Archived Reviews: # A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Reviews Index
MTM Music 1996
Review by 
After being blow away by the last Harlan Cage album and the Fortune album, I was really anxious to hear their first effort. Thanks to Magnus at MTM, I am now a proud owner of it. I have been giving it some serious spinning, and while it is not quite as good as "Double Medication Tuesday", it's a very remarkable release nevertheless. Out of the thirteen songs on the album only a few didn't fill my high expectations. Granted, it took a few listens to fully appreciate the album, but it was worth it.
Much of the elments that I liked on "DMS" are already evident here, like the excellent keyboards, dramatic arrangements and of course L.A. Greene's unique voice. They have also re-recorded an old Fortune song ("98 In The Shade") for this album, like they did for "DMS" and are planning to do for the forthcoming album "Forbidden Colours" too. The highlights are newly-written songs though, "Pay The Devil His Due", "Three Nights Running", "Too Much" and the awesome ballads "Kiss Of Fools" and "Sweet Salvation" are all brilliant tracks. It is only the closing trio of "Takin' Out The Trash", "Silver Wings" and "Let It Rain" along with the rather average "Run Rebel Run" which fail to impress me - Had they been left out (or replaced with Fortune songs), we might have another five-star album!
HARLAN CAGE: "Double Medication Tuedsay"
MTM Music 1998
This is pure AOR heaven from the first track to the last, with all
the necessary elements: passionate vocals, soaring keyboards, thundering
guitars and above all, great songs! There is something really special
in most of these songs, something that can not be explained - it just
has to be heard!
What's really admirable is the fact that this band has a quite unique
sound. The closest comparison could be a heavier Journey mixed with
early Bon Jovi, with a touch of Magnum. Take those ingredients, stir,
and you might have something that's not too far from this album. Or
not...
But the songs... they simply are suberb. "Blow Wind Blow" is a magnificent
opener, that instantly draws the listeners' attention with a dramatic
guitar riff. By the time L.A.Greene's vocals cut in, you should be hooked... and
by the second chorus you might find yourself singing along! "Halfway
Home" is a bit heavier, but not any less brilliant. Great keyboards
courtesy of Roger Scott Graig, just like on "Lola's In Love", which
is slightly remiscent of early Bon Jovi. "Solitary Dance" is the only
weak track here. It's an understated balladic number that isn't too
bad on its own, but somehow it sounds a bit lame next to the other
tracks.
"My Mama Said" leads us back to the Pomp City, with more dramatic melodies
than you could ask for. "Dearborn Station" is a brilliant blast from
the past, a remake of a track by Fortune, Greene's and Graig's former
band. "Defend Of This Heart Of Mine" is another killer tune with an
unbelieveble chorus. It may sound crazy, but the chorus melody reminds
me a lot of some Euro-dance-pop songs like E-Type's "Angels Crying"
- anthemic and irrestably catchy! Now there's a potential single for
you...
The rest of the tracks pretty much follow the same lines: highly dramatic
melodies and powerful arrangements. "As You Are" is a bit of a departure
though, a ballad that reminds me of Foreigner or Eddie Money. It's a
classic in the making, and another potential hit single. There's a certain
familiarity about it, which I believe would make it easy for the radio
programmers to add it to their playlists. At least I could easily imagine
it being played on the radio stations here.
Review by
MTM 1999
Review by
In today's music business, where bands come and go and bandwagons are being jumped on, Harlan Cage are a rare exception. They have stuck to their guns and constantly provided us excellent AOR albums. "Forbidden Colours" is their third album (fourth if you count the Fortune album too), and again they have succeeded. Their previous album "Double Medication Tuesday" scored full points on my scale, and "Colours" isn't far behind. If you liked "DMT", there's no way that you'd be unhappy with "Colours". The only complaint I have heard from anyone is that it sounds too much like its predecessor. It's true to an extent, but considering the fact that "DMT" was one of the best albums of the last few years, I can't really hold it against them.
The first five songs of the album leave very little to be desired. Songs like the awesome "Chinatown", "No Sunday Bride" and "Thrill Of It All" (a remake of the Fortune classic) are some of the finest ones Harlan Cage have ever written. Yes, this is pure AOR heaven: a bit like Foreigner or Journey, but more dramatic and powerful.
The rest of the album isn't quite as breathtaking, just standard quality Harlan Cage material. The likes of "A Little Rain", the ballad "Making My Way Back To You" and "Late Night Escapades" would easily be standout tracks on a lesser album, but here they are against some tough competition. I must add though, that there isn't a song here I'd call a filler.
Target Records 2002
Review by
17 April 2002
First release from Atenzia, the new swedish label led by A&R guru Magnus Söderqvist (ex-MTM Music) is the fourth album from my old favourites Harlan Cage. Two of their three previous albums rank among my all-time favourites ("Double Medication Tuesday" and "Forbidden Colours"), so I was naturally quite excited about this release. "So, was it worth the wait", you ask? Most definitely! It may not match the brilliance of the previous two albums, but it's still a very good album, with several tracks that should please old Harlan Cage fans and newly converted ones alike.
The album is kicked off with a couple of very "classic Harlan Cage"-sounding tracks, "Any Port In A Storm" and "Wooden Cross". Both are equipped with dangerously big hooks, just like all the best Harlan Cage songs tend to be. Familiar sounding, but great nevertheless.
"On The Nickel" sees the band taking a turn into another direction. This song has a solid "classic rock" sound, the guitar playing reminds me of Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing", and there's a honkytonk-like piano solo in there somewhere too! This one might be the band's ticket to the classic rock radio playlists...
