The wonderful pure AOR voice of Robbie LaBlanc is back in focus under his own moniker after a few recent project outings.

This album is described as a 70s and 80s pop/rock affair and I think that’s fairly accurate. There’s some pure commercial 80s AOR, some 80s pop, some more soulful 70s pop and a couple of songs with a heavier bluesier edge.

The album is controlled musically by Tommy Denander (all guitars, keyboards and co-production), so you know the sound/production style you are getting right there. The majority of the album has that programmed feel, drums are credited to a “Michael Lange” (his only other credit is on the last Robert Hart album with the same production team), they don’t sound live to me.

Steve Overland joins in for backing vocals throughout and his contributions are always welcomed. Second track Start The Motor Running has him all over the song. The super smooth My Lips Are Sealed stays in my mind after playback.

Other highlights include the opening anthem Only Human and Good Time plus the heavier track Temptation.

I love Robbie, but I prefer his recent appearances on East Temple Avenue, Find Me and the sublime Cannonballz album.

Fans of Radioactive and the Denander sound will appreciate this and the vocal quality of LaBlanc raises the overall quality of the songs.

Italian power/progressive metal outfit Secret Sphere return with their 9th studio album since their debut in 1997. Quite a feat considering how many bands come and go in just half the time the band has been active. This album sees the return of vocalist Roberto Messina to the fold, whom fronted the band from 1997 – 2012.

To be honest, I’ve overlooked these guys apart from an occasional glance, but Lifeblood has got my attention.

To be spoken of in comparative terms to Dream Theater for their prowess, or Masterplan for their power gives you a decent indication of what’s happening here.

Production and mix are both flawless and give the energetic songs their best chance to shine.

Vocalist Roberto is a powerhouse without sign of a heavy accent, giving the band a true international flavour and at 10 tracks clocking in under 50 minutes in total, there are only room for 2 longer tracks here, the rest get to the point fairly quickly. That means you’ve got hooks and progressive noodling competing for time, which is a winning combo for fans of a great song.

Its fast and sometimes furious, the double kick drum gets a real beating, but with strong vocals and an emphasis on melody, Lifeblood makes a big play for one of the best metal albums of 2021.

Masterpieces don’t come around too often, nor do albums that push the glacial boundaries of what normally defines the AOR/melodic rock genre. This album is everything I love about melodic and heartfelt music, wrapped up into a contemporary package that will appeal to old school devotees and a new generation who appreciate well crafted pop songs with an edge.

In an age where synth-wave is a growing phenomenon, Levara mix the best of a retro meets modern sound, delivering a bright, fresh and uplifting collection of songs, supremely written and crafted and expertly produced like a slick major label release from the 80s.

If you’ve been living under a rock with no internet connection, Levara are Trev Lukather (son of Steve Lukather) on guitars, bass and keys; drummer Josh Devine (son of vocalist Mick Devine) and vocalist Jules Galli. They are an extraordinary trio.

Half of the 10 tracks are already released as videos and if those haven’t convinced you of the brilliance of these guys, then there’s still 5 more chances with the remaining album cuts.

Of those, On For The Night offers listeners a lush mid-tempo melodic rocker before a Toto-esque rhythm sets up the monster ballad Allow.

Towards the end of the 38 minute album is a pleading modern rock song Just A Man that gives way to one of the finest and most gut-wrenching ballads in recent memory. No One Above You is simply wonderful – perfection personified and the bombastic end is majestic.

Chameleon is still on the top of my Best Songs of 2021 list, you just don’t get intelligent, unpredictable songs like this that often.

Oh, and vocal God Steve Perry pops up in amongst the choir of harmony vocals that are all over the record.

It’s a rare occurrence for me to agree wholeheartedly with a band’s own press release, but the words of Trev Lukather to sum up Levara are as good as any I could write. He says Levara is “Anthemic, massive drums, epic fills, loud guitars, soaring solos, huge vocals, unreal high notes, strong melodies and a hook that you can’t get out of your head.”

Amen to that. Get this record pronto.

