Metalfans might want to check out this band.
They sound like VANDENPLAS meets HEADLINE, yet with duets
between a nice male singer and a fantastic female singer.
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 AWACKS ‘ATMOSPHERE 136’
(BRENNUS RECORDS)
BRENNUS
RECORDS has been profiling themselves lately with a bunch
of very impressive new CD releases. Most of the band come
from France, and AWACKS is no exception to the rule,
because also their album (the 2nd CD) ‘Atmosphere
136’ is a very good release. This band released
their debut back in 1999, a more AOR based release, while
their new album is more or less a mix of 80s Euro Melodic
heavy rock/metal and today’s Prog Metal, not unlike
MANIGANCE. Vocally it is clearly with an accent, but
still Crok is able to sing quite well. The sound and
production of the CD is pretty good and so I can conclude
again that this AWACKS is yet another recommended French
band! Back to their CD, where we can note as highlights
the songs “Strange world” (good faster uptempo
80s Melodic Heavy rocker a la PRETTY MAIDS/MAD MAX),
“Des milliers d’ames” (great midtempo
melodic rocker, 80s Euro sound with great keys), “Reveille”
(strong midtempo semi-progressive melodic heavy rocker a
la MANIGANCE), “Autoir de toi” (best song,
excellent faster ruptempo melodic heavy metal) and
closing track “10:10 PM” (another great fast
uptempo melodic heavy rocker). So, AWACKS is another
recommended French band!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 SED LEX ‘DE VIRIS’
(BRENNUS RECORDS)
This French band is playing pure 80s Melodic Heavy Rock
like so many German bands did back then. We can hear
comparisons to MAD MAX, CANNON, TALON, PRETTY MAIDS etc.
The vocals are unfortunately not that strong, especially
the big accent is notable. The CD takes up to 70 minutes,
and although the music is quite nice to listen to, I
think this release is not as good as the other new
BRENNUS RECORDS releases. The album has it’s
highlights, such as “Foundations of a dream”
(epic melodic rockballad with keyboardsolo), “Carrousel”
(good midtempo melodic heavy rocker) and “Fear of
the dark” (uptempo melodic heavy rocker). But sadly
the main conclusion we can make that this is not an
outstanding release, but more or less a standard release
that will only appeal to fans of mentioned bands.
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
(All
reviews by Gabor Kleinbloesem, except where noted)
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