This new TEN album is the sixth studio album of GARY HUGES and co. Everytime they bring something new and sound better than ever, but with the new release 'Far beyond the world' I think TEN has released it's best album so far. The album has a fantastic production (done by Gary himself), while the mixing was done in Germany by Tommy Newton (ARK, HELLOWEEN, CRYSTAL BALL). There are 11 tracks on the CD and not one of them sounds average! It's really hard to pick favourites, because all the songs are sensational Classic AOR/Melodic Rockers.

Especially the first 4 songs are really impressive and belong to the best you can get in AOR/Melodic rock these days. These are the songs "Glimmer of evil" (fantastic midtempo melodic rocker), "Strange land" (superb uptempo AOR/Melodic Rock, best song TEN ever recorded?), "High tide" (uptempo melodic heavy rock with a strong catchy AOR chorus) and the lovely AOR ballad "What about me?". After such a start, it's a pleasure to listen to the rest of the album, because it continues in this classy AOR/Melodic Rockstyle, with as other highlights "Heart like a lion" (pure 80s AOR), "Black shadows" (uptempo AOR/Melodic Rock), "What do you want to love?" (fantastic uptempo 80s AOR) and closing track "Far beyond the world" (a lovely semi AOR ballad). What more can I say!

This new TEN album is their best release so far and it's a big recommendation to everyone actually, because this is such a high quality musical effort. The official release of this new TEN album is on the 10th of December, so you just need to wait a few weeks before you can buy this AOR/Melodic Rock jewel!

Rating: 9,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

RING OF FIRE is a new American super-project around vocalist Mark Boals (MALMSTEEN), drummer Virgil Donati (PLANET X, SOUTHERN SONS), keyboardplayer Vitalij Kuprij (ARTENSION), guitarist George Bellas (MOGG/WAY) and bassist Philip Bynoe (STEVE VAI BAND). The mix of the CD is done by LANA LANE members Erik Norlander and Neil Citron. Musically RING OF FIRE is playing their own brand of progressive melodic heavy rock, with clear influences from Power Metal, and a lot of space for big sounding keyboards, and progressive rock/metal breaks, but still with enough melodies for the fan of this genre.

The first 2 songs ("Circle of time" and "Shadow in the dark") are both very fast melodic power metal orientated (a la RHAPSODY), but most of the rest of the CD not that fast and more Melodic Progmetal orientated. My favourite tracks are "Vengeance for blood" (neo-classical melodic rocker, with great keyboardwork, and a sound like STORMWIND meets MALMSTEEN), "Dreams of empire" (great progressive melodic rocker with again excellent keyboardwork, a fine mixture of 70s progressive rock with a catchy strong melodic chorus), "The oracle" (good progressive power metal, very bombastic and proggy, 8 minutes playing time), "Land of illusion" (fantastic prog keyboards at start, later a nice own kind of progressive metal) and the lovely classical melodic rockballad "Take me home" (best song of the whole CD). This is a high quality release and will attract all fans of melodic progressive metal! The CD will be released on the 10th of December.

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Drummer/songwriter Don Hosler has just released his debut-CD 'Boardwalk of broken dreams', a pure 80s inspired melodic hard rock album that calls memories of the days when 'Hair-metal' was the style every Californian band was playing. There are 12 tracks on Don's debut CD and both the sound/production and the included songs are from a high quality, so if you're into bands like DOKKEN, WHITE LION and KANE ROBERTS, then this CD is a total must for you! But first I'll write something more about each and every song on this impressive release of Don. Opener "Give it to ya straight" for example sounds slightly different than the rest of the CD, but still is a high quality uptempo melodic heavy rocker a la RAINBOW/JOE LYNN TURNER.

The best was yet to come on the next tune, "One way ticket". This song is a great hookladen pure 80s typed uptempo melodic rocker like a mix between DOKKEN and WHITE LION. Although Don uses different musicians on each song, most of the tunes are in the same style. Also the various lead singers (Chuck Clancy, Patrick Burke, Andy Kelley)
are singing like each other a bit, so the CD continues in the same classy melodic rockstyle as created on those first couple of tunes. "Wild over you" and "End of love's rainbow" are both great 80s typed AOR/Melodic rockers a la KANE ROBERTS. Then comes the great semi AOR/Melodic rockballad "Everytime you close your eyes", a song reminding me of DANTE FOX, ALYSON AVEMUE, WITNESS…

When mentioning those acts, you understand that this song features a female singer, she is called Daniella Brida, and it's a pity she only songs on one song, because I would love to hear more songs with her on vocals. Anyway, the CD continues with "Somewhere down the road", a fantastic hookladen 80s typed uptempo melodic rocker a la DANGER DANGER, JET RED, DOKKEN, HEAVENS EDGE… The following 2 songs are the only tracks that are actually nothing special, namely the uptempo Hardrock song "Voice of reason" (rawer vocals a la WAYSTED) and the bluesy Hardrocker "Halfway over the wall" (a la TED NUGENT). "Promises were made for breakin'" follows and is a nice midtempo aor/melodic rocker.

"Fistful of dreams" is another favourite of mine, because this is a great uptempo melodic rocker a la DOKKEN and together with "One way ticket" and "Somewhere down the road" the best stuff on the CD. The last 2 tracks are the 80s Hardrock song "Come and get it" (a la RATT) and the titlesong which is a nice melodic rocker but nothing spectacular. This CD of DON HOSLER is definitely an album worth checking out, especially if you're into pure 80s melodic rock a la DOKKEN, WHITE LION… Go check out his site at: http://www.donhosler.com and e-mail them at: don@donhosler.com

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

JOSHUA guitarist Joshua Perahia strikes back with a hot new CD release entitled 'Something to say'. After releasing great AOR/Melodic rock records in the 80s with JOSHUA and in the mid 90s with MPIRE, he now has a new project under his own name. Additional musicians include vocalist Jerry Gabriel, bassist Joey Rochrich, drummer Eric Stoskopf and lead singers Alex Ligertwood (SANTANA) and Jason Scheff (CHICAGO). Musically it is very AOR inspired, with a lot of (semi) ballads and not too many rockers, but still there's some Hardrock a la WHITESNAKE, but like I said the album is mainly focused on pure AOR (Ballads). The production is superb, and that's due to the fact that KEITH OLSEN (FIONA, PREVIEW, KINGDOM COME, SCORPIONS…) is the producer of this album.

