PAUL HARRIS can be added to the list of multi-instrumentalists that consists of artists like BRYAN HUGHES, JEFF CANNATA, PHIL VINCENT, JOE ROBINSON… The only difference with those artists is the fact that PAUL HARRIS is coming out of Wales. Musically it doesn't make a difference he isn't coming out of Northern America, because his solo-debut CD 'Dream collection' features 10 great pure AOR songs. Besides playing all the keyboards, guitars, bass and drums very well on his CD, Paul can also sing very well. Actually he has a superb voice, extremely suitable for pure AOR such as on his CD.

The only pity about the CD is the fact that there are no real uptempo rockers on it. Apart from that this is a very enjoyable CD filled with great (semi) AOR ballads in the style of JOHN WAITE, MARK FREE, GARY HUGHES, PHIL VINCENT… The CD starts with "Lost", a good semi AOR ballad like MARK FREE meets GARY HUGHES. Next track "Forever" is a nice calmer dreaming AOR ballad like JOHN WAITE.

Then comes the best song on the album. The song is called "All alone" and is just purest AOR, like a cross between PHIL VINCENT, DOKKEN and NORWAY. A fantastic tune with superb lead and harmonyvocals, and all packed in a very melodic rocksound. "In your eyes" introduces acoustic guitars and is quite soft actually, but still a great AOR ballad. Following track "In the stars" is another great AOR/Melodic Rocktune like DOKKEN meets PHIL VINCENT. "Maybe?" follows and is a very relaxing calmer AOR ballad.

Next track "Hold on" is yet another wonderful pure AOR tune. "Hold on" is a fantastic midtempo AOR tune with classy 80s harmonies and a very melodic chorus. Again I have to add PHIL VINCENT as comparison, because Paul is sounding so much like him, but I am almost positive Paul has never heard of Phil, likewise Phil has never heard of Paul. The last three songs on the CD are a bit weaker and songs like "The secret" and "Bad luck" are just ok rockers, a bit 90s orientated.

Anyway, PAUL HARRIS is a very interesting multi-instrumentalist from England and I dare anyone into GARY HUGHES, PHIL VINCENT, JOHN WAITE… to check out his music at: http://www.mp3.com/paulharris and e-mail him at: phd_axe1@hotmail.com

Rating: 8,5/10

Above reviewed PAUL HARRIS is also a member of the band OTHERWORLD, a band from Wales. OTHERWORLD consists of Marco James on keys, guitars and Paul Davies on Guitars. Paul Davis is his real name, but he changes it to Paul Harris for his solo-CD to avoid confusion with all the other people called Davies in Wales. Anyway, the vocals are done by Dave Reed, the bass parts by John Pulman and Greg Haver played drums on the 11 songs of the OTHERWORLD CD.

Musically it is in the same calmer AOR/Melodic Rockstyle as the PAUL HARRIS CD, only there are more weaker songs on this album. The best songs are the AOR/Melodic Rockballads "Nothing really matters",. "Stay", "Thinking of you" (very good, a la PHIL VINCENT) and "Maybe". Songs like "Devil in you" and "Heartache and pain" are the rockers on this record, but unfortunately they sound a bit weak and these guys are really at their best during the slower melodic rocksongs. Although I prefer the PAUL HARRIS CD, this OTHERWORLD CD is also a nice AOR/Melodic Rock CD with a couple of very good songs. Check it out for yourself at: http://www.besonic.com/otherworld

Rating: 7,5/10

RIKKI ROXX is half American/half Canadian. This hot new multi-instrumentalist was kind enough to sent me a three-track CD titled 'Outside of the spotlight'. Musically he is playing 80s typed Bubblegum Pop Metal, very much like JOHNNY LIMA. The first track is a good example of this sound, because "Double struggle" is a great midtempo melodic rocker (with some AOR influences in the instrumentation) in the style of JOHNNY LIMA. Next track "The days of memory" is a nice semi melodic rockballad.

And closing track "The spotlight" is a nice calmer pop/rock tune. Opener "Double struggle" really surprised me with it's very 80s melodic Arena rocksound. I hope RIKKI ROXX makes more songs in this style on a future CD. For now, check out his site at: www.mp3.com/rikkiroxx and e-mail him at: rikkiroxx@juno.com or z-ya@juno.com and vote on www.Farmclub.com in the artist jukebox to put RIKKI ROXX on t.v.

