The brand new melodic hard rock outfit named Kee of Hearts, which is spearheaded by former Europe guitarist Kee Marcello and Fair Warning vocalist Tommy Heart among others, is about to release this self-titled debut of theirs containing eleven tunes that are riddled with huge choruses, 80s-sounding keyboards, simple and direct riffs, and hummable guitar solos.

 

Unfortunately, way too many of the songs sound a bit same-y and uninspired, kind of like the band is merely going through the motions and not really channeling any energy or passion into them, which is fucking frustrating, because these guys sure can play, but their tunes lack energy, spark, and warmth. The only cuts that truly stand out are "S.O.S." and closing track "Learn to Love Again", both of which possess the necessary fire and wicked hooks that any great rock tune requires. I just wish the rest of the tracks were of that caliber. There is very little to get excited about here, folks. 

"Kee of Hearts" neither stands out nor rises above many of the countless hard rock albums that are currently out there and there are certainly more interesting Frontiers releases than this one. Putting this one down really sucks in that I cherish Kee Marcello’s back catalogue and considers him a talented guy, but this record fails to impress me even after having listened to it over and over again.

 

If Journey, Europe, Def Leppard, and similar AOR/melodic rock ensembles are all you ever think about, Kee of Hearts might be something that you ought to check out, but count me out.

 

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