Tag Archives: AOR

Album review: ALL 4 1 – The World’s Best Hope

Posted on July 18, 2017 by jason

Frontiers [Release date 07.07.17] All 4 1 are another Frontiers project, with this one overseen by Alessandro Del Vecchio, who produced the album as well as playing keys and co-writing a few songs. The band consists of half of Alliance (about time … Continue reading →

Album review: BRYAN ADAMS – Wembley 1996 Live

Posted on July 12, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Eagle Rock [Release date 30.06.17 ] Back in 1996 Bryan Adams was riding the crest of a wave, some might say a tsunami. The placement of ‘(Everything I Do) I Do It for You’ in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Bryan Adams, Melissa Etheridge, pop rock, review, rock, Wembley 1996 Live | 1 Comment

Album review: DON BARNES – Ride The Storm

Posted on June 29, 2017 by jason

MelodicRock Records [Release date 20.06.17] Hats off to MelodicRock Record’s Andrew McNeice who finally got this long lost album released. Don Barnes, of southern rockers .38 Special fame, recorded this album back in 1989, however due the time honoured label … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged .38 Speical, album, AOR, Don Barnes, melodic, MelodicRock Records, review, Ride the Storm, rock, southern rock | Leave a comment

Interview: CORNERSTONE

Posted on June 27, 2017 by jason

We caught up with Alina Peter (Vocals/Guitars) and Michael Wachelhofer (Bass/Keyboards/Vocals) of Cornerstone to see what they have planned for this year and beyond, plus how their latest album ‘Reflection’ has been doing… Have you been pleased with the response … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Interviews/10 Questions, Interviews/Rising Stars | Tagged AOR, Austria, Cornerstone, Fleetwood Mac, interview, melodic, melodic rock, Quarterflash, Refections, Rising Stars | Leave a comment

Album review: THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA – Amber Galactic

Posted on May 15, 2017 by jason

Nuclear Blast [Release date 19.05.17] There are a good number of bands paying homage to the classic 70′s and 80′s hard rock/AOR/pop sound, with Brother Firetribe (another band who’s members are drawn from heavier sounding bands) and Cats In Space being … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Amber Galactic, AOR, Arch Enemy, disco, Night Flight Orchestra, pop, review, rock, Soilwork, Survivor | Leave a comment

Album review: HONEYJACK – 8 Track

Posted on May 8, 2017 by jason

www.honeyjackband.com Honeyjack are a duo of Mark Summerlin (vocals/guitars) and T.J. Scarlett (guitars). Mark Summerlin has been the guitarist and musical director for Seal and he was planning this to be a solo album, that was until he hooked up … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Interviews/Rising Stars | Tagged .38 Special, 8 Track, album, AOR, Honeyjack, interview, Mark Summerlin, melodic, review, Rising Stars, rock, Seal, southern rock, TJ Scarlett | Leave a comment

Album review: BOBBY KIMBALL – We’re Not In Kansas Anymore

Posted on April 27, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Purple Pyramid/Cleopatra Records [Release date 21.04.17] For many, Bobby Kimball is the definitive voice of Toto and performed with that band during the halcyon years of 1978-1984 (rejoining and touring 1998-2000). Since that time he has forged a semi-cabaret existence … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Bobby Kimball, Derek Sherinian, melodic rock, review, soft rock, Toto, We're Not In Kansas Anymore | Leave a comment

Album review: LITTLE RIVER BAND – The Big Box (6 Disc incl DVD)

Posted on April 11, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

The Store For Music [Release date 28.04.17] The only problem with this welcome 5-CD/DVD boxed set is repetition. In more recent years Little River Band have seemingly sought to reinvent their past with not a lot of new material. (Some … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, CD, collection, DVD, LITTLE RIVER BAND, live, MOR, One Night In Mississippi, Rearranged, retrospective, review, Revisited, soft rock, Test Of Time, The Big Box, Wayne Nelson, Where We Started From | Leave a comment

Album review: DIRTY WHITE BOYZ – Down And Dirty

Posted on March 23, 2017 by jason

Escape Music www.escape-music.com [Release date 24.03.17] Not the classic one album band from the late 80′s featuring Earl Slick and David Glenn Eisley, this is a new band and they have a ‘z’ on the end of their name. The … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, DEMON, Dirty White Boyz, Down And Dirty, Escape Music, Kiss Of The Gypsy, LAWLESS, melodic, Nigel Bailey, review, rock, Tony Mitchell | Leave a comment

