First Signal

Mon
11
Mar

FIRST SIGNAL Announce New Album ‘Line Of Fire’ Out May 17

Artist: 
Friday, May 17, 2019
Categories: 
News Feed
After two critical and fan acclaimed albums, First Signal are returning with a new studio album, "Line Of Fire". First single, "Tonight We Are The Only" has been released today with an accompanying video. 
 
 
First Signal is the musical union between Harem Scarem band vocalist Harry Hess and Swedish drummer/producer Daniel Flores. Of their third collaboration together, Hess says, "once again it was a pure pleasure to be working on these songs. Daniel made it easy on me...just concentrating on being the singer is a luxury that I enjoyed immensely." Flores adds, "as a huge fan of Harem Scarem, I'm still asking people to pinch me to see if I'm still awake. Harry and his band made some of the most classic AOR and rock records ever, so I feel a responsibility to give the fans as close as possible to the quality that Harry continuously delivers with either his own solo work and Harem Scarem. Something the audience has certainly come to expect by now. I think the fans will love this one.”
 
Of the song songs on the record, Hess tells "there were three songs that I recommended to be included on the record. The first was “Born To Be A Rebel," which was a co-write that I did with Stan Meissner way back in 1989 and the other two were Stan Meissner songs “Walk Through The Fire” and “Never Look Back”. I have always loved these two songs and thought they were perfect for this project. Between Serafino (Perugino, President of Frontiers), Daniel, and myself we chose the rest of the songs from many great writers, whose songwriting fit perfectly in the First Signal vision." Flores says, "once again Harry and I worked closely with Serafino to find the perfect songs. It took about four months to find these gems. The writers are from all over the world and they all gave us their best songs. Harry's legacy had everyone, let's say, working at their best.”
 
Flores concludes, "there is more depth and structure now. The feel was right on the last record, but we hadn't found our groove yet. On this one Harry sings, in my opinion, like he has never done before. The audience will be surprised and delighted with his range and charisma here. The overall sound is heavier, but at the same time more melodic and more organic. I'm for sure really proud of the outcome.”
 
First Signal was first brought to life in 2010 when Frontiers President Serafino Perugino presented Harem Scarem singer Harry Hess with some melodic rock songs he thought would be a perfect fit for Harry to put his inimitable vocals on. The tunes specifically harkened back to the magic of the Harem Scarem sound, who at the time were on a hiatus. The project's self-titled debut was greeted with excellent reviews and enthusiasm from the melodic rock crowd, planting the seed for this to be more than a one-off.
 
Harem Scarem started up again after the release of the First Signal debut, but Harry was still wanting to go back and sing some excellent melodic rock songs that he had from various songwriters under the First Signal banner. The idea of a second First Signal album started to become realized and with the help of Swedish producer Daniel Flores (FIND ME, THE MURDER OF MY SWEET, etc.), the second record, "One Step Over The Line" started to take shape. Once again, the album was greeted with enthusiastic responses and acclaim from the fans and press alike upon release. So, it was a no-brainer to decide to release a new record and once again Daniel Flores teamed up with Michael Palace (guitars) and Johan Niemann (bass) and provided the basic tracks which Harry Hess and Darren Smith (background vocals) completed in their studio in Canada.
 
First Signal's third album “Line Of Fire” is once again a total delight for AOR and melodic rock fans and a contender for AOR album of the year! And be sure to follow First Signal on the newly launched Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/firstsignalband/
 
PRODUCED BY : Daniel Flores
 
BAND MEMBERS: 
Harry Hess - lead vocals
Daniel Flores - drums and keyboards
Michael Palace - guitars
Johan Niemann - bass guitar
Darren Smith - background vocals
 
Thu
16
Jun

FIRST SIGNAL - One Step Over The Line (Review)

information persons: 
content: 
91%
Produced By: 
Daniel Flores
Running Time: 
47
Release Date: 
2016
Released: 
Worldwide
Musical Style: 
Melodic Rock
Label: 
Frontiers
Artist: 
Score: 
91
Friday, June 3, 2016
Categories: 
Reviews
 
Harry Hess returns with a sequel to 2010’s First Signal debut. The lead role of Mr. Hess is about all that is in common from the debut to this album.
 