Kreek was first formed in the summer of 2019 after Bigfoot parted ways with frontman Antony Ellis, who went on to form this new group.

I personally found the Bigfoot debut to be fairly likable and a solid album. Unfortunately for Ellis, Kreek doesn’t carry the warmth or appeal of Bigfoot over to the new band.

In fact, one of the weakest aspects of the Kreek debut are the lead vocals of Ellis. His tone and delivery just aren’t what they were in Bigfoot.

Also missing are the songs. I honestly can’t find a lasting appeal with any of these songs and now reviewed, probably won’t revisit this album ever again.

Its not melodic rock. Its not quite hard rock. Its not quite sleaze and it’s not straight-ahead rock. I think it lacks personality and the quality of songs are just not there.

Production is average, songs are average and the vocals are very average.

Who on earth wants a Goo-y Christmas album? This monstrosity of cheese soaked, soggy cardboard ‘music’ is the ultimate 2020 ‘fuck you’ to fans of this once great band. As if everything else this shit sandwich of a year has served up isn’t enough, the Goo’s end all hope for humanity with this ultimate betrayal of everything the band once stood for. This almost makes me wish for a shit sandwich. More like a soggy lettuce hemorid.

Yes, I hate Christmas albums. Yes, I hate most Christmas songs, although there’s a handful out there that allow me to stop saying bah humbug long enough to enjoy.

And yes, the most recent Goo Goo Dolls output has been largely uninspiring. It’s been a long while since Long Way Down and Slide ruled the airwaves and the band sounded half interested in rocking their fanbase.

But this horrendous record is simply too much. Safe, boring, cheesy and lazy are its good qualities. This is so insipid it makes Wham sound like Napalm Death. One of their kids even sings lead on one track. I don’t even care enough to find out who. It will never pass my ears again.

From tracks that sound more like a badly imitated Tom Petty (his track opens the record) to jazzy Michael Buble standards, this is almost criminally bad.

Only the original track This Is Christmas (which is basically the sappy parts of Iris re-written) has anything remotely connected to the band’s past sound.

No redeeming features to this at all. Horrible. It gives new meaning to the word bland and if your ears can stomach all 30-odd minutes of this disaccharide goo, a good blast of the aforementioned Napalm Death is required to cleanse one’s musical palate.

US melodic hard rockers SHAD should be well known to readers of MelodicRock. Their 2 singles to date have created solid interest, but now that’s all going to go into overdrive thanks to one of the classiest EPs I’ve heard in a long while.

I generally avoid EPs as I like a full plate of music, but the 5 tracks offered up here on ‘5ive’ – all powered by hotshot producer Bob St. John – pack the equivalent punch of many full albums.

Produced & Engineered by Bob St. John at PDQ Studio, Miami and then backed up with mastering by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound, SHAD’s new EP puts them on the same playing field as the big boys.

Not only with the sonic quality and expert mix, but also by delivering 5 compelling, enjoyable solid rock anthems.

Back To You, Fool, Belittle, Today & Poor Excuse are five different tracks that work alone and also together, as the sound and the sequence of the tracks takes the listener on the same kind of journey a full album normally would.

Crunchy guitars, real drums, thumping bass are all clearly audible in the mix, then add some big layered chorus harmonies.

The sound is hard rock, commercial American – not necessarily 80s – but an amalgamation of what made the late 80s/early 90s so good with an updated feel. There’s a touch of blues, a little funk, but mainly its just all rock. Very loud, very good rock!

Wig Wam in 2021 is exactly what I pictured after announcing their welcomed return. At times delivering mixed results in the last few years of their first run at fame.

Older, more mature and pretty much perfectly aware of what the name means to fans and what is expected of them, Wig Wam deliver on Never Say Die.

A little heavier, a little more contemporary (darker) and a little more straight ahead, this album is chock full of big anthems, big guitars and big attitude.

I hate 90 second intros and I’m still not completely sold on the second full track Hypnotized, nor the late in the album instrumental Northbound, but everywhere else I’m hypnotized!

The band have seldom sounded so good – the powerhouse approach works, and the big budget sound certainly ensures all songs are presented in their best light.

