RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://honeymoonsuiteband.com/ These immensely talented Canadian rockers impressed me last year by means of their melodically rich and gorgeously crafted album titled Alive, so my hopes were high for this brand-new opus of theirs. Although lacking a bit of the vigor, energy, and immediacy that made its predecessor so memorable, “Wake Me up…
In what has become a tradition of sorts, this scribe caught up with renowned keyboard player Mark Stanway who is primarily known for his magnificent work with such legendary acts as Magnum and Grand Slam. Since 2018 he has been occupied with a fabulous musical outfit known as Kingdom of Madness, and this talented ensemble…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/wildnessofficial/ Wildness released a great and well-written album back in 2022 titled Resurrection, which blended melodic rock/AOR and hard rock to superb effect, and ever since then I have been looking forward to a follow-up to said piece of work. Their new record, Avenger, picks up the musical narrative where its predecessor…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/TheBandBigDeal/ The Big Deal hail from Serbia, and “immediately accessible” would be an apt description of what the quintet delivers on this twelve-track opus of theirs. They have certainly progressed as musicians and songwriters since the last time I listened to their stuff, which would have been the First Bite LP from…
RELEASE YEAR: 2025 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/wetofficialpage/ Receiving a new album by the fabulous international constellation known as W.E.T. is always a treat and this fifth full-length LP of theirs is no exception. Their line-up is akin to a wet dream (see what I did there?) to lovers of fist-pumping melodic hard rock and there is nothing…
Brazilian melodic hard rockers Landfall impressed me greatly with their spirited and energetic debut offering titled The Turning Point (2020) as it contained plenty of catchy tracks delivered with a sense of class and youthful vigor. The follow-up from 2022, Elevate, was a bit of letdown as it lacked those big, juicy hooks and memorable…
VENUE: Oslo SpektrumDATE: 09.06.2024 ORGANIZER: LIve Nation PHOTOGRAPHER: C. NepperPhotos copyrights belong to the photographer. No unauthorized usage allowed. Please contact photographer if you wish to reuse images in any context. With a stellar line-up consisting of Return, Stage Dolls, and the legendary Journey, there was absolutely no excuse for sitting at home on this…
RELEASE YEAR: 2024BAND URL: https://honeymoonsuiteband.com/ Alive by the Canadian melodic rockers Honeymoon Suite was an album that I had looked forward to receiving and reviewing, and the cool thing is that it did not disappoint. Featuring some superb guitar work, excellent keyboard atmospherics, a tight and energetic rhythm section, and not least a great vocal…
RELEASE YEAR: 2024BAND URL: https://jimpeterik.com/ There are few songwriters out there who can top the legendary Jim Peterik (Pride of Lions) when it comes to crafting a delicious AOR tune filled with irresistible hooks. This instalment in the “World Stage” project sees him teaming up with renowned singers and musicians such as Kevin Cronin (REO…
RELEASE YEAR: 2024 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/grandthebandsweden/ Swedish melodic rockers Grand are back with a new, pristine-sounding album that leans heavily towards AOR, which is no bad thing in my book, and I could easily see this outfit appealing to fans of Def Leppard, the Joe Lynn Turner-fronted version of Rainbow, and late eighties/early nineties Foreigner just…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1uDc5JEr1w The premise and idea of having Michael Sweet (Stryper, Sweet and Lynch, Sunbomb) and Alessandro Del Vecchio team up was an interesting one, and I was looking forward to Return Me to Light, but sadly, it turned out to be somewhat disappointing and lackluster. There is no denying the musical…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.voyageband.com/home With a core line-up consisting of superb musicians and a knack for crafting a pleasing and richly textured AOR tune, this is a pretty enjoyable musical affair and one that bodes very well for the future should Hugo and his skilled bandmates decide to continue down this cool musical path.…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/careofnight/ The third record by the awesome melodic rockers from Sweden known as Care of Night is just the thing if 80s-flavored AOR gets you high. Everything here is easy to digest and instantly appealing, the production is pristine and oozes professionalism, and the number of hooks and catchy vocal melodies…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://youtu.be/dRCYtDQB36s?si=qH43DNocKPNUSdsW Now this melodic debut LP by the duo sporting the moniker Vitalines is an interesting one. With Robbie LaBlanc on vocals and Tommy Denander on guitars, bass, and keyboards, it is hardly as if the band lack pedigree, and when things work on the album, which they do most of…
RELEASE YEAR: 2024 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/Nitrateofficial/ With their fourth album these cool British rockers have well and firmly established their credentials as one of the more exciting AOR/melodic rock groups out there. Exploding right out of the gate by means of the hook-laden title track, these chaps definitely mean business and sound more confident and focused…
