Frontiers [Release date : 13.10.23]
Alessandro Del Vecchio’s band, Edge Of Forever, have released some interesting albums over the last few years.
Native American culture has been a constant theme. It clearly inspired a quartet of tracks on last year’s album, Seminole. And indeed inspired several tracks on the band’s 2019 album, Native Soul… ‘Promised Land’, ‘Three Rivers’, ‘Dying Sun’, three elements of the tribe’s story.
This new album, Ritual, moves us forward. We are still focused on the Seminoles, not so much the tribe, but two individual members, one male, one female. Twins. Separated in their youth by the social mores of the day.
Ritual is the tale of their quest to find each other once again. A Melodic Rock Concept album, if you will.
It doesn’t work as well as it clearly thinks it should.
There are only a handful of songs here, if that, where those adrenalin fuelled verses and chest beating choruses we enjoyed from the last album grab us by the throat and won’t let go.
Openers, ‘Where Are You’ and ‘Water Be My Path’s richly melodic twists and ear-catching hooks pull us onto the edge of our seats, eager to hear more.
But nothing really matches up after that.
‘The Last One’ tries hard but doesn’t quite cut it, and Aldo Lonobile burns an entertainingly scorched path through ‘Freeing My Will’.
But the real problem is that across the album there’s a whole lot of surface but not a lot of depth, despite the subject matter.
Maybe something is lost in translation… the lyrics never truly take the subject matter beyond cliché… ‘Love Is The Only Answer’, ‘Ride The Wings Of Hope’ and ‘Baptised In Fire’ are cases in point.
As a consequence, Ritual never makes up in story what it lacks in Melodic Rock heft. **1/2
Review by Brian McGowan
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
Next session: Sunday 19 January
Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio
David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 1 December 2024.
UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 3 December 2024.
How to Listen Live?
Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)
Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”
Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.
More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com
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)
PDF - you can delete unwanted sections
