Steel City - Mach II (Album Review)

They say rock is dead. I would argue that it's on life support. And bands like Steel City are the medics that have been called in to help save the patient. Their new album Mach II is a glorious and bombastic throwback to the glory days of mainstream rock radio. The band's DNA contains strands of Warrant, Winger, Deep Purple, Van Halen, Skid Row and Extreme to name just a few. The big choruses and fat original guitar riffs are like being led to an uncharted dessert island of bikini clad women. This is a joyful rediscovery of what makes rock great. Vocalist Roy Cathey is a cross between Sebastian Back and the late Jani Lane. He's got incredible range and can do stuff that the auto-tune crowd can't even do with the auto-tune. Guitarist Mike Floros is a gifted player and stretches out on almost every track. BJ Zamba is an absolute beast on the drums. Bass player Jason Cornwell holds down the bottom end with fast and furious playing. And keyboardist Tony Stahl is a master of the synth and the organ.  Now before you drop the needle, or close the lid on your CD player, grab an ice cold beer and hunker down for some glam-infused melodic rock.

"Hearts On Fire" is perfect 80's formula with Kiss like choruses and Rainbow like guitar and keyboard excursions. It's an instant hit song and technically the lead single from Mach II. Zamba's drum intro on "Dead Men" levels into a rocker with some melodic-pop mojo. Cathey's vocals have a touch of Dio swagger. The choruses again echo around as if custom made for a large stadium. "Steel Your Heart" opens with high tech synth that gives way to some tasty guitar work from Floros and the cranium occupying chorus of "Steel Your". There is a bit of dramatic tension in these chord progressions. Cathey and the band compliment these rock radio rhythms with sugary vocal offsets. The blend is a fusion of pop and harder melodic rock at it's finest.

Bass player Jason Cornwell is front and center for the punchy intro to "Wasted Time". A slower but very powerful hook that rises and falls. This sounds like a Bon Jovi track recorded by Deep Purple. A super high point on this record for me. This is what mainstream rock used to sound like. Floros unleashes a guitar solo that rivals many of the brand name players you grew up listening to. The keyboard break at the end could have gone on for another 2 minutes or so and I would have cheered. "I Cry" sounds like something Vixen would have recorded if they were guys. There is a street smart authenticity to these tracks. Even though melody is not in vogue these days, to do this song after song is not easy. "A Little Love" opens with another hit single sounding monster hook. The chorus is a lush sleet storm of voices and Floros grinds his guitar into a frenzy on the solo.

"Still Close To My Heart" recalls White Lion at their best. An acoustic guitar intro that segues into full speaker vocal textures. The vocal arrangements on this record deserve an award. Cornwell's bass is again front and center on "Give It Back". Floros does his best Eddie Van Halen at the outset as Cathey channels David Lee Roth, except Cathey can actually sing. There is a nice bluesy bent to "Give It Back". This is the kind of writing DLR would approve of. Floros unloads a solo that you can feel in the cheap seats. "Spotlight" is a tight, more concise rocker. Cathey's vocal goes into a gnarly Axl Rose Mr. Brownstone voice for select verses. It's as if an 80's rock buffet is being served up. "Prayer For Love" is a brief piano-synth instrumental showcasing Tony Stahl and would make a great rock radio warm up for the album's last stand - the amazing "Down To One". Cathey injects some tangible emotion into his vocal part and Floros switches up his guitar tone to be more sharp and searing. The mix really makes the song soar. The guitar work and drumming at the end is a stellar way to close.

The summary here is that very few new melodic rock albums make me listen repeatedly. When I finished this record, I put it on again and again. This band throws everything they have at the 1980's and that includes the kitchen sink. They make it work because they know how to properly dress these songs in the right musical garb. They also write very good songs. For the fan who wants to go back while still moving forward, Steel City's Mach II is the Delorean you've been waiting for.

