I have to admit that summer really is the worst season for me. I know I struggled last year to put out articles, and this year has been awful! I'm sorry that it's taking so long for me to pull these articles together, but I promise I'm chipping away at them slowly. This time, I've got a rather curious group of melodic rock albums, mostly carrying on with bands I've reviewed before as I catch up on the year 1991!
Presto saw a reduction in 80s synths in favor of a more alt-rock, guitar-driven sound, and Roll the Bones is a continuation of those ideas. While the keys are still around, they're very much in the background, as the band expand things with funk elements and a lyrical focus on things like luck and fortune.
The U2-meets-Rush vibe lingers from the past album, and I think it has a lot to do with the production, as Lifeson's guitars are given a lot of reverb to help fill out the sound now that the keyboards are taking a back seat. When they bring in some funk, they shift into more of an INXS sound, and there are still plenty of new wave elements here and there, especially on "Bravado." The rap section on the title track was a curious idea, and looking it up, the band wasn't quite show how they wanted to handle it. It's fine, in its own way, shaking things up, but it doesn't really elevate the song. Otherwise, it's a lot of anthemic, jangly guitars for 4-to-5 minute songs, though the instrumental "Where's My Thing" is probably the proggiest thing they've done since their 70s albums.
Once again, this is not a bad album. There's good energy, the Lifeson seems into it, Peart does what he does best, and Geddy makes for a decent pop singer. Unfortunately, there really aren't a whole lot that captures my attention. "Dreamline" was a good opener, and I did like the catchy chorus on "Face Up." There really isn't a bad song on the album (though "Ghost of a Chance" does feel a little weird at times). Somehow, through the 80s, this band lost something. I'm not sure what it is, whether it's a theatrical edge or just a shift in how they handle their dynamics. Overall, this album is decent, but not much more.
While I've featured Harem Scarem a few times on the blog (as well as Harry Hess's side project First Signal), this is the first time I'm sitting down to review one of their albums! Starting in Canada in the 80s, their debut album got some attention by having its songs show up in the teen drama TV show Degrassi (which I know little about). As it turns out, their debut is some very strong melodic rock!
Clearly built on the foundation of bands like Journey, Survivor, and Night Ranger, this is the epitome of AOR with a dash of glam metal here and there. So, with these kinds of albums, it comes down to the execution, and for what it's worth, this is pretty solid stuff. The production is crystal clear, and Hess does a good job of selling these pretty basic lyrics. The rest of the band is spot-on, and I liked the guitar harmonies that were sprinkled in throughout the album. However, I think the biggest key is that the band is being sincere about what they're doing, which helps these songs feel like a cut above any standard 80s rock album. The ballads do lean on the cheesy side, but they don't bring the album down at all.
As for stand-outs, the opener "Hard to Love" is AOR done right, "Slowly Slipping Away" has some good dynamics, going from softer verses to an anthemic chorus, "All Over Again" starts off soft as well, but then jumps into a good, driving beat, and the rest of the tracks stick to some very satisfying, mid-tempo rock 'n' roll. While I don't know if this is quite good enough to squeeze into the Top 5 article I'm working on for this year, it has an outside chance, and remains a great debut album for a band that's been a staple of melodic rock for decades now.
While their first album was a solid collection of melodic rock in a world of British metal, their label didn't really support them, and the band broke up right after. However, when a nostalgia tour for NWOBHM came around in the late 90s, the Troy brothers grabbed Paul Di'Anno and Dennis Stratton (both former Iron Maiden members) and did very well for themselves. While Di'Anno moved on, Stratton stuck around, and with Bruce Bisland on drums, they recorded this album, 10 years after their debut!
Right off, this is much more an 80s album. While their debut had some 80s elements, they also retained some the 70s in their songs. Here, they contain all the cliches and tropes of the MTV generation. Big production (which I think gets a little too thick at times), anthemic choruses, melodramatic power ballads, it's all here. And for what it's worth, they do it pretty well. The guitars and synths capture a lot of good melodies, and the vocal harmonies are spot on. While there are a few glam metal moments (especially on "She's Hot" and "Only You"), the band still lean on the AOR side of things. Honestly, if this album had come out just 2 years earlier, this would have been pretty massive. However, 1991 was a rough time to be a melodic rock band as the landscape was changing so much at that time.
This is hard to compare to their debut because it really is a different animal. I do think there are a few too many power ballads for my tastes, but I did like the synth-heavy songs, such as "Can't See the Angels" and "Time Slipping Away" as they made me think of Asia's poppier side. "She's Hot" did have some interesting overlapping vocals on the chorus, and "The Horn" was a neat little instrumental track. Overall, I liked most of it, and it's very clear to me that if had things gone differently, this band would have been huge. Now, they're just one of the best hidden gems that is just sadly overlooked by so many rock fans.
After Zakk Wylde revitalized the band on No Rest for the Wicked, the same lineup carried on into the early 90s, following up with this album, which would prove to be one of Ozzy's most successful. While much of what worked last time sticks around, the album definitely pushes more into mainstream territory, with mixed results.
The first big difference is a bump in production. It's not drastically different, but it is a little richer and bigger than before, really filling the space well. However, this album has the band leaning closer to what glam metal was doing at this time. With the synth orchestrations, the blend of acoustic and electric guitars, and rock-heavy vibe with shallow lyrics, this stuff feels very prepared for MTV audiences. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it does make the album feel kinda samey after a while. The performances are solid, with Ozzy providing his iconic charm, and Zakk laying out some great riffs and solos, but there are moments that feel a little forced. Despite winning a grammy, "I Don't Want to Change the World" is a lazy retread of "Crazy Train," "Time After Time" and "Road to Nowhere" are some lackluster ballads, and "Zombie Stomp" has a very long intro into a rather silly song.
This isn't a bad album, of course. Zakk really is the highlight, just like how Jake E. Lee and Randy Rhoads were in the past. The hits are still solid songs, with "Mama, I'm Coming Home" being a very anthemic ballad, and the title track having some neat ideas, starting with a bass groove and including a curious digression that made me think of Queen at their proggiest. As for the more conventional rock songs, "Desire" stood out the most, I think, and the two bonus tracks weren't bad either. Overall, the album is just a bit too long and too generic compared to what they've done before. It's not bad while it's one, but Ozzy and company have done better.