The recording took place in the M&K Studios (where sound-parts of the new Star Wars movies were made!). I can also inform you that this is a high quality AOR record, with some
beautiful melodies in each and every song, so nothing stands in the way to give this album a big recommendation! First, I would like to tell you about the songs. Opener "Remembering you" (co-written by SHOUTer KEN TAMPLIN) is a fantastic emotional 80s typed semi AOR ballad a la JOURNEY and SURVIVOR. Up next is "Something to say", a song that starts calm, but later turns out to be a great uptempo AOR rocker a la 38 SPECIAL. The CD continues with the bluesy AOR ballad "I can feel again", a track that reminds me of WHITESNAKE. Then comes one of my favourite tracks, the superb classy (typical) midtempo AOR song "Precious love" (a la STREET TALK, BAD ENGLISH, and JOURNEY).

The only let-down of the CD is the westcoast popballad "The first and the last", although the song has a nice guitarsolo by Joshua, it just falls a bit out of place between the 'Rock/AOR' material on the rest of the CD. "Let your love shine down" follows and is a nice WHITESNAKE typed bluesy Hardrocksong. We're back into pure AOR with the lovely uptempo AOR/Radiorocker "Guiding light" (like JOURNEY and CHANNEL). "It hasn't been easy" is just a nice rocker, but the following two songs are again quite sensational. First there's the good semi melodic rockballad "Tears of joy" (with some bluesy influences).

And then there's the fantastic AOR ballad "One night is not enough", with the right promotion an instant hit for any chart worldwide! "Steady weapon" follows and is a good semi melodic rocker. The CD closes with the acoustic version of the first track "Remembering you". Concluded I can only advise you to buy this CD a.s.a.p., as it smells like a high quality AOR record. It's a bit different than JOSHUA, but still very AORish, check it out for yourself at: http://www.joshuaperahia.com and e-mail at: info@joshuaperahia.com

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

A few months ago I discussed the wonderful debut of the Portuguese AOR band MARVEL, but that album was in their own language. Now the band has released a new mini-CD, with songs in English, so they want to get some attention outside Portugal. The CD counts 5 well-performed tracks. Opener "Long way to go" is a good fun uptempo melodic rocker. Next track "If I could love you" is a nice AOR ballad. The best song is definitely the fantastic uptempo AOR rocker "Colors that you never forget. This song is an instant winner for the AOR fans, partly due to the fact that MARVEL has got a very good singer (Ivan D'Almeida). Next track is the calmer acoustic/strings tingled ballad "Hole in the ground". The CD closes with the impressive AOR ballad "Someday". I really liked their debut CD with all the Portuguese songs, but this new 5-track CD with songs in English is even better and definitely shows that MARVEL is one of the best bands out of Southern Europe at the moment. Check out their site at: http://www.marvelmusic.com

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

I haven't got much info on the Swedish band VOICE, but what I do know is that their new CD "Golden signs' is a great Progressive Melodic Heavy Rock/Metal album in the style of EDGUY, HAMMERFALL, with some PC'69 thrown in for good measure. There are 10 songs and the production is quite good. Opener "Golden signs" is very fast and sounds very close to GAMMA RAY, but it's the only fast song, so don't expect 10 songs in this style. Next track "Days of trust" introduce some great keys and is a great midtempo progressive melodic heavy rocker a la 1980s MALMSTEEN. "On my way" is good uptempo progressive power metal with some classical influences. The midtempo "Doubtful times" is similar to EDGUY.

My favourite tracks though are the last 4 tracks, the semi progressive powerballad "The old brightness", the calmer progressive melodic rockballad "The last dance", the midtempo melodic rocker "The prediction (2001)" (with a very catchy chorus and a playing time of 8 minutes, probably the best song of the whole CD) and closing track "The visitors" (a bonustrack, great uptempo melodic rocker a la PINK CREAM 69). If you're into high quality Melodic Progressive Power Rock/Metal, then please get this album a.s.a.p.

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This is a Brazilian band and they sent me a an advanced CDR copy of their upcoming debut CD release 'Na estrada'. The production by Paulo Anhaia (famous Brazilian rock producer) in the Midas Studio (the best recording studio in South-America) is very good and also musically this band looks set to be a very promising act for the near future. CIDADE NUA is a pure 80s typed AOR/Melodic Rockband, playing in the style of DOKKEN. Most of all they remind me of the Portuguese band MARVEL, who also play this type of music and just like this CIDADE NUA sing in the Portuguese language.

There are some really great tunes on this CD. My favourite tracks are "Mulher s/a" (fantastic catchy uptempo melodic AOR rocker), "Brincadeira" (great semi AOR ballad, a la DON DOKKEN), "Noite" (catchy uptempo melodic rocker, very late 80s orientated, a la first DANGER DANGER), "Na estrada" (great uptempo AOR/Melodic rocker), "Teu olhar" (great semi melodic rocker) and closing track "Lock the time" (the only English written tune, a great hookladen uptempo melodic hardrock song a la BONFIRE, DOKKEN, WHITE LION…).

The only average tune, from the 13 included, is the boogie Hardrock of "Ex-marido", a short song that sounds a bit out of place on this CD. Apart from that song, I can give this band a big recommendation to anyone who likes good old AOR/Melodic Rock. If you don't mind a band singing in the Portuguese language, then do check out CIDADE NUA, as they are one of the better sounding bands from Brazil. Website: http://www.oocities.org/cidadenua and e-mail them at: cidadenua@yahoo.com

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

When this CD arrived and I opened the package and saw some flyers of a promotional music resource called Honky Tonkin Music, I really though this was going to be some sort of country cowboy record! I put the CD of the band VOODOO MONKEY CHILD in my CD player and guess what? This is an awesome high quality neo-prog/aor record with great female vocals and a very big sound with lots of great keys, not unlike LANA LANE and TRACY HITCHINGS! So never judge before hearing! Anyway, there are 12 tracks on the CD and like I said before, the production and sound quality of this record is huge. The band reminds me a lot of acts like LANDMARQ and PENDRAGON.

Opener "Demonlove/Firedancers" is a great Neoprog/AOR song with a cool break for the guitarsolo and a sound close to LANA LANE, TRACY HITCHINGS… A great way to start an album and happily, the rest of this great album continues in this style. It's only a pity that there are about 5 instrumentals on the CD, because this band is at their best when the female lead singer Rose Penuel is singing. Anyway, the other vocal tracks are "A taste of afterlife" (great neo-prog with a very good keyboardsolo, a la PENDRAGON), "Foxsport" (good progressive rocker with cool spacy keys/synths), "The last time around" (good Neo-prog with nice Keyboard vs. Guitar dual), "Last among stars" (70s typed HEART uptempo progressive melodic rocker), "Death and the shadowman" (faster uptempo melodic heavy rocker a la URIAH HEEP, only song with male vocals, nice break, song has a playing length of 10 minutes) and closing track "1453" (progressive melodic rocker with light Gothic influence, like NIGHTWISH).