Album Rating 9.7

Deltaphonic - The Funk, The Soul and The Holy Groove (Album Review)

Like yours truly, the funky soul band, Deltaphonic is fed up with the music industry. Their new single "Liars", from their third album The Funk, The Soul and The Holy Groove, is a hard rebuke of the current method of making it in the music biz. Those lyrics and the impressive groove behind them instantly gave this band credibility with me. The Louisiana based band is fronted by two core members, Andrew T. Weekes and Paul Provosty. Weekes writes and sings and plays guitar, whereas Provosty plays lead guitar. The band then farms out the other parts to the best musicians including Trenton O'Neal and Ciaran Brennan who both add drums to the mix. The result is an incredible combination of styles and sounds that defy convention. The lyrics are honest tales of hard times on the street. It's not like Weekes is in a room banging out lyrics for songs. He's likely walking the streets with ideas in his head that easily translate to these real life stories.

"New Mexican Rockstar" is a slow, smooth R&B track (think Cupid) with various roots influences. The guitars come at you with a warm subtlety. "See Red" falls in with old rock radio swagger. Airing more on the side of blues, this would be something Lenny Kravitz would steal. "Starlit" shifts to a more west coast late night groove. The production on this record is truly first rate. The lyrics to these songs are not for the simpleton. "The Denouement" is a superb jazzy ballad, complete with strings and a fine keyboard solo. "Bad People" is a bluesy, laid back, mid tempo track that builds as it goes along. The band practices a lost art form - minimalism. Where less is more. You may hear a touch of Little Feat or The Radiators here, but the band's identity is firmly in tact. The guitar solo is worth the price of the entire album.

"Don't Have To Be Good" let's you find out what Led Zeppelin might sound like if they played R&B. It's an uptempo jam with a riff Jimmy Page has in his closet somewhere. Imagine a rock station playing this song? I can. "Ghosts" is one of the more accessible tracks for straight up rock fans. After establishing a groove and then a tempo, the band lays down a wonderful vocal soundscape that feels R&B and rock at the same time. The more you listen to these guys, the more you realize that there is a lot going on. And that categories don't really explain what they do. "If It Don't Bleed" employs a great blues hook but still exudes rock and soul. This style shifting is hard to do while maintaining a level of cogency. But these guys do it on every song. "Mississippi" shakes and stirs all of the aforementioned attributes but adds maybe a southern rock jam band element.

Hearing this music is like being washed up on the banks of Lake Ponchtartrain with a sack of stolen loot. This album captures the spirit of the region and proclaims it with joy. You feel the struggle within the lyrics, but you still feel the presence of a force that carries all of these songs to special places. This is a band that feels comfortable taking musical chances. And they truly pull it off. The Funk, The Soul and The Holy Groove is the Holy Trinity of Delta based music. Put on a set of headphones and prepare for greatness.

Album Rating 9.6

Roomful of Blues - In A Roomful of Blues (Album Review)

This is the blues. It has many other ingredients. Funk, soul, Zydeco, Jazz, and Rock. But under this big tent known as The Roomful of Blues, you will discover what real music sounds like with all of it's stylistic shadings. A band like this is no longer a band but an institution with roots dating back to 1967. You can sample many of their albums from the 1980's until now and there's no question that these boys from Rhode Island have made an eternal mark on the music scene. Roomful is best served live but when you hear these new studio tracks, you will feel as though the band is right there in the room with you. It would not be an understatement to say this could be their best album to date. If anything there is more consistency to these tracks. And in the year 2020, this kind of music hits you like an oxygen tank filled with feel good grooves and authenticity. Who knew old time rock and roll could be counter-cultural? But there is no question that Roomful of Blues is like a musical oasis from the sterile computerized world of bland.

