In my reviews-absence there has been some superb releases, one of which is the mighty Harem Scarem and their 15th studio release (WTF!) Change The World.

Once again, I was honoured to work with the guys sequencing the album and think it has a pretty tasty flow. As I’ve been with the band since the very week of their debut album, its not hard to appreciate my love for these guys and how they are quite possibly, the most consistent band of the last 30 years.

This album is no exception. It’s a flip of the coin as to whether I prefer this to the “perfect” predecessor, the acclaimed ‘United’ release. I think I will have to make this another perfect album as there are no obvious flaws – it sounds a million bucks, is drenched in harmonies and mighty choruses and the three-play of Aftershock, Searching For Meaning and The Death Of Me is about as good as it gets anywhere, from anyone.

This is what melodic rock is all about.

It’s Magnus Karlsson again! Yes, he’s back with a new Freefall album alongside the Allen/Olzon release, and I’m pleased to say that the song quality hasn’t been split between the two projects. There’s another dozen cracking melodic metal songs here, filled with Magnus' trademark double kickdrums and flailing guitars.

Vocals this time around are delivered by a varied crew - Jorn Lande apprentice’s Dino Jelusick and Renan Zonta both get 2 apiece, Magnus does a couple and naturally there’s an appearance by 'Mr. Everywhere & Then Some', Ronnie Romero. Also joining in the fun is Tony Martin, Noora Louhimo and Mike Andersson.

I have to say that Zonta sounds amazing and in this setting, even more powerful than on The Electric Mob album.

Top notch all-round, it’s a double dose of Magnus madness, regaining his classic sound that went AWOL on The Ferrymen records.

The Dennis Ward fronted Khymera returned earlier in 2020 for a fresh slice of New Classic AOR, following on from past albums without skipping a beat. Love Dennis’ moody vocal delivery and the even mix of keyboards and guitars. Songs written by the best of the melodic rock scene and expertly executed by the killer lineup of:

Vocals and Bass - Dennis Ward; Guitars - Michael Klein; Keyboards - Eric Ragno & Drums - Pete Newdeck.

Finland’s One Desire are another artist in Scandinavia’s great take over of the melodic rock world that has been going strong for a decade now. Their debut was unbelievable, but this is next level stuff.

Heavier, more diverse, darker and more intense, Midnight Empire is a world class record with world class production and performances. Add in the godly vocals of André Linman and some powerful songs and a near perfect modern AOR record is yours.

The mid-album epic is worthy of worship, while it is surrounded by glorious uptempo, anthemic brilliance.

Short review as the album has been out there a while now, but if you haven’t checked this album out, there should be no further delay – go!
PS. Whoever decided the original cover art should be swapped out for the one used should get a good talking to.

Big fan of Josh Ramos here – from his work with The Storm, Hardline and Two Fires, to L.R.S and his previous two Ramos releases. A class guy and a truly class guitarist. But he hasn’t always benefitted from the best production available. The 3 Two Fires albums with Kevin Chalfant especially. But only the major label Storm albums have given Josh his best chance to shine brightest.

The new album’s title is a little confusing. ‘My Many Sides’ suggests a varied record showcasing Josh’s different musical personalities, but rather I think this record shows just one side – a love of slow to mid-tempo bluesy numbers.

Strong points – the guitar playing – both rhythm and soloing is really something. Not only the playing, but the tones used throughout are pure ear candy. Another positive is the choice of singers brought in here – some of the best names in the biz – Joe Retta, Terry Ilous, Danny Vaughn, Tony Harnell, Harry Hess, John Bisha, Eric Martin and the late, great Tony Mills delivers one of his very last vocal performances.

Individually the vocals are as you would expect, quite marvellous. But collectively, they are all very similar and tend to blend into each other, the unique characteristics of each singer is somewhat muted by the very similar material.

That leads to the album’s ‘elephant in the (recording) room’ - the production.

It’s horrible. Its almost unlistenable in places – from muddy drums and bass, to badly mixed layers that just blend into each other. The return of Italian producer Fabrizio V Z Grossi from the wilderness, with his trademark muddy sound, is not a welcome sight or sound.

The record sounds like one-take demos at times, and any critic not brave enough to raise this fact is doing the public a disservice. It’s 2020. There is no shortage of unbelievably good sounding records made for a fraction of the price it once took. Josh needs to align himself with those capable of putting him in the best spotlight possible. He has long proven he has the talent and he deserves better.

I could sum it up by just writing 'Axel. Rudi. Pell'.

You’d still know exactly what to expect from the German guitar wiz and his right-hand man, Johnny Gioeli. I’ve expressed some disinterest in the last couple of albums, due mainly to the self-imposed restrictions of delivering the same formula album after album, but I’m very happy to declare this album head and shoulders above the last couple of records, simply because of stronger songs and some terrific melodies – delivered by both guitar and vocals. 