"Just A Face In The Rain" is a highly melodic AOR track, kinda lightweight yet with a chorus that has a sort of an urgent feel to it. It melts into "One New York Morning", a typical, dramatic Harlan Cage track. HC's approach suits the theme of the lyrics very well - and no points for guessing which New York Morning they are singing about...
"In My Neighborhood" and "Sin City" are both hard-edged, quite straight-forward rockers which are okay, but I prefer the more melodic and dramatic tracks. "Deep In The Heart Of The Night" is just that, featuring pulsating keyboards from Roger Scott Craig and a top-notch performance from vocalist L.A. Greene. This track continues the tradition of re-recorded Fortune tracks (the roots of HC are in a band called Fortune, who released one album on MCA back in the mid-eighties, and HC have featured one track from that album on each one of theirs. Six to go, right?)
"As You Fly" is the ballad of the album, not bad but not one of the band's finest. "Later Than You Know" is another cool moody rocker, while the closing number "We Belong" represents the lighter side of the band. It has a kind of a "world-embracing" chorus that really doesn't work for me.
All in all, for me the album lost some of its' appeal after the first half, as most of the latter songs simply didn't do it for me. But still, there's more than a few great songs here, exceptionally well performed and produced, I might add!
Footnote: This CD is one of those that will not play on your computer. Protecting copyrights is one thing, but this kind of protection doesn't make the life of a common listener any easier...
www.harlancage.com
SPV 2003
Review by 
26 September 2003
And the price to tackiest front cover of the year goes to Germany's Harmful with their "Sanguine" album. The display of a woman's crotch in the grand tradition of fellow germans Scorpions, is truly the living proof of "it doesn't take much intelligence to be a rock musician" (or a reviewer for that matter, but that's a different story).
You can't help to wonder about the mindstorming discussion which lead to the use of this particular picture. I guess they couldn't come up with the idea of letting the lassie pose with pants and in a somewhat "normal" position huh? Well the cardigan is indeed sanguine and that's all that matters after all.
OK, enough rambling already! This is the 5:th album release by Harmful and the first at their new record label. They are by the way careful to point out that Harmful are not the new "wild boys" who've just jumped on the bandwagon of the latest rock hype. I wouldn't exactly call this kind of music the latest thing either. It's rather ten years after its time with strong resamblance to Helmet, Nirvana, Unsane, and some Noise. The guitar sound is worse than your drunken neighbours garage band. Then again what else to expect when even major, printed, rock magazines proclaim Kurt Cobain as a great guitarist!!!??? He sure could write some songs but play guitar? I don't think so! "Overfed" is very much songwriting in the tradition of Cobain and the result is not bad at all really. "Desert Of Mistakes" rawks in a weird way and "Custom Cold" is back to the Nirvana days again. The overall songwriting is very uninspiring though and you can't help to nod off every now and then. You're waiting for the refrain to kick in and every time you'll simply have to walk away disappointed. Like a second rate Helmet/Nirvana with not too many "sing-a-long-songs" (not that I believe harmful to want any of those either).
www.spv.de
Indie 2001
Review by Endre "Bandi" Hübner
30 January 2002
The demo by this Detroit area project is so good that it could have easily made it to our "reviews" section where they could have been compared to the "big boys" out there. Anyway, this is just an independent demo on a CD-R and unfortunately neither the band's website, nor the promo material contains any information if it is available anywhere. A crying shame because fans of high quality progressive rock ala Dream Theater or Queensryche but even fans of more AOR-ish sounding bands like Asia or CITA most definitely need to check them out.
The band's sound is characterized by Joseph Czentar and Dominic Margitan's dual guitar work, and their collaboration seems to be working so well that it reminds me of the classic Queensryche line-up with DeGarmo and Wilton. However my favorite tracks were the more AOR-ish sounding ones with some Southern touch (especially as far as the bluesy sounding guitar scales go). "Watch Me Fly" with its twin-guitar opening and "No Question Why" with soulful vocal melodies by Jami Avedisian were my personal favorites but "Rising Sun" or the opening "New Skies" would make any Queensryche or Dream Theater fan happy for sure. The band successfully shifts between a male and a female vocalist according to the feeling of the track, the balladesque, AOR-ish tracks are usually female fronted, the uptempo progressive rock tracks are male fronted by Pat Curry who does a decent job all through the album.
The rest of the musicians aren't behind either and the sound and overall production of the album is just far beyond my expectations when playing an indie release. The album could end up in any record store just as is. Make sure to check the soundbytes at www.harmony-park.com and some A&R man please take the time to take a look at these people, they deserve it for sure! With a little more professional management we could at least hope for a CD available.
LionMusic 2003
Review by
28 November 2003
Nope, I did not forget about the "l" in worlds!!! The "confusing" title may have something to do with this being the first solo album by Michael Harris, with vocals included. I guess the ex-Tyrant, Arch Rival, Chastain member, finally had enough after four all instrumental guitar albums and decided to add some lyrics this time.
No need to search for a singer with major ego problems, when you can simply do it yourself, Harris probably thought and went ahead in the studio. You can make sure that he handles all guitars and bass as usual and only brother Brian, was allowed to enter the studio with his drum kit of course.