Gig review: HARD ROCK HELL AOR – Pwllheli, 9-12 March 2017

Posted on March 20, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Lita Ford - HARD ROCK HELL AOR - Pwllheli, 9-12 March 2017

The HRH franchise is probably the most successful of these three day indoor events and rightly so, they found a spot in the market and have developed a fluid, tightly run operation that always delivers. The AOR weekend was slightly … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged 9-12 March 2017, AOR, Bonafide, FM, gig, Hard Rock Hell AOR, Lita Ford, melodic rock, Michael Monroe, Mike Tramp, Paul Laine, Pwllheli, review, Romeo's Daughter, Slaughter, Vega | Leave a comment

Album review: UNRULY CHILD – Can’t Go Home

Posted on March 19, 2017 by andynathan

Frontiers [Release Date 24.02.17] It’s been six long years since Unruly Child made a triumphant comeback with their original line up featuring Marcie Free, as she now is, releasing the excellent ‘Worlds Collide’ album and headlining Firefest that year. Opening … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Bruce Gowdy, Can't Go Hone, Guy Allison, Marcie Free, melodic rock, review, Unruly Child, World Trade | Leave a comment

Gig review: MIKE + THE MECHANICS – Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, 15 March 2017

Posted on March 16, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

With only two tracks from the album featured in the set, the Word Of Mouth Tour 2017 billing – to celebrate that album’s 25th anniversary last year, turned out to be something of a misnomer. But, let’s be honest, the … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged 15 March 2017, Andrew Roachford, AOR, Bridgewater Hall, Genesis, gig, Manchester, Mike & the Mechanics, Mike And The Mechanics, Mike Rutherford, pop rock, review, rock, soft rock | Leave a comment

Quick plays: VEXINE, SIREN’S SKY, NARYAN, THE VIOLET HOUR, THIRD LOVE

Posted on March 13, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

VEXINE Little Sin [Release date 30.04.16] Female fronted blues based rock bands are becoming increasingly ‘in vogue’, but Richmond, Virginia, based 4-piece Vexine have hooked a left at the crossroads and are taking the genre across country. A seasoned bunch … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged About You, album, AOR, Black Letters, Cosmic, Ignite, Little Sin, Naryan, progressive, review, rock, Siren's Sky, The Violet Hour, Third Love, Vexine | Leave a comment

Album review: PRIDE OF LIONS – Fearless

Posted on February 9, 2017 by andynathan

Frontiers [Release Date 27.01.17] They come less frequently these days, with a five year gap between each of the last two albums, but a Pride of Lions album is always worth the wait, marking the return of veteran master songwriter … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Fearless, Jim Peterik, melodic rock, Pride of Lions, review, Survivor, Toby Hitchcock | Leave a comment

Album review: LIONVILLE – A World Of Fools

Posted on February 9, 2017 by jason

Frontiers [Release date 24.02.17] Lionville are back after an extended break (their second album came out in 2012) and they are on a new label as well. Lionville’s main man Stefano Lionetti is still on board, plus Work Of Art’s … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged A World Of Fools, album, AOR, Frontiers, Lionville, melodic, review, rock, Toto | Leave a comment

Gig review: JUST SAY YES/ARFM MELODIC ROCK FUNDRAISER – The Spot, Derby, 28 January 2017

Posted on January 31, 2017 by andynathan

VEGA - Melodic Rock Fundraiser - The Spot, Derby, 28 January 2017

From initially modest ambitions, the ‘Just Say Yes’ fundraiser is rapidly establishing itself as a must on the festival calendar for melodic rock fans, sandwiched between Autumn’s Firefest and latterly Rockingham, and Spring’s HRH. I hugely enjoyed my first festival … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged AOR, Blood Red Saints, COP UK, Dante Fox, Dirty White Boyz, festival, FM, gig, JSY, Just Say Yes, melodic rock, review, Romeo's Daughter, Steve Overland, Vega | Leave a comment

Gig review: TYKETTO – Islington Academy, London, 26 January 2017

Posted on January 28, 2017 by andynathan

2016 was meant to be a big year for Tyketto as they both celebrated the 25th anniversary reissue of their classic ‘Don’t Come Easy release and an excellent new album ‘Reach’, the first with a new line-up of the band. … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged AOR, Chris Childs, Chris Green, Danny Vaughn, Ged Rylands, gig, melodic rock, Michael Clayton Arbeeny, review, Romeo's Daughter, Tyketto | Leave a comment

