Sunday, February 14, 2010

A taste of some of the best new AOR and Melodic Rock releases! PART ONE



Who woulda thunk it?  Me, the Power Pop, New Wave, Punk and Synth Pop fanatic, falling head over heals for the recent wave of AOR and Melodic Rock releases!!

I have know idea why I've fallen into this style of music that I purposely stayed away from during it's heyday some 25 years ago, but I love the new music that is being made.  I'm a sucker for a good melody, whether it's The Jam, Neil Diamond, Badfinger, Glen Campbell, Buzzcocks, Michael Jackson, Journey or whoever strikes my fancy at the moment. But lately, I've been exposed to a lot of cool stuff on the Frontiers label and beyond and I'm totally digging it!

So, here's a quick look (and listen) at some of my recommended faves: 



Yes, they are a parody of the hair bands from the '80s, but they are great at what they do.






More Yes and Prog-influenced than other bands here, Spin Gallery have great tunes and vocal harmonies galore.





Though Neil Schon is long gone, Hardline are back with a modern melodic rock masterpiece. No posing here, just great tunes...






Straight-forward melodic rock with emphasis on guitars and melodies but great use of keyboards as well.





OK, so Lou Gramm is out and Kelly Hanson has taken over as lead vocalist, but I'll be damned if this isn't one of the band's finest albums!  Great from start to finish and plenty of top-notch material to add to their already impressive catalog!




You're welcome!
Stephen SPAZ Schnee

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