Harris describes "Words Collide" as his most time consuming, difficult, yet most rewarding recording session ever. I'm not sure why? but he also seem to take proud in the fact, that no keyboards were used either? I must say that those missing keyboards would probably have been useful and not to mention, they would have added another dimension to the overall "progressive" material. I actually prefer the instrumental tracks after all and especially "Prosthetic Brain", is very uplifting with lots of clever guitar work. It's prog/fusion/jazz into one lovely mixture and both Satch & Hammer comes to mind. The bonus track "Coffee With Mozart" is another instro track with some killer guitar work. "Mandy Slang" is borderline rock/jazz and it's not that far from David Lee Roth (ex-Van Halen), and his latest efforts. Boring as crap according to some, while others will find it to be rather "cool" stuff. Let's just say that Roth hasn't been doing anything worth mentioning, for the last 10 years or so. The epic track "Battle Fatigue" is ten minutes (give or take) of "progressive" metal, with lots of complex chords and sudden changes of pace. It's like a rollercoaster ride with some truly impressive moves and flashy outakes by Harris. Nevertheless, you need to be a complete prog/fusion nut, to get into some of these tracks. And honestly... I can't see this reaching a broader audience at all really. The "die-hards" will always find something to believe in though. Final verdict: killer guitarist with lots of wa**ing material and not too many "real" songs.
www.lionmusic.com
Frontiers/Now&Then Productions 2001
13 August 2001
There hasn't been too many female-fronted acts signed to the Frontiers/Now & Then union, so Haven must be something else, right? Well, I don't know about that, all I know is that they are eighties' style melodic hard rock act led by a young lady by the name of Pamme. The other members of the band are multi-instrumentalist Michael Brody and guitarist John Vanselow. There are a couple of notable quests here as well, drummer Matt Sorum of Guns'n Roses and vocalist Robin McAuley of MSG fame.
The songs on this album are like "echoes from the eighties", reminding me not only of the big names like Heart and Lita Ford, but also of such cult acts as Red Siren, Harlow and the aforementioned Becker. Some songs worth checking out are the moody opener "The Curtain", the melodic and catchy "Can You Hear Us", the beautiful ballads "Face The Day" and "Someday Soon" and the trio of uptempo rockers: "Show Them", "Hold On" (not...again?) and "Forgiveness", which remind me of Lita Ford at her best. A couple of less than impressive numbers have slipped in but overall the songs are good.
The one thing that I can't really get to grips with are the vocals. Pamme is a capable vocalist, sounding a lot like the christian AOR vocalist Margaret Becker, but she tends to sing in a high register that seems to put a strain to her voice. Here and there it sounds like she really is "suffering for her art" - gotta wonder whether this is good for her voice in the long run. A bit more relaxed style of singing might have pushed my rating up a notch...
Mardi Gras Records 2001 (Indie)
Review by
18 February 2002
This interestingly titled CD contains 7 songs from an Italian hard rock trio. Alex "Midnight" Moschini is the leader of the band I guess, he's the bassist/vocalist of the band and the writer of the two original songs here. Other members are guitarist Massimo Bianchi and Andrea Roventini.
What becomes obvious very fast when listening to this CD is that this band needs a) a real producer, b) a real vocalist and c) more orginal songs. I mean, what's the point of releasing a 7-track CD with 5 covers (Two Kiss tunes, Zeppelin, Slade, Cinderella), none of which are nowhere near as good as the orginals? And all this with a very basic production, average lead vocals and very weak backing vocals! Maybe the CD will be useful when trying to sell the band to do some cover gigs, but I don't think that this will bring them a record deal! It's a shame really, since the two original songs here aren't too bad, and the band isn't that bad either, especially the guitar work is quite good. I sincerely hope they concentrate on their own songs the next time around, and think about recruiting a vocalist.
Website: http://hazenet.tripod.com
NTS 2003
Review by 
1 November 2003
Duality is the third studio album from the French band Headline. They walk the wire between classic metal and progressive. One of the main features here is that they are one of the few proggie bands out there with a female vocalist, namely Sylvie Grare.
Duality deals lyrically with anger, and even not being a concept album you can see a certain relation among songs. Musically, they try to keep a balance between classic metal and proggier sounds, not too complex to be followed. They remind me of Queensr˙che at places. Sylvie Grare's voice sounds alike Doro Pesch on lower registries, whilst on her higher notes she might get closer to more melodic female vocalists. The performances are quite good and Didier Chesnau's (guitarist) songwriting proves to be interesting enough to keep you entertained while listening and don't get bored at maybe the second or third track. And that's more than many proggie bands out there can say. Highlights here are Exorcise Me (that works quite good live), Bereft Of Sky, (a Beethoven inspired track), For Those Who Die, one of the few tracks on the album not written by Chesnau, or Insanity. The second half of the album leans more on the proggie side, whilst the first tracks are more balanced in style as stated above, thus tracks like Farewell, My own Life or Replay, may be a bit hard to listen to for non-proggie heads.
Production is reasonably good and the sound mix is fair enough, with all the elements well balanced into it. This album may not be the one to endure in your memory, as it seems to be the case of "listen to it, enjoy it, then forget about it". Don't get me wrong, this ain't a bad album, (just a bit on the ordinary side), and if you are a fan of light progressive metal ala Queensr˙che and/or fan of Doro, you may give this album a try. The special double edition also contains a multimedia CD with videos, and several other contents for the fans.
Escape on the line
HEART: "Alive in Seattle" 9
Epic 2003
4 October 2003
Who's the best, most creative, most beautiful female guitarist ever? ... Who said Lita?! Leave the hall, please! :) ... Here we are in 2003 and there's another sign of life from the Wilson sisters, the most influential ladies of rock history. As we are talking about female artists I'm not gonna mention how many years are gone since "Dreamboat Annie" but we've all grown from little children to crazy old rock dinosaurs in the mean time. "Rock The House Live" was a long time ago, so why not release another live album?! Great idea, I'd say and the girls didn't fail to impress this time either.