Rating: 7,5/10

The new Melodic Rock sensation comes out of Germany and is called CRAVEN PLAIN. This new band sent me a demo CD that features 5 great songs. The CD starts with "Movie nights", a fantastic cheerful classic 80s uptempo melodic AOR rocker in the style of MASON, SURE CONVICTION… Next up is the semi ballad "In the streets" which takes the high level of the first song a bit lower, but still is a nice song. "Lady squeezer" follows and is a very good semi melodic rocker.

Then comes the wonderful uptempo melodic rocker "Planet Janet", a BONFIRE typed rocker with a very catchy chorus (a la DOMINOE). Closing track of the CD is the lovely AOR song "Mona Lee". Nothing stands in my way to give this album a high rating, because CRAVEN PLAIN is a sensational band, right up there with the new PINK CREAM 69. Check out these guys at: http://public.rz.fh-wolfenbuettel.de/~hoppea/ and e-mail them at: A.Hoppe@FH-Wolfenbuettel.DE

Rating: 9/10

This threesome comes out of South-Dakota, USA and they released a three-track CD that sounds very promising and refreshing! The first song is called "Skinny girls" and boy this song sounds very catchy and cheerful. "Skinny girls" is a great uptempo melodic poprocker, very much like NELSON ('Life') and MICHAEL MORALES (his debut from the 80s). Although this is a very 80s typed song, it still sounds very fresh and is radio-ready. A song like this could easily end up high in the charts with some good backing promotion.

Next track "Murmur" has a very 90s updated sound, but still is a pretty nice semi melodic rockballad. Closing track "Lala land" picks up the fun uptempo melodic poprocksound of the opening cut and is yet another great song. THE ODD SQUAD is a great new melodic poprockband and I dare you to check them out at: http://www.webtoes.com/oddsquad and e-mail them at: oddsquad@webtoes.com

Rating: 8/10

In the 80s we had a band called STREETS that featured KANSAS vocalist Steve Walsh, but now in the year 2000 there is a new band called STREETS. This STREETS comes out of California and musically they sound nothing like the other STREETS. 'Blackmail honeymoon' contains 13 songs and is musically hard to define a couple of times, but mainly we can speak of a Classic Rockband with a lot of influences from the 70s and early 80s. "Thunder of love" opens the CD and is a nice 70s/80s typed Melodic Poprock a la BAD BOY. Next up is "Dancing lights", a hi-tech wave rocker in 80s style. This shows the diversity of this rockband. "Love shadows" is forgettable, a short song.

Then comes "Givertaker", definitely the best song on the CD. This song is a pure late 70s uptempo Melodic Midwestern Pomprocker in the style of HEAD EAST and REO SPEEDWAGON, including lovely harmonies and very melodic guitars. This fantastic track is showing STREETS at their best and it would be really great if more songs in this style could appear on a future CD. Next track "Promises" isn't bad either and is a good uptempo melodic poprocker like BAD BOY meets THE BABYS.

The quirky poprocker "My terrific telephone" follows. Some good STYX harmonies can be heard in the following track "Sabotage", a nice midtempo 70s rocker. The second part of the CD is poppier and also quite weird often ("Rockabilly drams" and "Blackmail honeymoon"). This STREETS is a very diverse band and although a couple songs sound very good, also a lot sound really average.

If the band would choose for a pure melodic Pomprocksound (like on their songs "Givertaker" and "Promises"), then it would be a lot more interesting. Now the band is playing too many different rockstyles which makes it hard to categorise. Anyway, check out this STREETS at: http://www.mp3.com/streets and e-mail them at: DOMINICKD@webtv.net

Rating: 7/10

Out of Germany comes ARIS, a very professional sounding lighter AOR/Pop band. They recorded their debut CD 'Rain dries' in their own studio and it all sounds pretty good to me. There are 14 songs on the CD and there is a variation of pure AOR songs and pure Pop tracks. At times the band can be compared to bands like HIGHER GROUND, PROMOTION, OUTRIDER, BOULEVARD…

Opener "No one else" is a good example of how good this band can sound, because this first track is a lovely calmer AOR piece in the style of JOURNEY/STRANGEWAYS. A great start for ARIS and I really thought this was going all the way throughout the CD. Unfortunately, next track "Like your daddy" is pure Pop and has nothing to do with our beloved musicstyle. "Smile" follows in a poppy AOR style, a bit like old PROMOTION. Then we're back into AOR territory again on the song "Keeps me alive", a great pure AOR song (with a lovely melodic guitarsolo) in the style of JOURNEY and STRANGEWAYS again.