This VOODOO MONKEY CHILD is a big surprise, but I only hope for some more vocal tracks on a future CD. Nevertheless, this is a must for fans of Neo-prog and female fronted AOR/Melodic Rock. Check out their site at: http://www.honkytonkin.com and e-mail them at: honkytonkinmusic@aol.com

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

'Perception of reality' is the 4th CD of AOR/Melodic rockers TAKARA and maybe this is their best effort so far. It's a pity of course that original singer JEFF SCOTT SOTO isn't singing anymore with TAKARA, but still Michael Flatters is a good replacement, and besides, the songs are better than ever before! There are only 9 songs included on the new TAKARA CD, but they are all very sensational 80s typed catchy AOR/Melodic rockers. 8 of the 9 songs are uptempo, all in the same fun 80s style, some more AOR, while others more progressive melodic rock, but all 8 very catchy and just excellent, so if you like one song, you'll probably gone love them all!

My favourite tracks are "Miles away" (hooks all over the place), "Shadows in the night" (cool keyboardsolo), "Ready to promise", "LIES" (AORish, a la WHITE SISTER), "Dream of it all" (very 80s) and "Tell me" (a 'Pompy' chorus). The only non-uptempo song is the very good late 80s-typed Power Melodic rockballad "Without you". If you liked the band's previous 3 releases and don't mind the change of vocalist or if you just want to hear pure 80s catchy AOR/Melodic Rock like a mix between DOKKEN and early DANGER DANGER, then do check out the hot new TAKARA release. The album will be released on November 21 in Japan, while the European release through LION MUSIC is planned December 5, so a nice surprise to buy for Christmas!

Rating: 9/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Although released last year, it still wasn't featured on our site and that definitely is a shame, because this SHAKARY is a fantastic band or should I say project? SHAKARAY is actually a project of members from the Swiss Neoprog band CLEPSYDRA and the Italian Classic Progband PFM. Besides a long list of guest musicians, the line-up of the band is Scandy on bass, keys and vocals, Lele Hofmann on guitars, keys and vocals, while Sandor Kwiatkowski is responsible for the lyrics and design. Most important guests are drummer Walter Calloni and vocalist Aluisio Maggini who sings on most of the songs. Muscially this SHAKARAY is a total must for everyone into Melodic Progressive Rock, because their double CD 'Alya' is an instant classic in this genre.

This is as good as the last couple of releases done by similar acts such as PENDRAGON and TRANSATLANTIC. This super high quality release of SHAKARY has a great sound and production, while the included songs feature everything a progressive rockfans wants to hear, such as melodic vocals and choruses, long keyboardparts, progressive breaks, searing guitarwork and a real Neoprog rocksound. The 2 CDs together have a playing length of almost 100 minutes, so this is definitely worth investing your money. It's hard to pick favourite tracks, because almost everything is great, but the highlights on disc 1 are "Lost angels" (high class neoprog a la JADIS), "Time trap" (also great Neoprog) and "Seals" (great progressive Pomprock, 10 minutes long, with fantastic keyboard and guitarwork, a very melodic chorus and influences from STYX and KANSAS). CD-2 is maybe even better, with such brilliant Neoprog tunes like "Sentence", "The last drink", "Alya", "Babylon" and "Open skies". What more can I say then to give this double CD a big recommendation to anyone who is into high quality Neoprogressive Rockmusic a la PENDRAGON, TRANSATLANTIC… More info at: http://www.progfactory.com

Rating: 9/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Swiss rockers SHAKRA strike back with their 4th CD (but their 3rd studio CD) and I can add that their new album 'Power ride' is their strongest release so far. This great new album is again filled with high quality straight-ahead no-nonsense Melodic Hardrock in the style of early GOTTHARD, VICTORY, BONFIRE… Examples of this excellent uptempo rocksound are "Why don't you call me", "In your eyes", "Get it all out", "A dollar too much", "Tell me", "The way back home" and "Too close", all very good straight-ahead uptempo melodic hardrocksongs like GOTTHARD used to make 'em. The best songs however are the ones that see SHAKRA moving into a melodic direction, such as the fantastic midtempo melodic rocker "Out in the rain" (a la BONFIRE, WHITESNAKE, FAIR WARNNG), the midtempo melodic hardrocksong "She's my pride" (like VICTORY) and the closing track "Take my hand" (good calmer melodic ballad). There's nothing weak on this album, because it's all well-performed melodic hardrock with 80s influences, but definitely a strong updated sound that will appeal to many people. Check out the band's site at: http://www.shakra.ch This band is better than the stuff GOTTHARD brings us nowadays!

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

I discussed a US band called VISIONARY a few years ago, but that was a different band with the same name as this Chicago band. This VISIONARY has released a great CD entitled 'Power to spare' some time ago, and I can easily add that this is a high quality 80s typed AOR/Melodic Hardrockalbum in the style of WHITE LION, TOUR DE FORCE, DANGER DANGER... In other words this is late 80s big sounding harmonised cheerful uptempo melodic hardrock with catchy hooks and choruses all over the place (pffeeww!!!).

There are 13 tracks on the CD, and right from the start until the very end its all 80s Melodic Hardrock! Opener "Pleasure without pain" is a great uptempo MHR song a la FIREHOUSE, DOKKEN, SCORPIONS… Up next is the fantastic uptempo 80s AOR rocker "Once again", with hooks, harmonies and keys and a sound a la TOUR DE FORCE, 1st DANGER DANGER and AVIATOR. "So close" and "Nights with you" (best song, catchy chorus, nice keyboard vs. Guitar dual) are 2 other songs in the same style as "Once again", both are definitely the best songs of VISIONARY, just uptempo AOR, having fun and not looking back!

The rest of the CD is less AOR, and even show some Partyrock (WINGER/WARRANT) influences (Pieces", "You know where to touch" and "Fire it up"). Besides the already mentioned 'Classic AOR' songs "Once again", "So close" and "Nights with you", other favourite tracks are "Just your way" (very 80s typed AOR/Melodic rocker), "Attitude" (starts as a ballad, but then changes into a good uptempo AOR/Melodic rocker) and closing track "Hard lovin'" (somehow this song has a bigger sound, song itself is a great uptempo late 80s melodic rocker a la TOUR DE FORCE).

If you like any of the mentioned acts, then do not hesitate to check out this great release of VISIONARY at: http://www.sopromusic.com I don't know if the band still exists, but if so, then probably soon an interview with these Chicago rockers!