This double CD tries to showcase songs from all stages of their career but obviously fails in that attempt. Instead of a well- picked best of, we get a concert with a wonderful atmosphere recorded in their home-town Seattle with an enthusiastic (and considerable sized!) crowd. The best part of the whole thing may be the long acoustic set of the first CD beginning with "Mistral Wind", carrying on with a soulful acoustic version of their smash-hit "Alone", featuring the immortal "Dog & Butterfly", the song with one of the most beautiful melodies ever and with a very soulful vocal performance by both of the sisters. Elton John's "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" is a very welcome addition, just like "Battle of Evermore". The non-acoustic highlight of the first disc would be a beautifully arranged version of "These Dreams" that features over the top lead and backing vocal performances.
The second disc gives a little insight into new material with "Heaven", a really moody track and with "Two Faces of Eve"; then concentrates on the classics like "Break the Rock", "Barracuda", or "Wild Child". The performance is top quality as usual. Why not a perfect 10 then? I know it's almost impossible to please me but I can't forgive a Heart concert without "What About Love" or "Stranded"(!) or "All I Wanna Do is Make Love to You" or "Who Will You Run To" or ... or ... or; and "The Woman in Me" or "Under the Sky" would have helped to turn it into a 10 too. So all you guys and girls of my generation out there, forget about my little 9 pointer revenge, and buy this album, you won't regret it!
Eagle 2004
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
30 May 2004
This is one huge-step-back (without going full circle) to the sound of "Dreamboat Annie", "Dog And Butterfly" and most of their 70's stuff actually. Don't expect to find anything as fluffy as "Alone", or any of their AOR-inspired music in the past. "Jupiter's Darling" comes hardly as a surprise for the fans... when you look back at the last ten year period of time. The Wilson sisters has mostly been playing around with acoustic rock and the Lovemongers project.
Ehem... the slightly "hippie" inspired title will certainly give away some clues. It's all very acoustic, cozy, and perhaps without those major hit songs of the 80's/90's. Does it stink??? absolutely not!!! and I'll never grow tired of listening to Ann Wilson by the way. Have you noticed how posh reviewers always enjoy to label her as "the best FEMALE vocalist out there". Is there such a thing??? What a stupid and ignorent comment!!! In my opinion she's one of the best singers of rock music, period! [she's got more balls than most hacks and wannabees anyway].
There are as many as eighteen tracks included and they could easily have left of 5-6 of them. Now it's a bit of a drag at times and it's all too folky somehow. I don't mind the mellow stuff at times, but there's unfortunately too many of them. Opening track "Make Me" are one of those laidback, acoustic songs, which happens to be a real winner this time. The marvelous Ann sings her heart (heh!) out and it's all down to passion and groove. Sister Nancy gets "Oldest Story In The World", started with a wicked riff and its one of few "real" uptempo tracks. "Things" is a folky hootenanny tune, which really escape to impress me. "Perfect Goodbye" and "Enough" are two more softies, where especially the latter is a fine Led Zep inspired ballad. "I Need The Rain" is a lovely little ballad about those clouds in the sky, which can make you feel melancholy? (at least according to Ann). A simple song really with some truly inspiring vocals. "Vainglorious" is a throwaway rocker in the style of "The Wolf" (1985), without being just as good. "I'm Fine" is a rather pale Lenny Kravitz song (style-wise), until the refrain opens it up. I still find those verses to be crap though. A favorite is the really mellow "Hello Moon Glow", which is more or less a nursery rhyme (well, at least Nancy sings it for her kids). And there you have it, it's all very laidback and back to the roots somehow. They've gone back in time to find "new" inspiration for this album and it works... up to a certain point. It's really good to have them back though... and that voice... wow!
www.heart-music.com
Heartflight 2001
01-04-15
This CD is so new that it still smells like the paint used at the disc surface. Yet the whole thing is so much "together" that you can feel years and years of planning and preparation in it. There's a clear ars poetica coming through from the promo material sent along with the CD. It says "Heartflight goes far beyond music, it is setting your heart and spirit in flight". And actually it is true! Mel Lavamaki, the man behind the whole Heartflight project has managed to create a very special atmosphere that is shining through the album. Along with Anne Gordon's design for artwork and the layout of the album the whole Heartflight thing gives a very coherent feeling. This music is really soulful, heartfelt and carries a message.
Mel composed, recorded, performed and produced the whole album, and I gotta say he has done an excellent job. Heartflight is really something more than just the music recorded on the disc, it represents a lifestyle and a feeling that is hard to put in words for an album review you have to feel it yourselves. The music itself is mostly strings-pad, keyboard driven ballad-like with carefully planned and very well done arrangements and a balanced mix. Most of the songs are long featuring long, yet very entertaining instrumental parts that could be used as soundtracks for some "rainy" movies. (I can't help recalling classic movies like "Blade Runner" or "Black Rain" when playing the album.) Sometimes it's guitar driven rock but filled with soul, taking you on a journey. I'm really having hard times describing it as it is hard to compare it to today's progressive rock music. When hearing the word "progressive" lots of people shy away expecting something chaotic, hard to digest, lacking hooks and memorable moments. Well, Heartflight is definitely different because these songs really get you in the heart, are memorable and filled with hooks and brilliant melodies.