After this song, the band is changing back to a very calm popstyle on songs like "Moonlight", "Love calling", "Crazy for you" and "Where do we go". On songs like those ARIS sounds like BOB CARLISLE and the AOR influences are hard to find. Happily, there are also some more AOR orientated pieces such as "She cries" (calmer progressive AOR), "Wonderland" (calmer AOR) and "Friendly face". This last mentioned song is again superb pure AOR (a la STRANGEWAYS and JOURNEY).

So, in the end we got three awesome pure AOR songs ("No one else", " Friendly face" and "Keeps me alive") and the rest is either Poppy AOR or pure Pop. It's your choice if you're interested in such a diverse band. Well, I really enjoyed ARIS and besides musically, I also need to add that the lay-out of their CD is looking very good. More info on ARIS at: http://members.aol.com/svgain and e-mail them at: ReneGa@t-online.de

Rating: 7,5/10

This is a band from Ottawa, Illinois, USA. They have put out a CD titled 'Canopic jars'. Musically I have to say that this band is a bit too much in the 90s pop/rock style for me, so it's hard to recommend to fans of 80s melodic rock. Nevertheless the CD sounds good enough to listen to and it's an easy target for radiostations to pick up. Just listen to songs like "Please" and "It", this is pure 90s pop/rock. Anyone into 90s pop/rock (a la GIN BLOSSOMS, MATCHBOX 20), check out this band at: http://www.strangehues.com and e-mail them at: Hugh@strangehues.com

Rating: 6,5/10

Out of California comes Donna Torrisi who sent me a CD with 4 of her own songs. She only sings, while being accompanied by Rick Medina who is playing guitars, bass and drums. Musically it is not really heavy and can be labeled as calmer westcoast
typed female fronted melodic poprock in the style of JAIME KYLE, PATTY SMYTH, DIANA DEWITT, VENUS AND MARS… "The road" opens the CD and is a nice semi melodic rockballad like VENUS AND MARS, DIANA DEWITT…

Next up is the semi meloidc rocker "Lay down arms", a pretty nice song that sounds like JAIME KYLE. Then comes the titletrack "Searching", a very 90s radio typed poprocker. The CD closes with "Downtown", a nice midtempo melodic poprocker. A fine release from DONNA and hopefully we'll get to hear more in the future, here's her website link:
http://www.donnatorrisi.com and e-mail her at: donnatorrisi@hotmail.com

Rating: 7/10

Happily, the band also sent me a demo CDR with new songs and they sound much better. The third track of this CDR is titled "I don't care" and this song sounds very good
and is a catchy 80s uptempo melodic rocker a la PRECIOUS METAL. This song proves that this band can make good melodic rock too. I look forward to their new release that should be done later this year. In the meantime check out SUZI HOMEMAKER and e-mail them at: suzi_homemaker@hotmail.com

Rating: 6,5/10

Playing a catchy mixture of pop/rock, New Zealand's Richard Towers is a fascinating singer/songwriter in the style of Jimmy Barnes, Scott Sudbury, Jess Harnell, Bryan Adams and Henry Lee Summer. His two songs on the cd single follow the country/pop route and may not appeal to the aor masses, but never the less the single should sell by the truck load, "Same Someone" is pure radio fodder.

Richard's debut album "Thirty Second Dream" on the other hand could just about get the aor brigade foaming at their mouths (almost), the first song "Thirty Second Dream", is a big number that sits alongside Kenny Loggins' "Meet Me Halfway" from the "Over The Top" soundtrack, in fact his voice is quite similar to Kenny and also James Salter from Faith Nation and John Taglieri, he could even be John Taglieri's long lost cousin, these guys should get together and jam, feed off each others energies and create a monster album.

The album features your usual abundance of smoochy ballads like "You To Keep Me Warm" and radio friendly pop/rock songs like the catchy Bryan Adams-ish "Wasted Lives" and "Danger Zone" as well as the odd country-ish tune. So at the end of the day Richard Tower's is about playing it safe, a bit more up-tempo songs like "Wasted Lives" and we'd be onto a killer album, but this grows with each play and serves as a nice introduction to one of New Zealands finest artists. Contact: richs@attglobal.net

Rating: 7/10, 8/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

This is an interesting little find that came out a little while ago and is now being talked about at various corners of the internet world, for anyone who craves "Cherry Pie" era Warrant.