Swedish melodic rock outfit Wildness are back with their second album, now featuring the very versatile lead vocals of Erik Forsberg. The band go back and forth between styles - Erik going higher on several songs but a more powerful lower pitch on others. All with equal effect thanks to some strong songwriting and a traditional 80s, keyboard friendly style, that has a good strong current production (and a big drum sound too) thanks to the band’s drummer/producer Erik Modin and Erik Wigelius' magnificent mix and master.

This is a nice mix of old meets new, with a classic Scandi-AOR feel. Sometimes you don’t need a lot of words to describe the package and that’s the case here. There’s an abundance of sharp guitar solos and keyboard swirls and the tempo is fairly fast moving.

A couple of the moodier tracks veer off closer to symphonic territory, such is their epicness. It adds a fresh dimension to the album.

Ultimate Demise might sound a bit dramatic for a record titles of this kind, but it certainly delivers for fans of this genre and the more traditional elements of it. Great stuff.

This could be the most pointless review ever written.

Rabid Yngwie fans will no doubt agree. But for the rest of you, I will explain.

Yngwie is Yngwie. An no amount of words with stop Yngwie being Yngwie. So why bother?

Yngwie is a one man show – he does everything himself. He takes no advice, believes his own self-written press releases, has an ego the size of the empty Marshall stacks he ridiculously piles up on stage and is basically a self-declared shred icon.

So, any review of an Yngwie album that doesn’t tug on the girth of his titanic ego will be met with derision. I’ve read a couple of good reviews for this album, which makes me wonder if the audio for those was heard via a shortwave radio transmission to the mountains of Uzbekistan, as there is no sane rationale for anyone to hear this and not think that it sounds like a big sonic turd.

The drum sound alone is worthy of instant rejection by normally functioning ears. It sounds like they lowered a kit into a medieval mud-filled well and recorded whatever was able to be played with a RadioShack microphone from the top.

Yngwie’s vocals are as warm as a used tray of kitty litter and the shredding is so intent on the one purpose of million-degree shredding, that the album cover itself began to melt.

In his desire to be seen as a faultless guitar-bass-drum-vocal-production-mixer-engineer-cello-everything-god, he makes the same mistake for the forth album in a row. There is no self-awareness in play here. Yngwie can play – I have every album from his first decade – but he can’t and shouldn’t do it all.

Hire a producer, hire a drummer, hire a bassist, hire a vocalist, hire ANYONE that will actually work with you. And work together on something that doesn’t sound like it was recorded by a self-obsessed raving lunatic.

Like I said. It’s all pointless. Almost like the score for this album.

The second Joel Hoekstra’s 13 album does everything a sophomore album is supposed to do. It has improved upon every aspect of the debut, which itself was already a great record. But this is even better and the pleasing aspect is it delivers improvements in all departments.

Better production, better songs, better guitar work, all delivered in a more cohesive package.

The band featured on Running Games is sensational. The great Russell Allen is the only featured vocalist, which gives the record that band feel, more so than the guest vocalists scattered across the debut. Joining in the fun is Tony Franklin (bass), Vinny Appice (drums), and Derek Sherinian (keyboards). Jeff Scott Soto lends a helping hand with background vocals.

Running Games is a heavier record, yet more melodic and more accessible thanks to some very commercial songs and Russell Allen’s perfectly attuned vocals.

To say Joel is an accomplished guitarist is an understatement, but it is still nice to hear him doing exactly what he wants in his own project, writing music and lyrics and controlling every aspect of the sound. It is clearly a labor of love, as we all know the label wouldn’t be covering all costs involved.

So Joel should be very proud of the results. There’s a nice balance between the heavy and the melody and between the pace of various tracks. 13 tracks and over an hour of music flies by in no time at all as the flow is never allowed to drag at any point.

A top class hard rock record that will further entrench Joel as one of the scene’s most respectable and reliable musicians.