"What Can I Do" opens this collection like a freight train carrying box cars filled with '57 Chevy's. Your ears will marvel at the stand up bass, and the searing guitar work. Horns will blast you from your screen induced trance on "You Move Me". Rather than reinventing the wheel, Roomful of Blues will help you rediscover it. The band has even recorded a song about themselves called "In A Roomful of Blues". A whimsical historical reading of a career of more than a half century, drenched in horns and amazing guitar parts. Chris Vachon's guitar work comprises some of your most familiar blues players. You might hear Eric Clapton or Stevie Ray Vaughan or even Robert Cray. Vachon is a master tradesman who lays it down with the best of them. Vocalist Phil Pemberton sings with a funky swagger and some old school machismo. You'll love the swampy "Watch Your Back" and the prescient "Phone Zombies".

There is a mixed bag of sarcasm and seriousness in most of these songs. Ten of which are written by the band. You'll swing to "She's Too Much" with it's dance floor cadence and those perfectly placed horn parts along with sax and trumpet solos. You'll Zydeco your way onto the dance floor for the Cajun baked "Have You Heard". No need to travel the world when you can put on this album. This isn't just world music, it's around the world music. You'll get a dose of late night blues on "Carcinoma Blues" where the band stretches out as they discuss an actual cancer patient. After all this is the blues. With that said, the guitar work on this track and the horn section is pure ear therapy. "Too Much Boogie" will take your mind off of the cancer patient and will persuade your toes to tap on your way back out to the dance floor. It's modern day big band blues.

Other fine tracks include the funky soul of "Let The Sleeping Dog Lie" and the punky blues of "We'd Have A Love Sublime".  There's even a jazzy ballad in the middle of the album called "She Quit Me Again" which will give you a breather in-between dance numbers. This is old school rock with nods to all the great styles that led to the birth of rock and roll. This music might not appeal to people who've been conditioned by electronic devices and the 24 hour news cycle. As I write this the world is enveloped in the Coronavirus. But I can't think of a better musical anecdote to a world in chaos than Roomful of Blues. These kind of rock and roll pathogens can cure what ails the soul.

Album rating 9.7

Grand Design - V (Album Review)

Grand Design is: Pelle Saether, lead vocals, Dennis Vestman, guitar and backing vocals, Stefan Westerlund, bass guitar and backing vocals, Joakin Jonsson, drums and backing vocals and Dan Svanbom, lead guitar and backing vocals. The band hails from Vesteras Sweden and cites Def Leppard as their main influence. And without a doubt, the plagiarism is real. And it's not at all a bad thing. Saether's lead vocals are very different than Joe Elliott's. What's astonishing is how the band creates new musical landscapes that capture the essence of Leppard. There are a few other elements present as well. The smooth bouncy rhythms mirror 80's synth rock with extra helpings of Vestman and Svanbom's guitars. The tribute here might be more to the sound that Mutt Lange pioneered. The swath of lead and background vocals drench the ears with infectious vocal parts. Pelle's tenor adds another dimension to this as the band can write higher scales than Def Leppard could.

The lead single, "Right Away" is an arena rock powerhouse with an immense chorus that is instantly in your consciousness. The guitars thrash along like a 70's muscle car careening down a dark road. This is rock and roll! At this point you might want to fasten your seat belt. Svanbom's lead guitar work rivals your finest guitar slingers from the 1980's. "I Won't Cry Over U Tonight" begins with a tense keyboard intro that morphs into a rumbling rocker peppered with incredible guitar leads and vocal bursts. The lush, powerful harmonies are only slightly eclipsed by the guitars and that pounding, relentless beat provided by Joakin Jonsson. There is no logical reason for American radio to ignore this, but We know that they will. There is a combination of substance and reckless fun and indulgence that goes against everything that radio is right now.

"Strandead (Trapped In A Heartbreak Zone) is a gut-wrenching mid-tempo melody with larger helpings of choruses and relentless guitars and drums. Methinks Joe Elliott and company may want to pilfer one of these gems. It's as if Def Leppard was injected with youth and energy hormones. "Wat Are U Waiting For" (misspelling is on purpose) is another great mid-tempo rocker featuring another sumptuous chorus and a bed of synthesizers that give the guitars a nice launching point. "Shame On U" opens with a monster riff and powerhouse chorus which sets the stage for a fast and furious rocker with plenty of Leppard spots. "Take Me To Yer Heaven" crosses over into "Animal" territory in some of it's most obvious characteristics but easily finds an extraordinary original groove - certainly radio single ready!