VENUE: Troon Concert HallDATE: 23.11.2023 ORGANIZER: WinterStorm Festival (Plan B Events)PHOTOGRAPHER: C. NepperPhotos copyrights belong to the photographer. No unauthorized usage allowed. Please contact photographer if you wish to reuse images in any context. Welsh vocalist and melodic hard rock sensation Chez Kane played the main stage at the brilliant WinterStorm festival on the…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/Houstonsweden/ Melodic rock and AOR of the highest order are what this fabulous and utterly talented act from Sweden offers, and while the previous full-length disc named IV was an amazing and expertly crafted opus, this 2023 output of theirs is just as wicked due to its enticing atmosphere, melodic strength,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.frontiers.shop/new-releases/1580/v/a-steel-bars-a-tribute-to-michael-bolton-cd-jewelcase I was not entirely sure what to expect when I popped this CD, which is a melodic rock/AOR/hard rock tribute to none other than Michael Bolton, into the record player. Truth be told, I have fond memories of listening to Bolton’s songs on cassette tape when I was a kid,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://aprideoflions.com/ I am still quite enamored with Pride of Lion’s superbly crafted Fearless LP from 2017 and to a slightly lesser extent the follow-up from three years later entitled Lion Heart. Dream Higher bears all the hallmarks of its predecessors in terms of its sound and style, but sadly, the songwriting…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/schonmusic/ This mammoth 3CD/DVD set captures legendary Journey guitarist Neal Schon and his friends live on stage in San Francisco back in 2018 when they did a charity gig to raise funds for victims of the fires that had ravaged the North Bay area of the San Francisco region in late…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/cryofdawnmusic/ The Swedish melodic rockers known as Cry of Dawn, which is fronted by the talented Göran Edman, serves up eleven catchy and easily digestible tunes that harken back to the 80s and contain more than a cursory nod to AOR ala Journey. This sophomore album of theirs is a well-produced…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/MichaelThompsonBand/ To state this as succinctly and concisely as I possibly can, the Michael Thompson Band is just the thing if one is on the lookout for melodic rock and AOR performed by world-class musicians and superb songwriters as evidenced by the overall quality of The Love Goes On. With…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/OneDesireBand The Finnish melodic hard rock outfit known as One Desire is bloody marvelous, and its five members sure know to craft a big and juicy tune filled to the brim with soaring vocals, stadium-sized riffs, and more hooks that one can possibly digest. Having said that, their previous live effort…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://open.spotify.com/album/6JLKckkEpI8YDQtzCkXGdd?si=_TVE0GwPQpC6lRiUhWrq4Q The enormously talented Joe Vana and his inspired project named Mecca are back with their fifth album, and this is a gorgeously melodic offering that displays class, sophistication, and depth. The vocals and harmonies are pure ear candy and there is an understated sense of beauty to these superbly arranged…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/RevolutionSaints/ The third album by the star-studded project named Revolution Saints sees a significant change in personnel in that the supremely talented Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake) and bad-ass bassist Jeff Pilson (ex-DIO, Foreigner) have replaced Doug Aldrich and Jack Blades respectively. Deen Castronovo is still manning the drum stool and handling the…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.wigwamofficial.com/ I was rather enamored with Wig Wam’s Never Say Die opus from 2021 as it was an utterly confident, enjoyable, and energetic slab of memorable hard rock, and it is pretty frigging awesome to see and hear that their latest output, Out of the Dark, offers more of the same.…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7LDB2IlMsof4n8sxOexPz7 Featuring the three incredibly skilled vocalists Kent Hilli, Toby Hitchcock, and Robbie LaBlanc, T3nors is a melodic rock/AOR project by Frontiers Records that has been in the works for a few years. There is no shortage of quality musicianship here, and the slick and glossy production suits the song material…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/khymeraaor/ Melodic rock is what Khymera is all about, and this follow-up to Master of Illusions from 2020 is certainly a polished and great-sounding affair yet one that lacks truly mind-blowing and memorable compositions. These gentlemen sure know their way around their instruments and the recording studio, and there are plenty…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/creyesweden/ There was a lot to admire and cherish about the previous output by these melodic rockers from Sweden, and it is most satisfying to discover that this latest effort of theirs delivers too and leaves very little to be desired in terms of quality songwriting. A loud, crisp, and bright…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/firstsignalband/ The previous effort by First Signal (Closer to the Edge, 2022) was neither particularly impressive nor as cohesive in terms of quality as it could have been, and although this follow-up entitled Face Your Fears is also somewhat uneven and contain a number of filler tracks, it is quite the…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7tibwgLd3lI7eXXPwIJ8sH This debut album by vocalist Nevena came out late last year via Frontiers and is in many ways a mixture of melodic hard rock and AOR. The Serbian singer has teamed up with songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Michael Palace, which is a great move on paper, but while the two of them are…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://paulsabu.com/ Sabu is the brainchild of the wildly talented musician/songwriter/producer Paul Sabu who is known for his work with David Bowie, Alice Cooper, and Madonna among many others, and what a thrill it is to hear him tear it up on this exquisitely crafted solo album of his titled Banshee. While…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://journeymusic.com/ Journey surely need no introduction as these stalwarts of melodic rock/AOR have been around for ages and are responsible for some of the most well-known and popular anthems known to man, so let us cut to the chase and briefly touch on this latest offering of theirs, which is a…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/landfallofficial/ I was very fond of Landfall’s