Let’s go straight to the bottom line – I’m loving this record and I’m sure many others are going to feel the same. Its brash, diverse and challenging. But it’s not without flaws and the main one is the production (or mix) quality. It is an issue. For the most part I’ve adapted my ears to the choices the band has made here and for that reason I can enjoy the performances and the songs for what they are. Some however, may not be able to get around it, or over it or past it, and listening enjoyment may be impacted.

But the performances are blindingly good and the songs are quite superb.

For the record, the album was recorded remotely – with Arnel in the Philippines, Neal and Narada Michael Walden in San Francisco, Randy Jackson in Los Angeles and Jonathan Cain at home in his own studio. That kind of separation can impact the end result of an album, and it puts premium importance on the mixer. In this case the job was given to Bob Clearmountain – one of the very best mix engineers in the business. He has done an amazing job at piecing the album together. A lot of the sound of a record comes down to how it was recorded in the first place, and how the band want the record to sound.

The album has a raw sound, a somewhat muddy mix in places and some unusual vocal effects when it comes to Arnel’s leads. But you must accept everything for what it is and how it sounds. This is what the band want you to hear.

The album has been with me for a couple of months now and I know it inside and out. Its become one of my most played records of 2022, which has to mean something. I keep wanting to go back to it. And I’ve played it on several different mediums. It actually sounds best in my car. Generally speaking, records shouldn’t sound much different depending on how it is being listened to, but that’s another curiosity of ‘Freedom’ – the new first new Journey album in 11 years, adopting the moniker originally designated for the ‘Raised On Radio’ album, back when Herbie Herbert was in control.

Narada Michael Walden is insane on the drums. He is all over this record. Jonathan Cain delivers a lot of different keyboard and piano textures throughout and Arnel Pineda proves he is again the man – not only for the dead on Steve Perry-isms in certain songs, but also for sounding uniquely himself in other places. Randy Jackson’s bass parts all make their mark – this album has a serious groove to it. And what can be said about Neal Schon? I think he is again the star of the show here.

In fact, listening back to this album over the time I have had it, its like tuning into Neal Schon’s Greatest Hits – there’s parts of Journey, Bad English, Hardline and his solo work all throughout this album.

Journey’s history is well documented, so no there’s reason for any history lesson here. To briefly recap their time with vocalist Arnel Pineda, you have the very successful and commercial ‘Revelation’ record in 2008, followed by the decisively less commercial guitar driven ‘Eclipse’ in 2011, which some dismiss (at their own peril), for being too direct, or less focussed on melodies. I couldn’t disagree more. But now some 11 years on, its time again for AORs most loved band to give something new for fans to complain about, or at least debate endlessly for the next 11 years.

After being criticised (wrongly in my opinion) for being too focussed on guitar on the last album, Journey return with an album largely focussed…yes, on guitars. On several songs, the band, or Neal Schon at least, takes guitar dominance even further than on ‘Eclipse’, delivering some of the heaviest and grooviest Journey songs on record. On the surface that might seem like an odd decision, but those tracks are balanced out by some very traditional Journey style AOR melodies and a few outstanding ballads.

There are really strong comparisons to ‘Trial By Fire’ to be drawn here – the style and feel of the album matches their 1996 comeback album, while other parts touch on ‘Escape’, ‘Frontiers’, ‘Raised On Radio’ and even the early days of the band.

‘Freedom’ is one of the band’s most rhythmically complex record, with layers upon layers of drums, percussion and well, everything – I just wish it could all be heard clearly.

And for those that have been living off samples for the last month or so….don’t judge the record on those – I’ve listened to them to hear what parts of the songs they highlight and they are indeed not telling the full picture or the complexity of this record means the samples are doing just that – ‘sampling’ what’s on offer, but not painting the full picture by any means.

Track by Track:

Together We Run is one of my favourite Journey album opening tracks, just because it’s a little different. Opening with just a piano and vocal, it’s a baladesque intro, but you know its going to go somewhere. When the impact comes it drives the song into the first chorus and from there the song picks up pace. I love the vocal melody through the verse and the chorus is memorable, not only for the hook, but for the guitar and drum rhythms driving the song. There are some keyboard parts in there too, but they are buried in the mix for the most part.

