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Latest Album Reviews
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Latest Gig Reviews
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Gig review: THE DARKER MY HORIZON – Dirty Rockers, Dudley, Saturday 24 October 2020
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Gig review: MARK MORRISS- Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, 3 October 2020
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Gig review: GARY FLETCHER AND NICK RITCHIE – Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, 2 October 2020
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Gig review: COLLATERAL – Leo’s, The Red Lion, Gravesend, Friday 4 September 2020
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Gig review: THE DARKER MY HORIZON – The Victoria, Swindon, Thursday 27 August 2020
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Featured Album Reviews
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Features
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Feature: Collectible Collections – MANFRED MANN’S EARTH BAND – 40th Anniversary Box Set
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Feature: Albums that time forgot … NATIVE CAIN – The Primitive Soul
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Feature: Albums that time forgot…EUROPE – Secret Society
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Feature: Albums that time forgot…JAMES LABRIE – Elements Of Persuasion
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Feature: Albums that time forgot…DON DOKKEN – Up From The Ashes
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Feature: Albums that time forgot … CODE OF SILENCE – Dark Skies Over Babylon
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Tag Archives: AOR
Feature: Collectible Collections – MANFRED MANN’S EARTH BAND – 40th Anniversary Box Set

Pete Feenstra chatted to Manfred Mann for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio with tracks from Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. First broadcast 23 February 2021. Creature Music (2011) The rather large parcel dropped off at GRTR! Towers was like Christmas come … Continue reading
Album review: JOSEPH WILLIAMS – Denizen Tenant

The Players Club/Mascot Records [Release date 26.02.21] Toto’s Steve Lukather and Joseph Williams both release solo albums on the same date and label, with both artists including a few cover versions on their respective albums. Joining Joseph Williams on his … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, David Paich, Denizen Tenant, Joseph Williams, melodic, review, Steve Lukather, Toto, West Coast
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Album review: WORLD GOES ROUND – S/T

Viper Records [Release date 22.01.21] It was 30 years ago today that World Goes Round recorded their one and only album (Ed: we might be a year or two out). This supremely talented array of artists, whose names (almost) always … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, album review, AOR, melodic, melodic pop rock, pop, pop rock, review, self-titled, World Goes Round
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Album review: BITE THE BULLET – Black & White

Escape Music [Release date 27.11.20] Bite The Bullet were originally formed in 1986 by singer songwriter Mick Benton and drummer Graham Cowling (who are also the only two musicians on this album) and they released their debut album in 1989. … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Bite The Bullet, Black & White, Escape Music, melodic rock, Mr Mister, pop rock, review, The Outfield
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Album review: CREYE – II

Frontiers [Release date 22.01.21] Second album from Creye, a Swedish band founded by Andreas Gullstrand, now fronted by new vocalist, August Rauer. Sweden has been the lightning rod for AOR and melodic rock since the eighties, delivering up aspiring band … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, Andreas Gullstrand, AOR, August Rauer, Creye, Frontiers, II, melodic rock, review
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Album review: ANDY SUSEMIHL – Alienation

SM Noise [Release date 21.01.21] Andy Susemihl’s last album ‘Elevation’ was my “Best of 2018″ – perhaps it should have been called “revelation” such was the surprise at a seasoned pro – and a relatively unknown one albeit with an … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, Alienation, Andy Susemihl, AOR, guitar, guitarist, melodic rock, review, U.D.O. Sinner
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Album review: PALACE- Rock And Roll Radio

Frontiers Records [Release date 04.12.20] Michael Palace, a man with multiple performing and writing credits to his name, is now onto the third album from his own project. 2016’s ‘Master of the Universe’ was mainstream melodic hard rock, but is … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, melodic rock, Michael Palace, Palace, review
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Album review: EAST TEMPLE AVENUE – Both Sides of Midnight

AOR Heaven (Release Date 27.11.20) East Temple Avenue sees Australian songwriter Darren Phillips, whose project under his own name featured a star studded cast, join forces for a whole album with Robbie Le Blanc, the Blanc Faces singer whose combination … Continue reading
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Tagged album, AOR, Darren Phillips, melodic rock, Philip Lindstrand, Robbie Le Blanc
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Album review: UNRULY CHILD – Our Glass House