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This Chicago settled female fronted rockband is playing a mixture of typical 80s female led melodic rock and 90s poprock, ending up sounding like the last couple of albums of LEE AARON and LITA FORD. VIVID already has had their 15 minutes of fame, because they performed in the national TV show of JENNY JONES! Musically the songs are nice to hear, nothing sensational, but a pleasure to listen to. There's some groovy Hardrock ("Damage" and "Wasted time"), 90s poprock ("Funny how") and semi-melodic rockballads ("Want" and "Leave"). The best songs however are the good midtempo melodic hardrocksong "Hold on" (early 90s LEE AARON, with also some nice melodies in the bridge and the chorus) and closing track "She remembers" (great calmer AORish ballad). This VIVID is recommended to fans of female fronted melodic poprock, go check it out at: http://www.sopromusic.com

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

The band EMPHASIS from Stuttgart, Germany sent me 2 CDs, filled with almost 2 hours of high quality music. I very much enjoyed listening to both albums, because the performed music is very good and impressive, because EMPHASIS is playing a mixture of AOR, Symphonic Progrock, Melodic Rock and Classical Music. If I would have to give a rough description of the band's style, then I would say that EMPHASIS sounds like the perfect mix between YES, (JAMES) BYRD, URIAH HEEP and PHIL VINCENT, but that would be too easy as the music of the band stands on it's own. It's hard to pick favourites of both albums, because almost all the songs are very good.

But my favourite tracks have got to be "Incest" (great uptempo progressive AOR/Melodic rocker, with a very good melodic chorus, a la PHIL VINCENT), "Walk to the other side" (very good progressive melodic rockballad with a nice break that shows the pure neoprog influences), "The clown" (big sound, progressive AOR/Melodic rock with a classical music influence in the keyboard break), "Sphinx" (midtempo progressive melodic rock like a softer MALMSTEEN and AXXIS), "Sensation" (midtempo prog AOR with very nice keyboardplay), "Hold on" (uptempo Sympho AOR a la ASIA) and "Trilogy - the gate" (very long, melodic progrock). Actually it's hard to say which CD is best, because both CDs feature an enormous high music quality. EMPHASIS is a very good Progressive AOR/Melodic rockband who combine haunting melodies and catchy choruses, with very nice instrumental interludes (keyboard and guitar) and this is all packed in a strong sound that will appeal to fans of AOR, Progressive Rock and Melodic Hardrock.

So if you're a fan of ASIA and YES you will love this, but I think also people who are into MALMSTEEN and STORMWIND will appreciate EMPHASIS a lot. There's a lot of high quality music on both CDs and actually it should attract labels to sign this band. If you're becoming interested, then log on to: http://www.siggiwuertz.de and e-mail at: emphasis@gmx.de

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

'2' is the second CD of drummer/vocalist CHARLES TAPP and although I heard and even reviewed his debut a few years ago, I don't know anymore how it sounded. What I do know is that this is a great new record of Charles and I'm gonna look for his debut in my attic later this week. Musically this CD is filled with music that I would like to describe as a mix of AOR, Progressive Rock and Pomprock. It sounds a lot like TIMMY and EYE, 2 bands I reviewed sometime ago and even interviewed (so please check back in our huge archive). Opener "Tailor made" is a great start, this is a fantastic uptempo AOR/Pomprocker a la RATHSKELLER. The rest of the CD continues in the same style, sometimes a bit more Progressive Rock, while at other times very AOR/Pompish, but always with great melodies and big keyboards.

My favourite tracks are "All I need" (AOR/Pomp), "Reasons" (progressive pomprock, "Whatever" (pure 70s progressive rocker), "Into the mood" (great keys) and "How 'bout you" (great uptempo AOR). Actually everything sounds very good, and I can easily recommend it to fans of Progressive Rock (70s style) and AOR/Pomprock (80s style). The official release will be in early 2002, so just keep checking the site of the label at: http://www.rudolfmusic.com

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

I never heard of the band and also haven't got any info on them, but what I do know is that CHRISTMAS is a very good band or should I say was, because this CDR I got is a live recording of a performance the band gave at a rehearsal studio in West Seattle on the 10th of June in 1979. The band consisted of vocalist/guitarist/bassist Bruce Hazen, vocalist/keyboardist Mark Robertson and vocalist/drummer Charles Tapp (who later became a member of TIMMY). The CDR contains 8 tracks and although it isn't a big production, still the music is from a high quality. The CD will officially be released in 2002, so you have to wait a month or two before you can buy a copy, but let me tell you more about the included music. CHRISTMAS played typical 70s Progressive Rock with some interesting Pomp influences, kinda like a mix between RUSH, TRIUMPH, AMERICAN TEARS and KANSAS.

Opener "The opening/Chartles Cathedral" is a nice 70s typed classic progressive rocker. The first 6 minutes of the song are instrumental, with nice keyboardwork, and later with the lead vocals it turns out to be a pure 70s RUSH orientated rocker. Next track "The sun" is a good 70s progrocker. The song "Beautiful one" is an interesting Prog/Pomprocker (a la AMERICAN TEARS), with some great keys/synths (again). The best song follows, namely the classic Pomprocker "Mother Nature's son", a song like the Classic 70s era of KANSAS and STYX. Following track "Calling me" is a great uptempo Pomp/AOR song, in the same lines of the previous song, so again clear KANSAS and STYX influences, but I think fans of STARCASTLE and ROADMASTER will enjoy this tune a lot. "Carry on in style" is up next and is featured in two versions (second version is the demo version). The song itself is again a great Pomprocker a la STYX/KANSAS. The only song I haven't mentioned yet is the progressive hardrocker "Nicholas" (a la RUSH/TRIUMPH). The CD will be released soon, just keep your eye on http://www.rudolfmusic.com

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

We're back into the Finish rockscene again with the new band THUNDERSTONE. This Helsinki settled band sent me a 5-track CDR and I must say I am very impressed with the high quality music performed on this promo CDR. The sound and production is very good, singer Pasi Rantanen has a very good voice and most of the songs are high quality progressive rock/metal songs that sound very melodic. Opener "Me, my enemy" is a nice faster melodic power metal song with a catchy chorus a la NARNIA, STRATOVARIUS. Next track "World's cry" is a fantastic midtempo classical melodic rocker a la 80s MALMSTEEN, LION'S SHARE… This song is very impressive and should actually gain this band a contract with one of the European Prog/power labels (such as LIMB MUSIC). But of course also the other songs are very good. "Let the demons free" is a definite must for anyone into faster power metal. The final 2 songs are the best songs on the whole CDR, as they are both sounding very melodic. First there is the midtempo melodic rocker "Voice in a dream", like STORMWIND and MALMSTEEN. And finally, there is the beautiful melodic rockballad "Spread my wings".