I love the immediate appearance of the soulful harmony vocals, which is a real touch of ‘Raised On Radio’ and ‘Trial By Fire’. The whole album utilises these harmony vocals and is every bit better for it. They really add to the mood and ambience.

A different mix would have really given this song maximum impact, especially in the opening sequence when guitar and then drums first impact. As is the case with the whole album, the songs are fantastic, but the sonic impact could be greater.

Don’t Give Up On Us takes the Separate Ways keyboard and guitar intro parts to get it started before morphing into a free flowing, anthemic commercial rocker, mirroring the vibe of Trial By Fire’s Message Of Love. The second part of the song is a rapid-fire guitar solo and some intense drumming from the unheralded star of this album - Narada Michael Walden. The drum fills and associated percussion parts are mind blowing. Not for the first time on this album am I reminded of the Trial By Fire rocker One More. In traditional Journey style, Neal’s soloing is all over the latter parts of the song.

Still Believe In Love takes a rapid pace de-escalation in the same way ‘Trial By Fire’ did at track 3, delivering the first haunting ballad of the album. More a moody and soulful slow paced intimate musical piece than a traditional ballad, this is a beautiful vocal from Arnel alongside lush harmonies and some brilliant slow guitar work from Neal that reminds me of his ‘Late Nite’ solo album.

You Got The Best Of Me is a big sounding, fast moving Journey rock anthem, with a solid beat and a chunky riff. Keyboards line the track and funnel it towards a big chorus. The verse’s vocal melody is as effective as anything the chorus delivers, as the chorus itself almost sits on top of the track, losing potential impact with an irregular mix that just doesn’t match the rest of the song. To be frank, it is probably just the fact the chorus is so busy, so layered with instruments and vocals that it just doesn’t have room to breathe. The first time I heard it, my ears were immediately challenged. The vocals are lost and the drums sound hollow. But still, I love the track.

Live To Love Again is the big ballad of the album. The big heartfelt, lighters in the air (or cell-phones these days) moment. The tender ballad is something truly special. Keyboards and piano feature prominently, with an orchestral arrangement driving the song, with Arnel blowing the roof off with a soaring vocal, the chorus totally delivering on the sentimentality of the song. One of my favourite Arnel ballads from his time with the band, which gets bigger and bigger as it goes on.

The Way We Used To Be is a song we all know. The groovy mid-tempo rocker has a unique feel and a balanced injection of both guitar and keyboard. The song received mix reviews when it was released as a single early on, but it fits the scope of this album very well and in this almost mid-album position is a good transition song from the ballad before it, to the hard rocker that follows it.

Come Away With Me is an oddity. Played on its own it doesn’t strike me as a natural Journey song. It’s more comparable to the debut Hardline album. Guitar wise, Neal is just all over this song, as is the rhythm section of Randy Jackson and Walden. Heavy, groovy and to offer an alternative view, I could imagine this as a killer 2 minute mid-album mid-instrumental, as it’s the guitar groove that makes the song what it is – not the vocal or chorus as might normally be the case.

The album production decisions are again exposed by this track. Arnel’s vocal is really quite different than anything he’s offered previously. The vocal effects used make it sound as if the vocal was recorded using a loudspeaker in a baseball stadium. But seeing as his voice sounds great elsewhere within the album, one must deduct that the effects used on this vocal were an intended aspect of the song. It’s the guitars that rule this tune.

After Glow is another song that I instantly adored, with Deen Castronovo making his mark on this album with a lone lead vocal. He came back into the fold late and recorded this at the very end of the sessions for the album. This moody ballad reminds me of the If He Should Break Your Heart/Still She Cries combo from ‘Trial By Fire’. As the song builds it goes from a sultry ballad a rhythm and soul driven masterpiece. Walden’s drum parts are just exquisite, even if the mix does burry them somewhat. Neal’s ever increasingly urgent soloing is the stuff of legends. The soulful harmonies are icing on the cake and Walden continues to go to town in the background. The last 40 seconds are absolute melodic perfection.

