Frontiers [Release date: 20.01.23]
Heroes and Monsters is Todd Kerns, Stef Burns and Will Hunt.
Their names will be familiar to you. They are three gifted rock’n'roll craftsmen – highly motivated musicians whose CVs in themselves make great reading.
A brief career snapshot shows Kerns playing bass and backup vocals previously with Faster Pussycat, Michael Monroe, Michael Sweet, and others. He’s currently doing that job for the Slash/Myles Kennedy band.
Stef Burns has played guitar for Alice Cooper and Huey Lewis, but is best known for his 4 album stint with Y&T.
Perhaps most interesting is the in-demand Will Hunt. He’s commanded the drum stool for Staind, Black Label Society, Slaughter and others. And nowadays keeps that all important rhythmic beat for Evanescence.
So, quite a line up. A lot of history there.
And that’s part of the problem with the album. It’s content to look at the music via the rear view mirror. It’s totally immersed in the past.
Still, that will delight many rock fans. The down and dirty riffing of ‘Locked…’, ‘Raw Power’ and ‘Break Me’ smokes and smoulders with funky, bluesy trimmings, without ever truly igniting. But all three have got a certain Led Zeppelin / Great White charm, and an ambition to be something just as good.
The music’s sonic character doesn’t alter much, track to track, so while the arrangements are solid, a song needs to be something special to make a real impression.
‘Blame’s slowly grinding contemporary metal sound, punctuated and paced by a stuttering bass heavy riff ensures it meets the “something special” cut. As does the initially balladic ‘Angels Never Sleep’, a song that jumps from a pedestrian start into what could fairly be called a mini hard rock opera.
Something of a mixed bag then, topped up with a generous smattering of really good stuff. ***
Review by Brian McGowan
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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024
In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections
Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)
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