Frontiers [Release date 6.12.24]
There really should have been some kind of fanfare, a blaze of publicity, to accompany the release of Voila, debut album from Adam Payne, ex Airrace, and Mark Powell, ex Psycho Kiss.
In this post-AOR age, high calibre melodic rock is hard to find. Voila opens up a rich seam, with tracks like ‘No Escape’ and ‘Staring At The Sun’ both being emblematic of an era that peaked quickly, before being holed below the water line by corporate rock, und ultimately, by grunge.
Every vocalist wants to be unique. A blessing and a curse. But it’s hard to avoid observing that Payne’s vocals are reminiscent of the standout vocalists who flew the AOR flag high in the eighties, like Marcie Free and Terry Brock.
It’s also hard to avoid observing the maturity in composition and production on display here. ‘Taking Back Yesterday’ and ‘The Storm’ are two monster melodic rock songs, each with a sustained chorus of depth and quality. Moody, adult rock songs, with almost subliminal, low key backing vocals … all inventively arranged on what must have been a modest studio budget.
It comes as a surprise that of the album’s eleven tracks, there are three ballads.
The first, ‘Questions’, a whispered prayer of a lover’s wisdom, is a satisfying trip into southern rock territory.
A proudly old fashioned piano ballad ‘Fly High’ is flavoured with grain and grit in its every move… every bar of music, every line of lyrics. A life lesson. Nothing new here, but sung with genuine passion and conviction.
The softer rocking ‘Distance Between Us’ is something that Peter Cetera or Richard Marx might have done. It’s got class, it sets out sweetly, eventually rising to a kitchen sink crescendo. It simply soars on the imagination of a great AOR band.
You could say that for the entire album. ****
Review by Brian McGowan
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
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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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