"I Dunno Wat To Say" has a fire that was likely inspired by Pyromania as it sounds like a lost track. Saether's high note intro is something to behold. The band does a very formidable cover of Scandal's "The Warrior", glamming it up with a bevy of guitars and keyboard effects. Typically I wince when band's do covers that are already great songs. The concern is, what if they ruin it? They don't. In fact their take is a complete joy ride, including a slightly more adventurous guitar solo as compared to the original. Finally, there is "Guilty of Luv In The First Degree", with it's firecracker start and ginormous drowning in vocals soundscape. And so 11 songs later you still don't have a bad track.

You will come away from this album with a kind of joy that only happens after listening to feel good music that rocks while at the same time awakening some neurons that were once conditioned for this style of music. This isn't a rip off of Def Leppard as much as it is a celebration and rebirth of a great style. There is no downside to this record. This is good time rock and roll with a fine attention to detail. This might end up being your favorite melodic rock album of 2020. You'd get no argument from me.

Album rating 9.8

FM - Synchronized (Album Review)

FM is Steve Overland, guitars and lead vocals. Merv Goldsworthy, bass guitar. Pete Jupp, drums. Jem Davis, keyboards and Jim Kirkpatrick lead guitar. If you live in the United States, this band has mostly managed to stay under the radar for more than three decades even though they achieved modest success here opening up for Meat Loaf, Tina Turner and Foreigner. In recent years the band has created some very impressive melodic rock. The kind other bands can't seem to make anymore. Their newest effort, Synchonized, is more of their contagious form or rock. The comparisons to various 80's outfits are what writers typically write when they talk about FM. But this is a band that was invented in the 1980's, so people ought to be comparing more bands to them than comparing FM to other bands. With that little pet peeve out of the way, this album is another breathtaking foray into the singable melodic strains of real rock done the old fashioned way. Vocalist Steve Overland is a legend in Europe and his vocals haven't really changed over the past 36 years. His distinctive tenor is the perfect vehicle for these well crafted songs.

The album's title track roars into gear with a great guitar and keyboard intro that meets the body of the song head on. The production is crisp and clean with no overwrought vocal effects or gimmicks. In the 80's there might even be a dance remix of "Synchronized". "Superstar" is next and it's another straight forward up-tempo melodic rocker. The band alternates keyboard sounds, using Hammond B's and fatter synth sounds depending on the track. "Best of Times" is a tad more rootsy with it's acoustic guitar coupled with Overland's very Paul Rodgers take. Jim Kirkpatrick does some great soloing. It's an epic song and one of my favorites on this record. "Ghosts of You and I" is a sad descriptive tale of lost love. It's a mid-tempo ballad delivered with lots of emotion, keyboards and soaring guitars.

FM is such a well oiled machine. "Broken" continues the perfect set with more melodic greatness and superb guitar work. "Change For The Better" is another potential hit single with it's classic guitar intro, followed by a light and friendly melody that feels instantly familiar. A big organ sound starts "End of Days". The guitars subtly slip in before they crescendo and then settle into a pulsating groove. No two tracks are alike on this album. The band goes full Gospel on "Pray" with it's funky, soulful beat and big guitar riff. Tons of delicious guitar work here as the band finds a tight groove. "Walk Through The Fire" is a distant cousin of Mr. Mister's "Broken Wings". The band uses a similar build up and payoff, where the keys and bass are exposed. A great template to use for maximum emotional pull.

"Hell or High Water" sounds like something Lou Gramm did from "Long Hard Look". Giant guitar riffs and hooks with Overland doing his best to pull down those notes Lou used to sing in his sleep. "Angels Cried" is a lush, bluesy power ballad showcasing Overland and his Paul Rodgers side again. This track is stuffed with great choruses and hooks and would be a monster hit if radio was radio again. "Ready For Me" closes things out on a super high note. This time more on the uptempo all in one vein. One of the best songs on the record with guitars and keys dueling it out.