Normally I’d jump in and complain that if you are using a project name, you should stick to the original personnel of that project, as swapping musicians/producers/writers generally leads to a completely different sounding album (Sunstorm and Allen/Lande for example).
But in this case, I’ll let it pass as the results speak for themselves.
 
Daniel Flores (Find Me, Murder Of My Sweet) and his new buddy Michael Palace are the duo behind all the music, whilst the songs are provided by an array of the current artists within the Frontiers stable.
 
Flores produces and delivers results that sonically improve on that of the debut – even if the style is a little different. The Dennis Ward moody AOR debut is trumped by this bubbly, more keyboard driven 80s sounding affair with at times a more aggressive edge, but overall an improved sound that isn’t far from the AOR of the two Find Me releases.
Harry is of course in fine voice over 11 tracks that hold a pretty consistent sound and quality. At times the keyboards are a little “too 80s”, but there is no doubt that this is a very fine release.
 
Highlights include the punchy She’s Getting Away; the sentimental ballads Still Pretending and Weigh Me In; the early Harem sounding One Step Over The Line and Love Gets Through; the angst of Broken and the moodiness of Kharma.

Hess, Harem and fans of the First Signal debut shouldn’t give owning this a second thought. Why haven’t you got it already? Essential for anyone who appreciate fine vocals and some catchy traditional melodic rock.

 
 
Tue
22
Mar

FIRST SIGNAL Return With 'One Step Over The Line' June 3

Artist: 
Friday, June 3, 2016
Categories: 
News Feed
 
Frontiers Music Srl is excited to announce the release of the sophomore album from FIRST SIGNAL, “One Step Over the Line“ on June 3rd.
 
In 2010, a marriage made in Melodic Rock heaven between Canadian singer Harry Hess and producer Dennis Ward launched the First Signal project. The concept developed when Frontiers' President Serafino Perugino presented Hess some Melodic Rock songs that harkened back to the magic of the early Harem Scarem sound, who at the time were on an artistic hiatus. The project was met with excellent reviews and interest from the Melodic Rock crowd and even when Harem Scarem re-launched with their album “Thirteen” (one of their strongest to date), Harry was still wanting to go back and sing some excellent Melodic Rock songs that he had from various songwriters under a different moniker.
 
So, the idea of another First Signal album started to float around and with the help of Swedish producer Daniel Flores (FIND ME, The Murder of My Sweet, etc.), the new record started to take shape. Once again, the inspiration behind the songs are the first two Harem Scarem albums, two absolute classic Melodic Rock releases. But once again, we have some new twists and interpretations, with songs covering everything from AOR to Arena Hard Rock.
 
Harry says, “I am very excited to be a part of the new First Signal release. I was pleasantly surprised with the positive reaction surrounding the first CD, so it was an easy decision to be a part of the new recording. Between Serafino, Daniel and myself we gathered some great songs that I'm sure the AOR fans will love. Daniel Flores did a fabulous job and put in a ton of effort to make this happen. We met many years ago on a writing trip to Sweden where I immediately noticed his work ethic and dedication to making music. I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's reaction to the new album on June 3rd!”
 
Musicians on the album include the outstanding new talent Michael Palace on guitars and bass, Daniel Flores on drums and keyboards, and background vocals from Hess' Harem Scarem bandmate (and Red Dragon Cartel singer) Darren Smith, Alessandro Del Vecchio, Nigel Bailey, Daniel Flores, Rolf Pilotti and Angelica Rylin.
Another Melodic Rock gem and an absolute contender for the AOR album of the year!
 
Tracklisting of “One Step Over the Line” includes:
1. Love Run Free
2. Love Gets Through
3. Still Pretending
4. Broken
5. Kharma
6. Minute Of Your Time
7. She Is Getting Away
8. December Rain
9. Weigh Me In
10. Pedestal
11. One Step Over The Line
 
FIRST SIGNAL:
Harry Hess - Lead and backing vocals
Michael Palace - Acoustic, electric guitar and bass
Daniel Flores - Keyboards and Drums
 
Additional musicians:
Francesco Marras (solo on She is Getting Away and Love Gets Through)
Backing vocals: Darren James Smith, Harry Hess, Alessandro Del Vecchio, Nigel Bailey, Daniel Flores, Rolf Pilotti and Angelica Rylin
 
Produced by Daniel Flores
 
 
Subscribe to First Signal