This THUNDERSTONE surprised me very much with their 5-track demo CDR, it sounds as good as most LIMB or INSIDE OUT releases. I wonder how long it will take before these guys are signed to such a Prog/Power label, but who knows a melodic rocklabel will sign them, because the influences of THUNDERSTONE are coming out of various genres. This band will appeal to fans of both Prog/Power Metal and typical Scandi AOR/Melodic Rock! Check out their site at: http://www.thunderstone.xrs.net and e-mail them at: thunderstone@xrs.net

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Out of Switzerland comes the female fronted Melodic Hardrockband BLACKBURN. They sound very much like the 80s US acts in this genre (BETSY/BITCH, early PAT BENATAR, DEVAY) and the 2 CDs they sent me sound very good actually. The band's female lead singer Gabi Schon has a very impressive powerful voice (a la CHRISSY STEELE) and she looks also very good, so that's already a good start. Besides, the songs are also quite nice to listen to, especially the 4 tracks on their debut (?) CD 'Fire'. This CD has 3 great uptempo melodic rockers ("Fire", "Angels call" and "Just one night"), all 3 very catchy. The best song however is the fantastic AOR ballad "Wake me", a song in the style of LAOS, HEAT (Berlin band), HEART, the first ROBIN BECK album, ALYSON AVENUE etc. etc., so typical classy 80s female AOR. Somehow the chorus of the song sounds a bit like the TUFF ballad "Wake me up" from 10 years ago, but still this is a great tune of BLACKBURN.

The new CD (R) of the band is called "Black limousine" and is not as good as their debut, because the 2 included tracks "Black limousine" and "Running scared") are just nice Hardrocksongs a la HEADPINS. This band has definitely something good to offer for the fans of female fronted melodic rock. If they would add some keys, make more songs a la "Wake me" and "Angels call", with some good hooks and catchy melodic singable choruses, then release a 10-track CD, well if that all happens we could easily have a big winner on our hands. Nevertheless, they are still recommended, so go check out BLACKBURN at: http://www.blackburn.rockt.de

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

First off I would like to mention that this Dutch band is definitely a high quality progressive rockband, although in my review of a concert they gave a while ago I may have sounded not too enthusiastic about the band's performance and musicstyle. The CDR of TOYZ dates back from last year, but that doesn't matter, because you can clearly hear that we have to deal here with a good quality rockband. On this CDR the band performs pretty good instrumental progressive rock, with some very good guitarplay (by Peter van Heyningen) and keyboardwork (by Mark Smit). Songs like "Remember", "No way out" and "Lost in love" are good long instrumental progressive rockers (a bit like RUSH, with some Melodic Rock influences). In the meantime, a lot of things have happened with TOYZ, because they now have a female lead singer (called Sandra van Adrichem). She has a powerful voice and at their concert I already heard some songs, and well, she did actually a good job, because after all, I now hear it was one of their first performances!

Musically the band will probably move into the Melodic Hardrock direction with their new vocal tunes and from what I heard so far, they are going in the late 80s LEE AARON direction, so this might turn out to be very interesting, because the band is working on a new CD right now. Anyway, check out their site at: http://www.home.planet.nl/~toyzone and e-mail them at: toyzmanager@hotmail.com

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

It's early November 2001, and I am listening to the band DROP OUT. It's like we're 15-20 years back in time with this band, because it sounds so much like the mid 80s. DROP OUT is playing the exact same Hard Rock bands like TRANCE, TRANS AM, KROKUS, VETO, NO TROUBLE, BEAST etc. played back then. The scene was very big back in the mid 80s, when new German bands showed up almost every week with a record that followed the same path created by KROKUS, AC/DC and SCORPIONS in the 1970s. And DROP OUT is a band still playing this style and they are not a new band, because they have been playing on stage for almost 30 years now, so maybe they do belong to the first generation of German Hardrockbands.

Anyway, there are 9 songs on the CD and with titles like "Tonight", "Rock you through the night" and "Soul of rock'n'roll" you probably know what to expect from DROP OUT. Still I have to say that the Hardrock of DROP OUT sounds pretty nice and is very appealing if you just want to rock and have a good time. The production is good, so there's definitely something interesting for some of you on the band's CD 'Heavy nights'. Opener "Rock you through the night" is a pure 80s simple uptempo melodic hardrocksong that sounds very much like the SCORPIONS ("Rock you like a hurricane"). The CD continues more or less in this Hardrockstyle, with some heavier tunes a la SAXON, VICTORY, KROKUS ("Don't turn it down", "Stay with you", "Steam train" and "Another heavy night"), but also Melodic Rockers can be found on the album, such as the uptempo melodic rocker "Tonight" (great tune, very 80s, a la BONFIRE), the uptempo MHR song "Soul of rock'n'roll" and the very good semi melodic rockballad "Next to you" (a duet between lead singer Oliver Strasser and female singer Anja Wiedenhoff, the song has a great uptempo AORish chorus). So it's not only straight-ahead Hardrock, also partly due to the vocals of lead singer Oliver Strasser, who proves to be an excellent singer.

The band also sent me a Live CD called 'Alive', a nice album that contains a very good live performance of the band. Most notable tracks are the covers (a lot!), of which the WHITE LION classic "When the children cry" gets a facelift of the band and actually sounds very good in it's new version, as it now is a great power melodic rockballad. The band also included on this live CD a new song titled "Lonely heart", a great acoustic AOR ballad a la SCORPIONS. On these ballads, singer Oliver Strasser really proves to have a very good emotional voice. He can easily do an AOR record! Anyway, if you're into typical 80s German Melodic Hardrock a la VETO, KROKUS, TRANS AM, VICTORY, then do check out this DROP OUT at: http://www.dropout-online.de and e-mail them at: v.g.leitzbach@t-online.de

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

The Brazilian band KARMA has released a high quality progressive melodic metal album that fits somewhere between DREAM THEATRE, SAVATAGE, ARK and ANGRA. There are 10 songs included and the production is very good. Although not all the songs are convincing, and the lead vocals are less melodic and more 'metal' orientated, still the music of KARMA is quite excellent. The best songs are "The snow of the sunset" (good uptempo progressive melodic rocker), "The sarcastic weaver" (cool keys, pure progmetal), "The speech" (nice progmetal a la DREAM THEATRE, with former ANGRA singer Andre Matos) and "Chains of oppression" (again pure progmetal, a bit like THRESHOLD). The songs that aren't so progressive and melodic are the Metal based "Slandering" (a la ARK) and the faster power metal songs "Vega" and "Eyes". If you like any of the mentioned acts, you can easily check out this KARMA at: http://www.karmarock.com.br and e-mail them
at: thiago@karmarock.com.br

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Yes, this is the 'lost' 3rd album of AORsters TYCOON. This album had to be released back in the early 80s, but never was due to label drops, but happily it's now 2001 and the album is available through mp3.com for the first time. Besides, a few more tracks recorded in a later period have been added, but of course the real AOR freaks are interested in the songs when
guitarist Bobby Messano (FRANKE AND THE KNOCKOUTS), keyboardplayer Benji King (SCANDAL) and drummer TICO TORRES (FRANKE AND THE KNOCKOUTS, BON JOVI) were part of the line-up. Together with original members Norman Mershon (vocals, guitars) and Mark Kreider (bass) they recorded a handful of classic AOR songs.