I have to say that I’m having a love/hate relationship with Let It Rain. A very odd choice as a single to promote the album, it once again features Arnel’s vocals coming direct from under the grandstand speaker. The song itself is a slow, dark, heavy groover – the type of track your average Journey fan might feel is closer to the devil than the heavenly substance to which it refers. Precisely the last track that should have been considered as a masthead to promote the album, but again, Neal looks to mix things up. Listened to in the sequence of the album start to finish, it just works, mainly due to the resounding thump the song has. And it leads perfectly into the snappy rock n rhythm of the faster moving Holdin On.

Holdin On features some snappy drum work again and a big fat bass line, not to mention more magic from the groovemeister Neal Schon. Shredding over the top of a thick riff, this is 100% Neal’s song. Its also another piece of music I could envision as an instrumental. Arnel’s vocals are like nothing I’ve heard him sing and the effects used on them will again cause some fans to suffer strokes, or at least make them reach for the skip button. But I like it.

All Day And All Night is the end chapter in a trilogy of groove-laden hard rockers that sound more like Hardline or Neal’s ‘Piranha Blues’ than Journey. The swagger of this track has its own unique charm and Arnel again sings outside his usual stylistic restraint, with a better sound quality than the two previous tracks, making it my pick of the three.

At this point, the album desperately needs a big commercial rocker and Don’t Go delivers just that. Instantly catchy from the opening seconds through to the closing flurry of notes, this is classic Arnel fronted Journey and will appeal to fans of the commercial side of the band. A big chorus with swirling keyboards and harmony vocals is diametrically opposite to the trio of songs preceding it.

Needing to keep the commercial, more traditional Journey sound coming to counter-balance the darker groove-rockers, the album now delivers United We Stand, which moves the pace and style back closer to the opening number and gives a further taste of ‘Trial By Fire’ in the mood. I love Arnel’s vocal here and the bridge is pure AOR brilliance. The chorus is moody and layered with those soulful harmonies again – I can’t get enough of those. Keyboards hint back to a Separate Ways style. A big drum flurry over Neal’s wailing guitar closes out the track.

Life Rolls On starts softly, building through the keyboard/vocal intro, with some cool percussion in play. Cathedral like keyboards carry the song through the verse into a big guitar rip that turns the song on its head. Classic Schon here as the pace picks up through to conclusion.

It’s been a very unconventional, surprising album so far and to finish things off comes Beautiful As You Are, perhaps the most astounding track of the album. Just a raw, beautiful vocal from Arnel, accompanied by acoustic guitar and an orchestral fill to start things off, with Arnel really reaching those high notes before Neal rips into things with a big riff and Walden bursts to life with a busy-as-ever drum performance. The songs continues to build with those soul-harmonies delivering the bridge and chorus. Through the course of the song’s 7-minute run, things get crazy to the point that the last 90 seconds can only be described as completely bonkers. Love it!

Another great Journey record. A traditional Journey album? Perhaps not, but then what exactly is Journey’s “traditional” sound. The guys have delivered some truly diverse music over the years from album number one, to this, their fifteenth. You can’t pigeon hole this band from just two of those albums, as loved as they are. Journey are much more than ‘Escape’ and ‘Frontiers’ and this record proves it yet again.

I was a big fan of Rust N Rage’s last album – so much so I released it on my own label at the time. So I was eager to hear this, their third and probably most important outing.

Now on Frontiers - the label with the most bands on the planet, the band needed to up the ante to further their mission, but also to ensure they stood out from the pack of other Frontiers releases, where it is all too easy to get caught up in the mayhem and missed.

Thankfully the quality of this album should fend of both challenges, as the material here easily ups that of ‘Tales From The Wasteland’.

Bigger songs, bigger choruses, bigger guitars, bigger vocals, and most importantly, not only bigger, but better songs.

The pace is also quite fierce. The guys know how to rock and with this album should put themselves on the map with other Scandi hard rockers like H.E.A.T, Treat and US rockers like Dokken and Motley Crue.

A sleazy, glam-fused, hard rock tour de force!