While there are no surprises, this album’s surge of urgency has definitely re-sparked my interest in Axel’s unmistakable style. I think fans will be more than happy.

H.E.A.T ‘II’, perfection is thy name.

Artists, bands, labels, managers, songwriters….listen up, pay attention and understand - this is how it’s done.

H.E.A.T have thrown off the experimentations of Into The Great Unknown (which I still think was great in its own way), ditched long-time producer Tobias Lindell and gone all in-house for their remarkable 6th album.

The result is H.E.A.T ‘II’, an album that doesn’t just politely knock on your door, rather it sees the band roll up in a 49-ton bulldozer, run over your lawn, crash through the door and bulldoze right through your house and out the other side.

This is a no holes barred, take no prisoners, earth shattering slice of classic melodic hard rock, where every single element is simply perfect. And every element helps make the other aspects of the album sound even better.

Crash drums like an absolute madman, his playing not only more powerful and bombastic than ever, but it’s also more technical and truly ear shattering.
Dave shreds harder and faster than ever before, making this the band’s heaviest album to date. Some of the guitar solos are mind-blowing.
Jona brings an equal dose of keyboards, helping balance the aggression with melody and adding several extra layers of ear candy.
Jimmy takes on his role with his usual dominant presence, grooving right alongside Crash as Scandinavia’s tightest rhythm section.
And what can I say about Erik? We already know he’s an alien from a galaxy far far away, where freakish lung capacity and megaphone vocals are commonplace, but here on earth he stands alone as the finest rock vocalist anywhere. And here he screams, wails, harmonizes and produces angelic tones that every other singer should strive for.

It’s simply a stunning performance by Erik and the whole band.

Additional credit must go to the guys for the production and mix. If anything, it is even better than ever, they clearly learned a lot from their time in the studio and this record reflects that. Absolutely flawless.

4 songs have been previewed in full, each one giving a solid indication of the rest of the album. There’s 11 ass-kicking tracks, the only ballad being Nothing To Say – a ballad so good it also kicks your ass. 11 tracks and 11 different vibes. Its very cool. It’s edgy, it’s menacing, it’s anthemic and melodic and it’s fresh.

Of my observations on the album, it is worth noting that the songs all that have influences from the past, but also strike a clear new path forward.
The guys have used some different chorus styles and structures in places and while some of the choruses may not match the anthemic heights of Living On The Run or Point Of No Return, the songs actually deliver the knockout hooks in the verse or post-chorus bridge. It makes for a really interesting learning curve for the album, as the chorus is normally the most obvious point of familiarity when first getting to know any record.

Highlights are almost impossible to spotlight as not matter what song you play last is the one stuck in your head afterwards.
I do have a particular love for the hard edged fast moving Dangerous Ground; the classic Heat sound of Come Clean; the menacing We Are Gods and its brilliant post-chorus hook; the punchy multi-hook Adrenaline (with a nod to Eclipse’s Runaway in the chorus) and Heaven Must Have Won An Angel, which has a strong Brother Firetribe vibe to it. But that said, I now feel mean for not mentioning other songs. They’re all brilliant.

This review is way longer than it needed to be. We’ll cut to the bottom line.
It’s perfect. The easiest 100 I’ve ever given. Take a bow guys.

Few artists have crossed as many boundaries and tested as many limits as Rick Springfield. He’s rarely delivered an album that sounded much like the one before it. Yet you always know just who it is. Rick has taken a true hard left on a few occasions.

And for the most part, his dedicated fan base has followed every step of the way. I say for the most part, because even though I can’t think of a bigger RS fan than myself, there are a couple of albums that sit on my shelf more to satisfy my completist compulsions. And to be honest, they probably sit more because I’m always playing my favourite RS material. So on a gut feeling that this was something ‘he just had to do’, Rick takes one of the bigger detours of his career, diving into a full service blues album. Well…mostly.

Fans will be familiar with Rick’s love of the blues. Several times over the years he has leant in that direction on an individual song or two. There are still very familiar aspects to ‘The Snake King’. One is of course Rick’s warm voice and those lyrics – delving into familiar subjects like spirituality, God, relationships, sex, depression and temptation. 

There is also some familiarity in the music. In fact, there’s a few tunes that could easily have appeared on ‘Rocket Science’ – the fairly breezy country tinged opener Land Of The Blind; plus the cool relaxed Blues For The Disillusioned and the 10 minute long Orpheus In The Underworld, which is quite possibly the most lyrics ever written for any song…ever! 

In-between those are some truly impressive examples of some genuine delta blues riffing, complete with harmonica, brass and some guitar playing that really impresses - both fast rocking and slower traditional blues rhythms. Most impressive here, besides the trio of more recognisable Rick songs are the title track; the heavier rock of Little Demon – which converts to a slow guitar solo of pure class; the lyrically dark, rollicking double time blues of Suicide Manifesto and the quite commercial Voodoo House.