The only downside I can think of when playing the album is that there are songs where Mel undertook more than his vocal abilities would predestine him for. There are some vocal themes he can't pull out with enough confidence and this takes some of the strength of those songs away, "I've Learned to Let Go" is an example for that, a brilliant song with wonderful parts but some of the vocals are just not good enough. "Dance Of The Dove" is another example for that, the song, the music itself is simply wonderful but the vocals are sometimes not "there". Without wanting to interfere into Mel's songwriting/production I just have to state that if some of these songs had featured a female vocalist with a trained voice (e.g. Pamela Moore of Radar, also known as "Sister Mary" of Queensryche's "Operation: Mindcrime") this album would have been THE progressive rock album for the upcoming years. Prepare your souls for something unexpected, unusual and check it out yourselves. To sniff into Heartflight's world and to preview the music visit www.heartflight.com
Escape Music 2002
26 June 2002
Communication Down? I would say Communication Freakin' Great as this British band only gets better with age. Heartland with Chris Ousley (vocals) & Steve Morris (guitars/keys) at the frontline, delivers some classy rock with a marvelous sound this time around.
Don't get me wrong, this is still very much AOR/Melodic Rock in the traditional style of the band. However, you will be able to find bits and pieces of 70's rock here and the overall sound is more guitar oriented than before. A very good sign if you ask me, this is after all their 8th album up to date and the change is like a fresh breathe of air.
Just check out the uptempo track "Follow Me", where you can find smilarities to bands such as: Thunder, Thin Lizzy, Bad Company. I swear, I've never really noticed what a good vocalist Ousley is, up until now. He's always been a solid singer, but this time he let's everything go and the voice takes on yet another dimension. Add that Steve Morris guitar playing is way more 'aggressive' than before and you end up with a smashing CD. Try opener "Imagine My Surprise" for size and you wont be disappointed. "Best Of Times" is Heartland at their very best, a classic tune with an impressive vibe that we haven't witnessed since the debut album. Some may find the power ballad "Fight The Good Fight" a bit too cheesy? Not me though as this is the ballad of the year so far. "Time And Tide" grabs you by the throat and never let go, check out the guitar vs. keys duel here. it's like a mixture of the Heartland sound with the heaviness (rock groove) of Thin Lizzy. "Black And White" may just be the 'darkest' track ever by these lads, still it's very melodic and catchy. Speaking of catchy, "All Her Own Way" is all that and even more! The best pure AOR song they've done since the debut. A solid production and a great mixing by Paul "The Machine" Dean (ex. Loverboy) makes this one fine record indeed.
www.escape-music.com
Indie 2002
25 June 2002
Do you remember Heaven? No, I'm not talking about the big place upstairs or the Aussie band with ex. Rose Tattoo guitarist Mick Cocks. This particular Heaven isn't too far away (Warrant anyone?) from my homeland Sweden actually. Norway is the name and typical Scandinavian rock is the game.
Heaven released one very rare by now and obscure CD in 1989 (Take Me Back). Which usaly goes for big money at Ebay, if you can find the darn thing in the first place. Well, they are back for yet another shot at fame & glory after ten years of only Norwegian releases (under the banner Huldra and with material sung in Norwegian only). What we have here is a demo with 12 tracks of pure Norwegian rock ala early Return, Tindrum and some Treat. Sadly, not quite as good though!
Then again, I always found Return to be 'blessed' with some childish material in the first place. Let there be known that "V" (1992) is a g-r-e-a-t and more 'mature' sounding album by Return though (and that 'Bye Bye Johnny' is a classic rock song). Don't get me wrong, Heaven is far from being a lousy band. It's more a case of playing it very safe and taking no chances. The first three tracks "One By One", "Rock Me Gently" and "Ain't Made For Loving" are very 'safe' indeed. Not exactely anything that sticks out or can be used to poke out your eyes with. In "Children Of Our Time" we have a winner though as this is a fantastic AOR tune with a most excellent chorus. Fans of Scandinavian rock will drool all over this little song. "Crazy" is very much in the tradition of Return and "Sail Away" is a nice semi ballad. "Dreaming" is a lovely ballad, more in the tradition of the famous (Norwegian) Pop band A-HA then heavy rock... nice indeed. The last two tracks are both from the "Take Me Back" album and just a 'bonus' here. Bottomline, would I sign Heaven to a label now? Hmmm, I'd ask them to re-schedule a time in the studio and bring me 4-5 new tracks with some more hooks and edge. Then we're talking a real 'scandi-sensation' here.
www.rockofnorway.com
www.huldrarecords.no
Frontiers/Now & Then 2000
03-01-01 Stuart Smith has decided to go for it under a band name for a change, and enlisted the services of vocalist Kelly Keeling, formely of Baton Rouge. A great move, as Keeling sounds really good here!
The material here is just as diverse as on the acclaimed first Stuart Smith album but to these ears it sounds even more appealing. The Deep Purple-like opener "Dogs Of War" is decent enough, but pales in comparison to the next two tracks, the AOR masterpieces "Worlds Apart" and "If Only Love", both co-written by L&C's favourite AOR Goddess Jaime Kyle. The latter also features another longtime L&C favourite Jack Ponti's touch.
Other key songs on "Windows" are "Prisoner", cool melodic hard rocker co-written by Richie Blackmore, the very impressive ballad "Through Your Eyes" and "Politician", a gritty yet catchy rocker. I must mention the title track too, as it has a rather interesting set of lyrics about the Internet... "Gotta switch to Eartlink 'cause AOL sucks". The hidden bonustrack is pretty cool too, a nice acoustic romp in a traditional Irish style.
Frontiers 2001
01-03-16
"So now they´ve got your information, weep or laugh the truth is shown! Over the seas in every nation, rely the Windows Of The World". The words from the titletrack echo out all over the world as you´re using the windows of the world (internet) right now to download this review of the superb second album by the guitarist Stuart Smith and his band Heaven & Earth.
