LABEL: MTM MUSIC 199664
OVERALL: 72%
Produced by: Jesse Bradman Mixed by: Bobby Barth
OVERALL: 72%
Produced by: Jesse Bradman Mixed by: Bobby Barth
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LABEL: MTM MUSIC 199664 OVERALL: 72% Produced by: Jesse Bradman Mixed by: Bobby Barth | ||||
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Previously known as Innocent and released on Escape Music, Jesse Bradman (vocals, keys) returns with friends Bob Gillies and David Sykes in tow to create a new moody melodic rock album. Mixing a sounds between Night Ranger with Billy Squier on vocals and influences from the bands the other guys were in like Giuffria and Aldo Nova. The album also includes guests Tom Sholz and Brad Delp of Boston, Billy Sheehan and Richie Kotzen. If you are looking for a punchy hard rock album you might come away a little disappointed as it is not as hard hitting as it could have been, especially given the talent involved. Considering that the band are almost identical in their line up to their first release Innocent, I was surprised to see the music was quite different. It is a smoother than expected blend of AOR and rock with a couple of glimpses of the harder edge sound more expected. I guess a little like the departure to a more mature rock that Von Groove have taken over their Chamelelon album. | ||
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The album opens with Let It Out - a rocker in the Feeding Off The Mojo Night Ranger mold.
Heavy, melodic and a little moody. good vocals. Heart to Heart is immediately not as good, but it grows on you. A mid paced rock song with an unusual feel to it - a little funky even. It also sets the trend for the tempo of the majority of the album. Mid paced and moody. Lonley Girl is another moody song, mid paced at best, but heavier and with some solid guitar riffs. A strong heartfelt vocal. Hole In Your Heart is again moody and mid tempo, yet different to the last two tracks - thankfully! No outstanding chorus, the song is OK with some nice smooth vocals, but hard rock fans might begin to wonder about now. Sister Mercy a slow paced but heavyish ballad. Nice hooks, but the album really needs a rocker about now - big time!! Powertrippin' is almost it. More lead guitar driven and slightly faster paced and more than a little psychedelic and funky. Leavin' Home, while not a hard rocker is better again. At this point vocalist Bradman is sounding dead on for Billy Squier and the style probably isn't too far removed fom a squier rocker either. Good solid melodic hard rock track with a catchy chorus. Now Is The Time is a slow and relatively heavy number with more Squierish vocals. A good Led Zeppelin influenced rocker. Come To Me is harder and a little funky again. The guys save the three best songs for last. Desire is a track previously demoed by Mark Free and called Naked Desire. It was written by Bob Marlette and Tom Whitlock and is a top class anthem AOR rock track. This version is not as good as the Free demo, but the song is just so good any version would be cool. Wanna Be Loved is also a good uptempo melodic rocker. Excellent and catchy chorus and a very AOR chorus. And finally on Hotwired the guys let it go! it rounds out the album with a furious hard rocker that you wished there was more of, especially in the first half of the album. So with the run down hopefully giving you an idea of the feel and sound of this album, I will add this. I really like this album and think it is a fine slice of moody melodic AOR. But they have the potential to be much more than that. As good as this album is for what it is - I wish they were getting back into the anthem rockers that their previous bands were famous for. Still, the production and overall sound is better quality than the Innocent release, even if there is still room for improvement with the production. Get this if the softer side of things appeals to you. If it is hard rockers you are looking for, keep looking. Check out the soundbytes and judge from that. | PRODUCTION: 65% | SONGS: 74% | VIBE: 68% | ATTITUDE: 70% | ESSENTIAL FOR: Fans of softer melodic rock and AOR fans. |