And a special mention for the intense title track The Snake King, with its amazing slide guitar. There’s more than enough here for most dedicated fans to appreciate.  For others it might be a case of heading to iTunes and picking and choosing personal favourites, one advantage of this digital age.

The Snake King is a mood album. For me it may not played at the lengths previous albums have been, but I do know that when the mood does arise, I will enjoy this without question. It’s too good not to. Bottom line – The Snake King is all class as usual, as expected.

Treat really are on a blinder since reforming and this, their third studio album since then, is a testament to the ability of the band to keep delivering each time, yet do so in a fresh manner each time. 

Tunguska is the perfect companion piece to the timeless classic Coup De Grace and the album between, the more modern sounding Ghost Of Graceland.Tunguska has elements of both – the modern forward momentum of Ghost and the classic anthems of Coup. 

In all honesty – if you’re a fan of Scani melodic rock, all three are as essential. Period! So we have another high energy album here featuring 12 amazing compositions – all layered in vocal harmonies - 10 mid-up tempo tunes and a couple of monster ballads. Tomorrow Never Comes and the impossibly good Build The Love are genre defying classics. 

The diversity among the tracks might give some fans reason to rate this downwind of the last 2 albums, but I embrace this evolution in Treat’s history. Best Of Enemies, Creeps and Man Overboard are probably the most challenging songs to dissect, but for me they still kill and add texture between the anthems of Always Have, Always Will; Progenitors and Rose Of Jericho. It doesn’t stop there though, Riptide, All Bets Are Off and Undefeated give the last half more energy than the first. 

The only caveat I will impose is the sequencing. I would not have chosen the running order of the songs as has been done here. I think there are a couple of options to make it even smoother. Highly digestible Scandi melodic goodness right here. The band can do no wrong as far as I’m concerned, and this makes 3 from 3 in the classic album stakes.

The choruses are huge, the hooks even bigger and the sound is baby bum-cheek fresh. The harmonies really are something! I just love these guys. Get it!

There is a sense of comfort when diving into a new NEWMAN album. Much like Ten, Vega (to name just two), you know exactly what you are going to get, and Steve Newman never disappoints.

With a history dating back to his debut in 1997 that stretches over 2 decades and 15 releases, you are always going to have albums that fans rate more highly than others and differing opinions of just which those albums are. But one thing you cannot deny is that NEWMAN delivers something great on every record. And of course, ‘Ignition’ is no exception.

There a few twists in the tail, the electro-Def Leppard-groove of the title track is certainly one, but mostly this is just classic Newman.

 Another collection of strong, classic melodic rock. 

Toby Hitchcock is one of the voices of the last decade or so. Since his Pride Of Lions debut, his powerful tenor has been front and centre for some of the genre’s best anthems and most epic ballads. Any Toby Hitchcock is good Toby Hitchcock. And for the most part, this album is no different. Songs are delivered by the who’s who of the AOR scene, with at least another 4-5 classic songs here – Queen Untouchable, Promise Me, No Surrender and This Is Our World. Man, the guy can sing. 

I like that a lot of the album is uptempo and flows at a pretty hectic pace. I don’t think this is as strong as Toby’s Erik Martensson-helmed debut. Even though this album is also a Swedish production, the differences are quite stark. Reckoning sounds firmly planted in the 80s, with the keyboards and production style a more distinct European in flavour.

The songs are enjoyable but not to the same level as the debut or Pride Of Lions. There is one issue that desperately needs to be addressed. The keyboards. We need to talk about the keyboards. As has been the case with all Daniel Flores productions, the keyboards dominate. They are the highest element in the mix, aside from vocals and there are just way too many layers of them. There is no letup in the sonic bombardment. There needs to be more space for the rest of the instrumentation to breathe. Even during guitar solos the keyboards still dominate.

I like Daniel a lot – very talented and sweet guy – but there must be an intervention. The keyboards are simply overbearing, and the production style is becoming very repetitive. Find Me (all 3), the second First Signal album, the Palace debut, Cry Of Dawn and now Toby Hitchcock – largely all sound the same.

So moving forward I hope some individual personality can be infused into these projects. And that's the main essence of what's missing here - its own personality. That said, there’s still plenty to enjoy and Toby’s vocals are powerful, emotional and totally immersive. Fans of Find Me, Daniel’s other AOR work and 80s keyboard melodic rock will enjoy.

Much hype for this debut album from this Los Angeles based melodic rock band, touted as a modern equivalent to the Big 3 (Foreigner, Styx and Journey).

And despite the obvious shortcomings in the album’s production quality, the opening anthem ‘Until The Dawn’ certainly gets your attention. Unfortunately, that’s clearly the album’s best track.

The guys have talent and the singer has a sure set of lungs on him, but when the album is dominated by ballads (a couple of very good ones) and the rockers fall short, the song consistency comes to light and the production issue becomes something that can’t be ignored.

I compare this more to Two Fires – a band with huge potential and great performers – who couldn’t get all elements to come together for that killer album.