To be honest, this may be the best "Classic Rock" album I´ve heard in ten years or even more? Forget about the boring albums that Richie Blackmore and his wife are doing nowadays and leave that latest Joe Lynn Turner CD in its jewel case as this one will rokk yer soxx off!
Stuart Smith, born in York, England has always been a big fan of Deep Purple and he counts Blackmore as one of his best friends and guitar teacher. There´s no doubt about what Smith´s influences are when it comes to music as this disc sounds a lot like a lovely mix of Deep Purple, Rainbow and 70´s classic rock. I must also say that well-known vocalist Kelly Keeling (Baton Rouge, Blue Murder, John Norum etc.) really shines here, he has co-written all the songs together with Smith and his vocal performance sounds better than ever. While the first album was more of a project, this for sure is a band thing where the other two members are: Richie Onori (Drums) and the superb -Jon Lord- sounding keyboardist: Arlen "Lord" Schierbaum.
Some of my favorite tracks would be: the opener "Dogs of War", a great uptempo rocker with some fantastic guitar & hammond duels a-la Deep Purple at its best. "The lovely AOR sounding "Words Apart" co-written by Jamie Kyle and Howard Leese (Heart) who also produced this CD. "Jade" that could have been from the Deep Purple album "Perfect Strangers", Keeling sounds like a deadringer for Ian Gillan here. "Prisoner" co-written by Richie Blackmore and it´s a really catchy song with a lovely chorus that goes straight to the heart. "Away From Harm" gives me goosebumps as this is what classic hardrock is all about! "Through Your Eyes" is a great ballad (co-written by Joe Lynn Turner). I can´t praise this album enough and all I can really say is ... buy or die dude! OK ... you might not like it if you can´t stand that someone else are doing better music than your old heroes from the 70´s. Check em´ out at their home site: www.stuartsmith.com and the label at: www.frontiers.it RECOMMENDED indeed!
First effort by these Brittish rockers formely known as ARSIN. The band formed by Andy Narsingh on lead vocals, bass, and keys, Jim Theoharis on guitars and vocals, and the sadly deceased Mike Mackinnon on drums and vocals, aim to get a balance between 80's and 90's rock. Well, I find more of the latter, but undoubtely, they've got some 80's trademarks on their sound.
IMO, they're closer to the nineties because of their proggie touches, more evident on tracks like the opener "Beyond", "Future's Waiting", (Andy Narsingh reminds me a lot like Rik Emmett on the intro to this one), and more subtle on the title track or "Long Way" which is a kind of heavy metal track ala NWOBHM meets progressive rock with some good backing vox to it.
However, when they get closer to the 80's metal sound, like in "Can't You Believe", probably the most clear hit on the album, they are really good. One of the bands main influences seems to be Dokken, as can be heard on "Tommy", (the singer sounds as a dead ringer for Don Dokken, although the song has some VH shades here and there), or the mid tempo "Mirror", which bridge and chorus really sound like Dokken in the "Back From The Attack" era.
The more melodic side on the album is featured on the last two tracks, "Now's The Time", my fave track that has a good mixture of scando and american 80's hair metal on it, and "Tears" which not being bad at all I find quite in a Danger Danger or Firehouse mood, which to me is not that great.
The production is a bit flat. The songwriting has some ups and downs; there are some fillers on this album. I miss some more backup vox to get even closer to that 80's sound. On the other hand, the work on guitars has been really good.
As a result, interesting band that needs to polish their songwritting a bit; but that has a sound that is good. We'll have to keep an eye on them!
My advise, if you miss the late 80's hair metal sound, and don't mind to have it mixed with some proggie touches here and there, then this album is definitely worth checking out.
Noise/Sanctuary 2004
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallström,
10 January 2004
Holy Crap! The French speed-metal act Heavenly, returns with their third and best album up to date? Yep! I guess the new line-up, with two fast-shredding guitarists this time, gave them the extra-boost they needed so badly, to create their most powerful, yet very melodic (concept) album, "Dust To Dust".
You could say that concept albums is the "forgotten" hertigate of experimental acts from the early 70's (at least when it comes to hardrock). Pure mumbo-jumbo to some, while others truly appreciate the meaning with a storyline behind the music. Here you'll follow a man, who, after being bitten by a vampire, wanders through the centuries, desperately fighting the urge of becoming a bloodsucking creature himself. Pretty much like the book (and later movie) "Interview With A Vampire".
The story itself is of course n-o-t, the most important aspect here. Let's face it... it all depends upon if the songs rocks or not in the end. I'd have to say that a majority of them do rock! The flashy twin guitar assault, adds an extra dimension to the double-bass-drum, thumping material. Heavenly do (still) play the "typical" Euro-metal which Helloween, sort of invented, or at least brought to perfection in the 80's. It's actually a mish-mash of Edguy/Avantasia, Gamma Ray, Helloween, with perhaps a touch of Rhapsody, inspired music, and fans of above mentioned acts, will probably enjoy this quite a lot. Not to mention that vocalist Benjamin Sotto, will remind you of both Michael Kiske and Kai Hansen, from time to time (not kidding). Their music has envolved into something catchier, more aggressive, and simply put, better than in the past. "Lust For Life" is euro metal at its best, "Victory (Creature Of The Night)", will have old fans of Helloween up and dancing on the tables, and "Illusion Part 2 (Call Of The Wild)", reminded me of Avantasia II. Recommended indeed!
www.sanctuarygroup.de
Heavy Metal Records 2003
Review by 
9 September 2003
Hmm… Heavy Metal Kids. I thought that the name rang a bell and then… WTF! Is this the same Heavy Metal Kids that broke up way back in the seventies? The band describes this as “the longest tea-break in the history of rock'n'roll” so it seems that the guys have a sense of humor about their little “intermission”. After getting over the amazement of the fact that this pretty much is the same line up than it was back in the seventies I was even more amazed about how good they sound.