debut album titled The Turning Point (2020) as it boasted great songs with a sense of immediacy and youthful vigor to them, so naturally, I was curious as to how their latest offering, Elevate, would turn out. Sadly, it fails to capitalize on the…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: http://www.frontiers.it/album/5838 Tommy DeCarlo (Boston) possesses an impressive set of pipes and is undoubtedly a great singer and front man, but this album entitled Dancing in the Moonlight, which is primarily written by Frontiers Records’ in-house composer and musician Alessandro Del Vecchio, is a huge letdown and utterly forgettable. AOR and soft…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://robmoratti.net/ The talented Rob Moratti (ex-Saga) has a new record out that showcases both his excellent singing and great compositional skills, and although it is a slick and polished offering that falls somewhere between melodic rock and AOR, it also possesses some nice (albeit subtle) prog rock flavors and heaps of…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0dVETbP5NLiYQFPtVIA3Na The Brazilian melodic rock/AOR outfit known as Tarmat is a real pleasant surprise to these ears as this quartet delivers some incredibly well-written, pristine-sounding tunes that lean toward the magical vibes of Toto, Journey, Boston, and to a lesser extent Europe. Did you say earworms and irresistible hooks? Fear not…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/AboutUsNagaland/ It is not often that something as exotic as kick-ass and dynamic hard rock from India finds its way to my mailbox, but I am really grateful that this vigorous and passionate opus by About Us did as this is a fantastic debut album. Energetic and chock-full of good ideas, the talented ensemble merge the old with…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://www.chezkane.com/ I really liked the previous album by Chez Kane (i.e. the self-titled one from 2021) and find her a terrific singer with a lot of charisma, but this latest LP of hers, which was written and produced by Danny Rexon from Crazy Lixx, lacks those truly hook-laden and memorable delights…
Back in October 2022, I received a promo copy of a most impressive and dynamic slab of kick-ass hard rock entitled Resurrection by the Swedish outfit named Wildness. Apart from crafting melodically strong and hook-laden tunes that are outright irresistible, what makes this particular band so great is the fact that they also weave different…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/grandthebandsweden/ The Swedish outfit named Grand recently released this self-titled offering of theirs via Frontiers Records, and I must say that this is a highly promising debut album that shows potential and hints at even greater things to come. With their roots being firmly planted in melodic rock and AOR, these…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/wildnessofficial/ An excellent slab of melodic rock courtesy of the Swedish outfit Wildness is what you and I are going to discuss ever so briefly here, and you know what? I will kick things off by stating that Resurrection is a hugely enjoyable listen and a well-composed collection of tunes that…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/perfectplansweden/ The Swedish purveyors of melodic hard rock and ridiculously catchy AOR are back with an inspired new offering that is pure ear-candy and overflowing with hooks. You know what? This might well be their most well-written and exciting release to date, which is saying something as their past efforts are…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/henrikhydra/ This one nearly got away from my pile of stuff to review, so before that warped brain of mine forgets completely, I should probably write a few short and concise lines about this eleven-track effort, right? Melodic rockers Hydra from Sweden are a relatively new band and also a new…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/SunstormMusic/ The previous effort by the talented hard rockers Sunstorm, more specifically Afterlife (2021), impressed me greatly and was a musically accomplished opus in every sense of the word. Enlisting Rainbow vocalist Ronnie Romero and including him in their ranks was a stroke of genius, and it fills me with joy…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/RestlessSpiritsMusic/ What an enjoyable and cool surprise this 11-track slab of melodic hard rock is. Lords of Black multi-instrumentalist Tony Hernando is the brain and mastermind behind Restless Spirits, and the musically gifted friends of his that he has called upon to add vocals to these hook-laden and energetic compositions all…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/GenerationRadioBand/ With past and present members from such notable acts as Journey, Chicago, and Rascal Flatts in its ranks, this constellation of musicians looked quite interesting on paper. As is usually the case with these projects where skilled and prominent individuals have joined forces in order to churn out either AOR,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://journeymusic.com/ It goes without saying that yours truly ought to have reviewed such a high-profile release by a legendary outfit sooner than this, but better late than never, right? AOR rockers Journey are back with a potent and well-written record that recalls past musical triumphs while also looking to the future,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/palacesweden/ Michael Palace is back with another solo album that very much feels like the natural successor to the two previous records, Binary Music and Rock and Roll Radio, which is a good thing, mind you. Crisp, slick, and polished AOR/melodic rock with a hard and sharp edge and some rather…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/CrossingRubiconOfficial As evidenced by the quality and musical diversity of Perfect Storm, the talented duo of John Bisaha and Cenk Eroglu have a great chemistry together and an abundance of good ideas. AOR, melodic rock, and hard rock are the ingredients in the mix, and I was taken a back at…