The first 3 songs are some good examples of this classic early 80s AOR style that was so popular back then in the USA. Need to be said that "Tell me why" and "Secret dreams" both appeared on the last FRANKE AND THE KNOCKOUTS album (with different songtitles), still these versions of TYCOON are also very impressive. The third song is a new one for me, the fantastic "Way of the world", a superb classic AOR HEAVEN chorus can be heard in this tune, reminding me of FRANKE AND THE KNOCKOUTS, SHERIFF, RPM… You can definitely notice the difference between the early 80s and 1993 recordings of the band, because songs like "The river", "Satisfy you" and "Guess life always works that way" just sound so updated and are very bluesy soul/pop orientated songs, nothing to do with classic AOR. But only 3 songs from the included 11 are a step away from AOR, because the rest totally rocks!

The uptempo straight-ahead rockers "That girl" and "Let it go" are nice and a bit late 70s orientated, but nothing that special, still much better than the 3 pop/soul tunes. The tracks I haven't mentioned yet are the midtempo AOR song "If I", the fantastic semi AOR rocker "Straighten up" (very impressive song) and last but certainly not least, the fantastic "Love comes easy". This last mentioned song is the best song TYCOON ever recorded, man, this is as close to classic 80s AOR as you can get! The keys, the hooks, the vocals, the guitars, and of course the super catchy melodic classic AOR HEAVEN chorus (!), it's just all present on "Love comes easy". This song is an instant winner for fans of bands like FRANKE AND THE KNOCKOUTS, SHERIFF, THRILLS, RPM, AVIATOR, AGENT, ALLIANCE… Although not the whole CD is classic AOR, I can still give it a big recommendation to fans of classic 80s AOR. Check it out at: http://www.mp3.com/tycoon and e-mail them at: oneononewebmarketing@home.com

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Out of New Have, CT, USA comes the melodic rockband INNOCENCE LOST. They sent me a demo CDR with 4 songs on it, and although the production is not that impressive, some of the tunes sound pretty good. The band also has a very good melodic singer, so that helps a lot in getting the right rocksound. Opener "Carry on into the night" is a semi acoustic melodic ballad, nothing that special to begin with. However, the next track "Love don't come easy"is definitely one of the best tunes on offer here. This song is a great classy 80s uptempo AOR/Melodic rocker a la STRYPER, DOKKEN, early DANGER DANGER, HIT THE GROUND RUNNIN' and you name it further.

In the exact same style is also the following track "Us against the world" (very much like 80s DOKKEN). These 2 songs are very good and just pure 80s fun uptempo melodic rock with hooks, catchy chorus, a melodic sound and real melodic guitarsolo's, just the way we want to hear it! Last track "Can't remember a time" is a good melodic rockballad. T

he 2 rockers are definitely worth checking out if you're into 80s rock, so go to: http://www.innocencelostrocks.com and e-mail them at: Innocencelostrocks@hotmail.com With a better production and more uplifting rockers a la "Love don't come easy", this band may attract the European Melodic rocklabels.

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

YANKEE ROSE is a great Italian melodic rockband and they have really tried to get people interested in their band, but unfortunately they never got signed and that's a real pity, because the music on their demo CDR sounds very good. YANKEE ROSE is playing high quality 80s typed melodic rock a la DOKKEN, WHITE LION, RECKLESS… I don't know who sings, but the lead vocalist of the band has a very good melodic voice, perfectly suitable for this type of rock. Opener "Spiderman" is a great uptempo Partyrock influences Melodic Hardrocksong like a mix between CRUE, SLAUGHTER, BLACK'N'BLUE and WHITE LION. The chorus of the song is very catchy and super melodic.

Next track "Love" is even better, as this is a superb classic mid 1980s (let's say around 1985) typed melodic rocker a la DOKKEN, HEAVEN'S EDGE… Then comes a great acoustic version of the BON JOVI classic "You give love a bad name". The 80s guitar riffs of "She's so wild" sound really great and the song itself is a fantastic classy melodic rocker a la DOKKEN. The rest of the CD is filled up with 2 live recorded songs ("Rock me" and "Rn'R babies"), both good tunes a la SCORPIONS, only the sound quality is not that good. Conclusion is that YANKEE ROSE is a great band and recommended if you like guitar/vocal orientated 80s typed melodic rock a la DOKKEN, HEAVEN'S EDGE. The production isn't big, but this band has the potential to get attention of the AOR/Melodic Rocklabels here in Europe or maybe even in the USA (KIVEL RECORDS or METAL MAYHEM RECORDS). More info at: http://www.yankeerose.it and e-mail them at: info@yankeerose.it

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

FILORITMIA come out of Milan, Italy. They have been together since 1993, but this is their debut CD they released last year independently. This is a high quality release filled with superb classic 70s orientated progressive rock in the Italian style (PFM, BANCO, LE ORME, DFA, FINISTERRE). The CD counts around 70 minutes and everything sounds just perfect! Most of the songs have a playing length of more than 5 minutes, and also most of them feature excellent keyboardwork and guitarplay, while the melodic vocal parts are also present, so a total must for everyone who likes melodic 70s inspired progressive rock. My favourite tracks are "Al buio", "Il mago", "Fiato sul collo", "Per essere felici" and "Questo inferno". These FILORITIMIA are a very impressive progressive rockband and I can give it a big recommendation to everyone who likes this genre. Check out their site at: http://www.filoritmia.it and e-mail them at: band@filoritmia.it

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

There's only 1 song on the promo CD of HENCEFORTH, so not that much to discuss. The song is a great uptempo progressive melodic rocker that sounds a bit like PINK CREAM 69 meets ROYAL HUNT. The thing is that not only the song sounds very melodic and features some great keyboardwork, it also features 2 very melodic singers. There is a guest appearance by ANDRE MATOS (from ANGRA) and he is the second singer I heard on the song. The production is very good and the impressive high quality progressive melodic rocksound of HENCEFORTH will definitely attract labels to sign 'em, so I think we can look forward to an interesting debut CD in the near future. In the meantime, check out their site at: http://www.henceforth.com.br and e-mail them at: info@henceforth.com.br

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This 3-piece band from Manchester has only been together since March of this year, so there's not a long history to tell about the band, but I can tell something about the members. For example, bassist/vocalist Mick Mangnall and guitarist/drummer/keyboardplayer Mark Appleton, who both have experienced a lot the past 25 years, because they played in many bands playing all sorts of rockstyles (Pop, Progressive Rock, Blues, Hair Metal etc.). The third member of the band is guitarist Chris Appleton, the son of Mark and guess what, the kid is only 13 years old! And he can really play pretty well, because I didn't notice it until I read the bio after listening to the whole CD.