I’m sure that these Brits (and Italians) had a blast making this album. I think it conveys to the listener as at least I felt jolly good listening to this CD. The sound is tight through the whole album. This one kicks off with “Message” which is a catchy opener. “Girl of My Dreams” is a positive rocker but the third song “Blow It All Away” really gets things going. Robust guitars and infectious chorus will please the fans of heavier rock. It’s hard to find a filler so I’m not even gonna try. Instead I’m gonna raise “Viva New York” and “Gotham City” a bit above the others. “Viva New York” because it’s just so damn good that you wanna keep playing it and “Gotham City” because it’s one of those songs that put a smile on your face. Of course you could debate about the absence of Gary Holton (former lead singer) but then again he’s been dead for quite a while now so it would have been hard to arrange. Not many bands come back as strong as HMK.
So the Kids are back... I’m sure not many saw this one coming but I’m just as sure that the ones who get to hear the album will agree that this is not just some cheap attemp to make an easy buck. This is a solid effort by a group of guys who sound fresher than many bands half their age. So welcome back, just don’t let the next tea-break be this long.
Heavy Metal Kids homepage
Scarlet Records 2002
Review by Martien Koolen
5 October 2002
People who are really into bands like Helloween, Gamma Ray and Stratovarius should listen to this album. Heimdall is an Italian speed power band and “The Almighty” is already their third album. The first two albums got really good reviews in Japan and I think that this album is their finest so far.
Most of the songs are really good up-tempo tracks with heavy guitarriffs and fine keyboard arrangements. Especially the longest track of the album “Beyond” is a real speedmetal beauty. The new singer Giacomo Mercaldo has a good throat but he is not the new Michael Kiske or Andy Deris.
After a few songs you might get a bit bored, because Heimdall do not seem to be familiar with the word "variety"; it is all or nothing. The last track “Symit” is the only song which is completely different from the rest. A strange acoustic song with extravagant vocals from Giacomo, a weird ending to an album which will only appeal to power/speedmetal die-hards. Listen before you decide to buy!
www.scarletrecords.com
Nuclear Blast 2003
Review by 28 Mars 2003
Happy, Happy, Helloween, Helloween, Helloween!!! OK enough already! Calm down yourself and let's get down to business here. The Smashing Pumpkins returns with their latest effort and I'm not quite sure, what they've been hiding up their sleves this time. Oh crap... it's a freakin' rabbit and they don't come easy????!!!!!
Helloween is without a doubt, one of the most influencal metal bands ever. Well... at least in Europe and the whole second wave of Power Metal bands, do borrow a lot from the Germans. There's been disturbing reports from the Helloween camp lately though. Something which made guitarist Roland Grapow (and drummer Uli Kusch) to leave the band and form the excellent Masterplan project. The big question that we've all been asking ourseleves this year is: Can Helloween with guitarist Michael Weikath as the bandleader, really strike back after the excellent Masterplan album? Well, after listening to this pre-release CD, I must admit they've done the almost impossible here. "Rabbit Don't Come Easy" is a freakin' good metal album and the new blood has only been a inspiration source. However, they are unfortunately a couple of odd tracks included though. Or make that a couple of really lame tracks...
The first single and opening track "Just A Little Sign", was written
by vocalist Andi Deris (ex-Pink Cream 69), and it's nothing less than
a hit. It's very simple and in the typical tradition of lederhosen-rock.
You can even notice those football choirs with massive woooh-ooh-oohw
noises here. However, it's darn catchy and you find yourself with fist
in the air, singing-a-long with a stoopid grin on your face. The release
date of the single is 7th of April and be prepered for some kick ass
metal. New guitarist Sascha Gerstner waste not time just hanging around.
Not only does he play some serious s**t on this record, he also wrote
3 of the 12 songs himself. First up is "Open Your Life" that easily
could have been the first single from the album really. The other two
tracks "Sun 4 The World" & "Listen To The Flies", is nothing to be ashamed
of either. The replacement for drummer Kusch was originally Mark Cross.
But the poor chap became ill with Epstein Barr virus and we can only
hear him play on two of the tracks. Mikkey Dee from Motorhead is the
studio drummer for the rest of the tracks. However, Stefan Schwarzmann
(ex-UDO, Running Wild, Accept) is the full-time replacement and new
member of the band. Very much in the grand tradition of Spinal Tap [:-)].
It suddenly strikes me that Deris reminds me of Petra's lead vocalist
John Schlitt, every now and then. Especially with "Never Be A Star",
where Deris is scary alike Schlitt during the powerful chorus. Maybe
everything turned out for the best anyway? Since now we'll get at least
two good albums this year, with German Power metal. This is indeed a
clash of titans! By the way, I hear the Japan bonus-track will be a
cover of 'Fast As A Shark' (Accept). A weak 9 or a strong 8 rating?
I decided to go with the latter. [Release date: 12th of May].
www.nuclearblast.de
Tone Center 1998
Review by
21 mįrcius 2002
What do you get when you mix together a Tribal Tech guitarist Scott Henderson, ex-Journey drummer Steve Smith and the bassist for Bela Fleck and the Fleckstones? Sounds interesting, right? There’s influences from jazz, fusion, pop, blues, funk...what a mess!