Frontiers [Release date 04.12.20] When Unruly Child arrived in 1992, Melodic Rock bands were crashing and burning all around them. AOR had been shot down in flames by the bands of the Pacific North West. Low altitude, below the radar … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Frontiers, Marcie Free, melodic rock, Our Glass House, prog rock, review, Unruly Child
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Album review: ART OF ILLUSION – X Marks The Spot

AOR Heaven [Release date 29.01.21] This is the debut album by Art Of Illusion, a duo consisting of composer and producer Anders Rydholm (Grand Illusion) and singer Lars Säfsund (Work Of Art) – see what they did there with the … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, Anders Rydholm, AOR, Art Of Ilusion, Grand Illusion, Lars Safsund, melodic rock, pomp rock, review, Work Of Art, X Marks The Spot
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Album review: DAN REED – Liftoff

Zero One Entertainment [Release date 04.12.20] At the end of a horrific year for humanity, and also for music, Dan Reed’s latest solo album arrives to provide the perfect antidote. Dan’s solo works since the “comeback” – ‘Coming Up For … Continue reading
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Tagged album, AOR, Dan Reed, Dan Reed Network, Liftoff, melodic rock, review, singer, songwriter
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Album review: PHENOMENA – Still The Night

Cherry Red [Release date 27.11.20] Tom and Mel Galley put Phenomena together in 1984. Glenn Hughes, Don Airey, Cozy Powell, Neil Murray had been enlisted…Whitesnake versus Deep Purple, a metalised marriage made in hard rock heaven. The following year they … Continue reading
Album review: HEAVY PETTIN – Best Of

Burnt Out Wreckords/Cherry Red Records (Release date 27/11/20) Heavy Pettin never quite made it to the inside of the glittering shop window of fame. Along with Scotland’s other great white melodic rock hopes, Strangeways, they had the talent, the ability, … Continue reading
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Tagged album, AOR, best of, Cherry Red Records, hard rock, Heavy Pettin', melodic hard rock, review
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Album review: HEARTWIND – Strangers

Escape Music [Release date 20.11.20] Heartwind formed around keyboard player Mikael Rosengren and guitarist Goran Engvall (who also played bass on the album). Since their debut release they have changed vocalists bringing in not one, but two vocalists – Nina … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Eclipse, Escape Music, hard rock, Heartwind, melodic rock, review, Strangers, W.E.T.
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Album review: ALIEN – Into the Future

AOR Heaven [Release Date 27.11.20] One of the original wave of Scandi AOR bands at the end of the eighties, Alien’s return with their original line up was one of the stories of the early 2010’s. They followed up two … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, Alien, AOR, Jim Jidhed, melodic rock, Tony Borg
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Album review: PRIDE OF LIONS – Lion Heart

Frontiers Records [Release Date 09.10.20] Approaching 70, maestro songwriter and Survivor founder member Jim Peterik is showing no signs of slowing down. After last year’s World Stage release with a star studded casts of guest vocalists, and co-writing much of … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Jim Peterik, melodic rock, Pride of Lions, Survivor, Toby Hitchcock
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Album review: STARDUST – Highway To Heartbreak

Frontiers [Release date 09.10.20] Debut album from (very) talented newcomers, Stardust. In the world inhabited by melodic rock fans, very good pastiches of Eighties’ AOR get the utmost respect. The era’s distinctively polished, precision calibrated, hook heavy hard rock is … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Frontiers, Highway To Heartbreak, melodic, melodic rock, review, Stardust
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Album review: BROTHER FIRETRIBE – Feel The Burn

Odyssey Music (Release Date 18.09.20) With the release of their first album back in 2006, Brother Firetribe (alongside the Poodles and WigWam) kick started the Scandinavian-led revival of melodic rock that is thriving to this day. Since then the only … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), All Posts
Tagged album, AOR, Brother Firetribe, melodic rock, Pekka Ansiu Heino, review
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