The CD is a concept CD with a story in the sword and sorcery/myths and legends type theme. All the ideas come from the 13-year old guitarist Chris, so this kid surely is making music at a higher level than any other child of that age (in fact he's the only one from his age I know who is making music!). Anyway, musically ERUPTION is playing a mixture of 70s Progressive Hardrock (RUSH) and early 80s N.W.O.B.H.M. (SAXON, TRESPASS). Opener "The land of heroes and evil" is one of the best songs, as this is a good instrumental uptempo 70s rocker with a great twin guitar dual a la THIN LIZZY.

The rest of the CD brings you more Heavy Rock/Metal in the style of the early 80s and acts that come in mind when hearing ERUPTION's music are bands like HIGHWAY CHILE, PICTURE, SAXON, TRESPASS and those type of acts. So we get to hear nicely performed melodic heavy rock/metal, nothing sensational, but a must if you're into any of the mentioned bands. Check it out at: http://www.mp3.com/eruption and e-mail at: mark_apps@yahoo.co.uk

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This is definitely the first band from Armenia I hear and review for Strutter'zine. ARTSRUNI is a project formed around guitarist/vocalist Vahan Artsruni. He and the other members of the band are experienced Armenian musicians who all gained some success with other bands and projects before joining ARTSRUNI. 'The live cuts' is the latest release of ARTSRUNI and is a compilation of 5 tracks of the band in it's original versions and 5 tracks performed with an Orchestra. The band and the Armenian National Symphonic Orchestra performed the 10-minutes counting track "Ethnophonica (suite part 3).

Musically ARTSRUNI is playing (mostly) instrumental classic 70s Progressive Rock and especially the first 5 tracks are very impressive. Songs like "Aditon", "Anush-garun", "The lost symbol" and "Barev" are great instrumental progressive rockers with nice guitar, flute and keyboardparts, a bit reminding me of the Classic Italian Prog of the 70s (FINISTERRE, DFA, LE ORME, PFM). The second part of the CD is a bit less progressive rock orientated, although the songs with the orchestra sound quite bombastic. The use of the acoustic guitar on "Yes em" and "Call of the wild" are making these songs sound calmer and not as exciting as the first 5 tracks. Nevertheless, it's nice to hear an Armenian band performing quality progressive rock, and I am sure some of you might want to check this out and also if there are labels interested in helping this band, then do sent them an e-mail at: cadence@arminco.com and visit their website at: http://www.artsruni.com

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

WAPPA GAPPA is a Japanese band and I believe they have released 2 CDs so far, starting off with 'Yamatai' from 1996. The second CD 'A myth' was released in 1998. Musically WAPPA GAPPA is playing pure Neoprog with a very good instrumental sound. A female singer does the vocals, and I have to say that it doesn't always work, a Japanese female vocalist singing Neoprog songs, but still I quite enjoyed the CDs of the band. The best songs on 'A myth' from 1998 were "The lion hearted king", "No mercy" and "Floating ice". The new CD 'Yamatai' is their best release so far, because instrumental it is pure Neoprog (keyboard/guitar approach), the songs are very good (a la ARENA, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN) and even the female vocalist sings better than before.

My favourite tracks are "Yamatai country", "An ark of rubble" (great keyboardsolo) and "Shangri-la". If you enjoyed their earlier work, you know what to expect from WAPPA GAPPA. If you're not familiar with this Japanese Neoprog band, then do check out their releases, because it offers enough pleasure for the fan of this genre. More info at: http://plaza6.mbn.or.jp/~WappaGappa/ and e-mail them at: tamami@catv296.ne.jp

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Pasquale Benedetto Jr. plays all the instruments on the PASQUALE CD, while John Parker is playing additional keys, synths and piano. There are only 2 songs on the debut (?) of PASQUALE, but still it has a playing time of 1 hour. The CD was released back in 1997 and I can inform you that the CD has nothing to do with any of the musical genres we promote, but that doesn't mean it is bad or anything, because this is a very enjoyable record. The CD is filled with calm instrumental atmospheric and Celtic/mystical/spiritual music that would work just fine when walking in the Amazons or somewhere else in the deep nature. This is a CD you must listen to when you want to relax and cool down a bit. There's nothing to offer for fans of Prog, AOR or Metal, no, this is something we all can enjoy when we want complete silence in this busy world!

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

'Dead or dreaming' is the new album of the Canadian band INTO ETERNITY and the band is mixing melodic Progressive Heavy Rock/Metal with Death Metal. The band is definitely experimenting at times and even creates an own style, but at other times they play the progressive metal like we want to hear it. You can't deny the band for having an own style, but the progressive fans may find this band a bit too complex at times. If you listen to the whole CD, you can find some interesting tracks, such as the fantastic uptempo progressive melodic rocker "Unholy (Fields of the dead)" with perfect melodic vocal lines, this is like DREAM THEATER. On the other hand, songs like "Absolution of the soul", "Distant pale future" and "Shallow" are very heavy Metalsongs with a mixture of death and melodic vocals.

I can guarantee you that there are good melodic parts in these songs that will appeal to fans of progressive metal, but the death grunts of guitarist Tim Roth and the heavy groovy guitar riffs are making the songs sound different than any other band in this genre. It's nice to see a band performing a new style (progressive melodic death metal), but I prefer a melodic singer (like lead singer Daniel Nargang) and musically a melodic approach (like on their song "Unholy"). This band can easily make high quality progressive rock/metal, but is now only recommended if you don't mind some death grunts and very heavy guitars (90s metal style) throughout most of the songs on the CD. The songs "Selling God" and "Identify" are pure Black/Death Metal with Industrial 90s Nu-Metal influences, so absolutely nothing of interest for fans of any genre we promote. Maybe interesting for fans of PAIN AND SALVATION and ARK.