The idea for this project came from the president of Shrapnel Records, Mike Varney, who wanted to go more in the fusion direction. So he called up the guys to jam together. And this album sure is about jamming, as most of the songs prove. The beginning song “Crash Course” has that fusion jazz jamming with groove and funk, and if you talk about the last two elements they’re more my case. So this one was pretty good, but the second track “Snake Soda” was too experimental, more funky actually, but had sticky, nowhere moving drumpart that I just thought didn’t work out at all.
The last song “Lie Detector” also sounded experimental and just chaotic and wasn’t my faves at all. “King Twang” though was fast with slow and fast jamming and that was interesting. There’s also a John Coltrane cover of “Giant Steps” with a funny bass part. I don’t know if it belongs to the original song though, never listened to Coltrane !
These guys have ideas that don’t really bore you, in case you’re interested in more complex music. And they’re good at what they do and with these abilities it’s no wonder Henderson was named #1 Jazz Guitarist in Guitar World and Guitar Player’s annual Readers Poll and Wooten is working with bass workshops, clinics and master classes and Smith has also been involved with many bands other than Journey, such as Jean Luc Ponty, Tony MacAlpine, Dweezil Zappa, Allan Holdsworth, Mariah Carey, Stu Hamm and so on.
If you’re filled with energy and ideas and you just love to jam with your instrument, I guess this is the result then. But jazz and fusion aren’t my stuff. So keep in mind my points come from the musicianship, from that point of view this is a great album and I’m sure the jazz/fusion fans love this. If you’re into the easy- going stuff like the hits you hear from the radio every day, then I suggest you keep your hands away from this. This really gets your brain- cells working and can cause headache.
Lion
Music 2004
Review by Endre 'Bandi' Hübner
6 June 2004
As much as I used to love playing and listening to cover versions of songs, I started to hate "tribute" albums with at least that big enthusiasm, mainly because of their endless flow and low quality lately. When I saw this one, I was really negative because there were about a zillion artists before who tried to cover Jimi's music and the majority of them failed miserably. The "spirit" was usually missing. Despite my negative attitude this tribute album managed to convince me of its values, mostly because besides professional musicianship, the free and innovative spirit that was so characteristic for Hendrix can be sensed in almost all the tracks of the album and innovative approach and own versions of the well-known songs make a tribute album credible.
Sadly the album opens with two of its worst
tracks. First Sun Caged doing a musically okay but nothing special version of
"Freedom" with vocalist Andree Vuurboom failing miserably. Then Mistheria and
Andrea Rivera (Italian keyboardist and guitarist) putting on the greatest
performance (and arrangement!) of the whole album on "Gypsy Eyes" but the whole
thing gets totally ruined by Max Romano's bloody awful vocals. I never thought
anyone could sing a Hendrix song any worse that Jimi did - well, I was wrong. Too
bad cuz both the acoustic guitar intro and the organ solo parts smoke on this
one and the arrangement is really unique.
It may sound strange but when doing a Hendrix tribute the vocals play a
crucial part, Jimi -not being a real singer- only "sketched" the vocal parts of
his songs letting the music and the spirit sell the whole thing and it worked
well. The singer is free to build his own versions from these sketches using his
own musicality catching the spirit of the song. Some can do it, some cannot.
The first "compact" track is "Highway Chile" by Cyril Achard, a heavy,
tight version with everything at its place but the first real winner is
Arabesque's "Crosstown Traffic" with a funky arrangement, a great, tight drum-
bass groove, cool backing vocals, and really good female lead vocals by Katia
Salemi. This one track alone was worth putting the whole album together. Eric
Sands does justice to "Stone Free", really good guitar sound here, especially at
the wah-solo part (that is most of the times the part where cover versions of
the song fail).
"Little Wing" follows, a risky business: too
many people have covered it and the song is "too obvious" leaving little to
alter to make it fit to you. Yet Michael Harris pulls it really well, filling
the arrangement with the obvious keyboard and guitar-synth backing, topping it
with a really good, soulful vocal performance. The mid-tempo jazzy outro is
another good idea, breaking the flow of the "usual" Little Wing cover approach a
bit. Lars Eric Mattson (is he really on every tribute album released lately?) is
featured in two songs here, both versions performed very well, first "Spanish
Castle Magic" with Chris Poland (great to hear Chris playing digestible music
again!) and "Little Miss Lover" with Richie Kotzen. Both versions are as good as
you'd expect from these guys, great sound, really tight rhythm section with
Eddie Sledgehammer on drums and Lars Eric on bass. The vocals are handled by Alf
Wemmenlind and probably he's the one who has the most of the Spirit of all the
vocalists featured on the album. Both tracks are highlights of the album. "Bold
As Love" features Regi Hendrix, a guy somewhat related to Jimi along with Greg
Howe and Jason Richardson on guitars. Now these guys also got an idea about the
spirit, their version sparks! Neither Bumblefoot's "Fire" nor Edward Box's "Foxy
Lady" can get any close to theirs. Man, I wish I could forget about the vocals
on these two! The two instrumentals Carl Roa's "3rd Stone from the Sun" and
Randy Coven's "Star Spangled Banner" both impress, the first one with its
compact nature, great sound and soulful playing; the latter may sound strange
here and I'm generally not a big fan of "bassists acting like bored lead
guitarists" but I have to admit I have never heard such great effects before,
Randy's solo bass sounds thicker than a symphonic orchestra.
All in all the album is rather enjoyable, a more thought-after track-order
and a few better vocalists would have benefited it a little but I would
recommend it to anyone who's into paying attention to details, arrangements, and
stunning musicianship in general and definitely to all instrumental guitar fans
because even though the majority of the tracks are with vocals, there are
definitely a lot of guitar talents to listen to here!