Quick plays: D’ERCOLE, JIM JIDHED, BEACHEADS

Posted on January 3, 2017 by jason

D’ERCOLE No Place Like Home This is the fourth album from melodic hard rock band D’Ercole and they have released it themselves having left Z Records. The album features Phil Vincent as the main songwriter and producer (does this man never … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged albums, Alien, AOR, AOR Heaven, Beacheads, D'Ercole, indie pop, Jim Jidhed, melodic, Phil Vincent, pop rock, Quick Play, reviews, rock | Leave a comment

Album review: ROTH BROCK PROJECT- s/t

Posted on December 21, 2016 by andynathan

Frontiers Records [Release Date 04.11.16] This rather unimaginatively titled release brings together two of melodic rock’s most respected figures. While Terry Brock has long been regarded as one of the genre’s finest vocalists, from his days in Strangeways to numerous … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, John Roth, melodic rock, revfiew, Roth Brock Project, Strangeways, Terry Brock, Winger | Leave a comment

Gig review: FM – Islington Assembly Hall, London, 19 November 2016

Posted on November 26, 2016 by andynathan

Since reforming a few years ago, Britain’s premier homegrown melodic rockers FM have steered a delicate balance between moving forward and looking backwards. The new line up with Jim Kirkpatrick on guitar has perhaps been the best in their history, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged AOR, Bernie Marsden, FM, gig, Indiscreet, Jem Davis, Jim Kirkpatrick, melodic rock, review, Steve Overland | Leave a comment

Album review: HEART – Live At The Royal Albert Hall

Posted on November 16, 2016 by GRTR! HQ

Eagle Records [Release date 25.11.16] CD/DVD/Bluray Call me Mr. Cynical. Heart announced their first UK dates since 2004 and we all waited in eager anticipation. Come the actual tour, we saw them in Manchester and noted the criminally short one … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, DVD REVIEWS | Tagged album, Ann Wilson, AOR, classic rock, hard rock, Heart, Live At The Royal Albert Hall, Nancy Wilson, review, with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | Leave a comment

Gig review: ROCKINGHAM FESTIVAL – Nottingham Trent University Students Union, 21-23 October 2016

Posted on November 4, 2016 by andynathan

ROCKINGHAM FESTIVAL, Nottingham, 21-23 October 2016

Last year, a new festival, Rockingham, took on the unenviable mantle of filling the void left by Firefest, which for a decade had delighted melodic rock fans by bringing a series of cult melodic rock acts, many reforming after years … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged Alessandro del Vecchio Band, Angels Or Kings, AOR, Art Nation, Blood Red Saints, Crazy Lixx, festival, Fortune, From The Fire, gig, Jean Beauvoir, Kevin Chalfant, Lee Aaron, Lionheart, Martina Edoff, melodic rock, Robby Valentine, Rockingham, Steelheart, Stone Broken, The Defiants, The Poodles, Trixter, Valentine | Leave a comment

Album review: ROCK WOLVES (Michael Voss, Herman Rarebell, Gudze)

Posted on November 3, 2016 by GRTR! HQ

Steamhammer/ SPV [Release date 28.10.16] Here’s a collaboration of three significant melodic/hard rockers who in the past few years have worked mainly with others such as Michael Schenker. Michael Voss (Mad Max, Casanove) has produced many artists from his studio … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, AOR, Casanove, Gudze, H-Blockx, hard rock, Herman Rarebell, Mad Max, melodic, Michael Schenker, Michael Voss, review, Rock Wolves, Scorpions, Stephan Hinz | Leave a comment

Gig review: BAD COMPANY/Richie Sambora – Manchester Arena, 24 October 2016

Posted on October 25, 2016 by GRTR! HQ

GRTR!’s David Randall caught up with Simon Kirke on the last day of the UK tour. They chatted about Bad Company, Free and Simon’s solo work including his forthcoming album to be released in early-2017. Photo: David Randall With doors … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS, Radio interview, The Best Of 2016 | Tagged 24 October 2016, AOR, Bad Company, Bon Jovi, classic rock, gig, guitar, guitarist, hard rock, Howard Leese, interview, Manchester Arena, Mick Ralphs, Orianthi, Paul Rodgers, review, Richie Sambora, Simon Kirke | Leave a comment

Quick plays: WHITE WIDDOW, ARENA

Posted on October 20, 2016 by jason

WHITE WIDDOW Silhouette AOR Heaven [Release date 28.10.16] White Widdow return with album number four and they carry on where their last album, ‘Crossfire’, left off, with lots of catchy and hook filled AOR tunes – ‘Stranded’ and ‘Smile For … Continue reading →