If a band was able to compose a couple of these songs and make them sound this good it would be a major achievement. FM has managed to craft 12 amazing melodic rock songs with hints of blues, soul and pop. So far this is the best album I've listened to in 2020. Yes I have biases. I enjoy a more stripped down approach to production and I am far more enthusiastic when the songwriting isn't mundane or derivative of everything else being churned out of various places in Europe. I can't envision a more complete and instantly lovable record than this one. FM proves why they continue to be the gold standard in this genre.

Album rating 9.9

Synchronized will be released April 10th via Frontiers Music

One Desire - Midnight Empire (Album Review)

Finland is now ground zero along with Sweden for some of the finest melodic rock being made. The regional flavor of this music is slightly more modern compared to your 80's record library. But the changes are sophisticated and are part of an overall evolution of sound. When it comes to the Finnish band One Desire, they stormed the gates in 2017 with their self titled debut album via Frontiers Records. The music video for the song "Hurt" has gone over 2 million views on YouTube with 3 million more streams on Spotify. All that with zero radio airplay here in the United States where new melodic rock has no support system. One could even conclude that there is a blackout or some kind of weird moratorium on decent melodic music.

One Desire is: Andre Linman (lead vocals, guitars), Jimmy Westerlund (lead guitars, backing and occasional lead vocals), Jonas Kuhlberg (bass guitar) and Ossi Sivula (drums). Whether you like the sound of this band or not, you'd be hard to find a group that plays this tightly. They are a well oiled machine hitting on all cylinders. The lead single from their sophomore album Midnight Empire is called "After You're Gone". Lyrically this is a band that wears their hearts on their sleeves. You can hear the angst and lament as Linman delivers his crystal clear vocal above a wall of acoustic and electric guitars. Linman has limitless range and can evoke emotion which in turn drives these lyrical themes to higher ground. "Shadowman" turns the melodic rock paradigm on it's head with a modern dark urgency vocally and with many musical ingredients, including a guitar solo that sounds exactly like something Neal Schon might play. "Down and Dirty" combines pop and progressive elements for a unique softer romp into new terrain. The modern elements in One Desire are less telegraphed and far more evolutionary than other bands in this genre. This is truly an evolution that doesn't offend those who embrace the past.

"Godsent Extasy" plays more to the 80's model but has many flavors and colors that make this an uptempo hybrid of many different forms. In any event, the guitar solo rocks. "Through The Fire" is a stunning acoustic guitar ballad that completely jumps out of the album in a unique way. As if the band suddenly realized Extreme or Mr. Big, but with bigger, loftier progressions. "Heroes" builds majestically into a progressive rocker with piercing guitar leads and a deluge of vocal textures. This would be MY single if I were picking them. "RIO" is a soft rock slow burner that gradually builds into full blown an original sounding power ballad that feels very retro, but with new melodic textures. This ends up being one of the best written songs on the record.

"Battlefield of Love" starts acoustic but then goes big. Big keyboards, guitars and vocals. Borrowing from modern rock and late 80's synth based pop and rock. "Killer Queen" is a relentless rocker with desperate lyrics and modern rock soundscapes that compliment the story line. "Only When I Breathe" is a bit of a showstopper. Linman finds a sweet spot vocally with the rest of the band providing emotional support and passion.

There is a lot to digest here. The album combines a powerful mix of melodic rock, modern rock and pop. The album has a high level of confidence where the playing, writing and arranging is at a level that few artists will get to. This is the music that should have arrived decades ago as the natural next step after the 1980's. It's 30 years in the making, but here it is. The potent mix of acoustic and electric guitars make this a real ear candy sensation. But it's the consistently great singing, songwriting and somewhat bombastic production that make One Desire the "one" album to seek out this year for new melodic rock fans.

Album Rating 9.1