Rating: - (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This new American band is somehow playing a mixture of 80s Melodic Rock and 90s Poprock, ending up sounding like the nu-breed (MATCHBOX 20), but on the other hand they also have an own style at times. In fact, opener "FNU" on their debut CD 'Flavors' is a dark slow Alternative Hardrocksong that I really didn't like at all, it's pure 90s Rock and I really thought the whole CD would sound like this first track, but happily the rest of the CD is far more melodic. Next track "Flavors" for example is a pretty nice semi melodic poprocker with good singing, fine melodies, still an updated sound, not unlike the last SURE CONVICTION release. "Carnival" is a good melodic rocker that has 80s and 90s rock influences, very radio-friendly song by the way.

The other 6 songs are again up and down, with weaker songs ("On your love", "Wastin time" and "My friend") and much better melodic rocksongs ("One day" and "Remember"). Those last 2 mentioned tracks are also the best tunes on MUDSPLASH BULLFROG's CD 'Flavors'. "One day" is a great uptempo AOR/Melodic poprocker with 80s guitar riffs and a sound close to the new FAF (FOR ABSENT FRIENDS) album. And "Remember" is just a good uptempo melodic rocker. If the band would continue making this type of melodic rock and avoid the Alternative Rockstyle of "FNY" and "On your love", then it would definitely be a much more interesting band. Now they are more or less somewhere between Melodic Rock and 90s Alternative Poprock. Nevertheless, this is a quality band that maybe can make a breakthrough in the USA, so go check them out at: http://www.mudsplash.com

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

SHADOWCASTER is a band from Milwaukee and they sent me a 13-track CD entitled 'Freedom'. The CD has a good production, and although this band is described as a Progressive Metalband, I couldn't hear much progressive influences in their music. SHADOWCASTER is a pure Metalband with influences from the 80s and 90s, as I heard clear MANOWAR and 80s METALLICA similarities. The guitarsound is a little less heavy, because it's the lead vocals that show these clear Metal influences. The only songs that sounded a bit less metal are "Hard to believe" (8 minutes counting progmetal), "Voices" (uptempo melodic 80s metal a la SACRED WARRIOR/BLOODGOOD), "Over again" (good semi progressive melodic rocker) and closing track "Nothing lasts forever" (calmer prog ballad a la DREAM THEATER). If you enjoy Melodic Metal with a 'real Metal voice' a la JAMES HETFIELD, then do check out this SHADOWCASTER, as they are a quality band, but I would rather hear some more Progressive Rock influences and a melodic singer. More info at: http://www.shadowcaster-band.com and e-mail at: shadowcaster_band@juno.com

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

Multi-instrumentalist BERNIE CHARAVALLE released his CD 'Driven by desire' back in 1996, so we're a bit heading back into time with this review. Musically Bernie is playing Midwestern TOM PETTY typed poprock, so not that interesting. Nevertheless, I really liked the semi-rocker "Not without a fight", the uptempo BRYAN ADAMS typed poprocker "Someone to hold" and the semi-ballad "Let me be the one", all 3 with some AOR influences and reminding me of NEIL HENDERSON (anyone remember him?). But for the most part, BERNIE CHIARAVALLE will appeal to fans of the other side of Poprock (TOM PETTY, BERNIE SHANAHAN and JACKSON BROWNE).

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

The mini-CD of this New Jersey settled band starts very 90s actually, the songs "Release me", "Night will fall" and "Nothing will be the same" are all heavy groovy slightly progressive but overall Metal orientated songs with raw vocals and actually nothing melodic. The 4th song on the band's debut CD is a big improvement. This is an instrumental epic ballad with some great keyboardwork, very different than the first 3 songs. The other 2 songs on the CD are the melodic metal song "Complete me" (again with heavy 90s groove influences, also very complex) and closing track "Slipping away" (a short fast terrible
grungethrashmetal song). I'm sorry for the band, but this has definitely nothing to do with our music genre, as this band is more sounding like a nu-metal band! If you like that sort of metal, then do check them out at: http://www.amomentofclarity.com

Rating: - (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

NIGHTWALK is a German band, out of the city Duisburg and they sent me a 4-track Demo CDR. Musically they play progressive rock, although I heard much more influences from various musicstyles. For example opener "Can't you see" is a nice uptempo melodic rocker, but vocally somehow it reminds me of BILLY IDOL, but instrumental it sounds like a 80s melodic rockband, so not much progressive rock in that tune. However, the next track "Dream of the life" is much better, because this is a good semi progressive melodic rocker with better vocals and a very nice keyboardsolo, just pure prog! If the band would make more songs in this style, it would be quite interesting actually. The other 2 songs are also nothing that special, the rocker "I will have taken you" and the groovy "Lonely". A very diverse band, but I hope for some more progrock on future recordings. Go check them out at: http://www.nightwalk.net and e-mail at: info@nightwalk.net

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

This is a female fronted melodic power metal band from Brazil. I have to say that instrumental this band sounds very good, and also have some cool keyboard passages (the start of the songs "Vampire hunter" and "Shadowside" for example). The problem though is that the female lead singer Dani Nolden hasn't got a strong voice, she sounds forced on most of the songs and just isn't good enough for this type of metal, but she plays the keys very well, so maybe it's best for the band to keep her, but search for a new singer. I mean, the vocals are not bad, but just not good enough for such fast power metal, because now the songs remind me a lot of WARLOCK back in the early 80s.

Anyway, the sound and production quality is from a very high level and like I also said the instrumental passages of this band are really perfect, but the female lead vocals are not strong enough to keep you interested in each and every song on the band's 6-track debut CD. Nevertheless, if you like 80s female metal acts such as WARLOCK, BITCH, MONSTERS and want to hear an updated version of this style, then you will like SHADOWSIDE a lot, but I would advise the band to try a different singer on a future record. Check out their site at: http://www.shadowside.com.br and e-mail them at: shadowside@globo.com

Rating: 7/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)

German guitarist TOM RIEPL's 4th CD 'Planet G' was released back in 1997, but as I never got the chance to hear the CD, finally there is a review now, better late than never! The CD contains 11 well-performed instrumental Melodic Hardrock/AOR songs with a good mixture of guitar and keyboard lead parts. The production is very good and the songs sound very refreshing and challenging at the same time. The best songs are the uptempo rockers "V.T.O." and "Channel hopper", the AOR ballad "Little heroes", the midtempo AOR/Poprocker "Stagparty unlimited" and the AOR version of the 'Magnum PI' titlesong "A weekend in Hawaii". There is some excellent guitarplaying by Tom on this record and all I can say is, check this one out if you're a fan of instrumental melodic rock. Website at: http://www.tom-riepl.de and e-mail him at: tomtone@t-online.de

Rating: 8/10 (Review by Gabor Kleinbloesem)