Rocking out of New Jersey, $kyhigh came together in 1993 formed by lead vocalist Steve Carnevale and guitarist Rich Antonelli.The album features lots of great uptempo hard rockers and radio friendly ballads,with influences running from Warrant, Savannah, Crown Of Thorns,.Lynch Mob, Extreme and Van Halen..To their credit the band have been seen touring with Warrant, Cinderella and Great White and they also shot a video for the song "Knife Through My Heart",which is very influenced by Warrant's "Love In Stereo/Big Talk", Steve Carnevale is a total deadringer for Jani Lane and the lyrics aree also reminding me of that era.

Track 2 "How Far" is a great rocker with some nifty guitar playing,the intro of the song has some xrated nonsense,but doesn't spoil the air guitar manic slaughtering coupled with pleanty of "Woah woah" Bon Jovi stadium anthems in the chorus line.

"Wounds So Deep" is next up and is a gentle ballad that reminds me of Warrant's "I Saw Red".a smooth chorus that reminds me that if the eighties was to rock all over again then this band would definetly gain a level of success. A case of de-ja vu i think?

They had the good sense to include a cover song on the album to try and gain themselves more radio play,the opted for a piano led version of The Beatles "Let It Be",it's just a pitty Jani Lane himself isn't singing this track as Steve is remakably convinicing."Dream" continues the rocking whilst "I Miss You" is a ballad to get your goose pimples on the rise,overall this is a top class indy release that deserves label attention.

Anyone interested in getting hold of this should contact the band via email: skyhighrox@efortress.com

Rating: 9/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

What do you get when you have an album full of massive melodies, luxuruios singing, rich keyboards, molten guitar playing and songs of immense standards?Faith Nation is what you get. "Ordinary People" is the second album from Metrapolis aorsters Faith Nation and it's a blinder.Led by lead singer James Salters formely of The Brave, guitarist Huey Peterson ,Matt McClay (Bass), keybordist Lewis Sego who plays brilliantly a'la Jonathan Caine and drummer Brian Owen, Faith Nation offer no holds barred aor,comparisons are rich with the main factors being Journey, Mark Free (Signal/Unruly Child), Styx, Giuffria, Survivor, Harlan Cage, Alias, Caught In The Act and Bad
Habit.

"Arms Around The World" get things going and is a keyboard driven aor gem, whilst "When The Love Goes Away" is a mixture of Styx and Survivor with gospel orientated backing vocals, one of the albums highlights is simply the awesome Journey sounding title track. Is this "Seperate Ways" or what? Could be until the mid-section kicks in, glorious stuff never the less, check out James' god like vocals on this track, he is a deadringer for Steve Perry, Mark Free and the guy from Shotgun Symphony. Actually thinking of Shotgun Symphony I would say their first album could sum this up, mixed up with the above flavours and you have a classic in the making!!!Another special track that reminds me of Harlan Cage and Journey's "Positive Touch" is the sexy "How Can I?"see what you think of it!!

My overall favourite track though is the deep and beautiful piano led ballad "Love Is An Ocean" again check out James' high pitched vocals on this one where he sounds across between Dennis DeYoung, Freddy Curci. and the guy from Caught In The Act/Guild Of Ages. From here the album beacome aor pomp heaven,even adding slight progressive edges....

Opinions may differ but for me this album takes about three spins to fully appreciate and in years to come I am sure that it will remain high in peoples playlisat. It's a gorgeous peace of melodic rock and aor tenderness, however if you are a diabetic, then my advice is to stay clear as "Ordinary People" can at times leave a sugary taste in your mouth.

Rating: 9,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

Oklahoma based rockers Erotic Suicide have done it again, they have created an outburst of colourful stadium hard rock numbers that have you singing and shouting like a maniac. You may recall that E.S. deliverd a classy sleezy rock n' roll album a few years back, called "Abusement Park".

Well I am happy to report that this is one of the greatest album of that genre, this band have an open market now as the old bands like Motley Crue,Warrant, Poison etc seem content to mess about with grunge and shit like that.What people seem to be looking for nowadays is the good old rocking sound of yester-year, weather it be melodic rock ,glam or aor, or whatever, the important fact is that people in general seem to be more open to it all than in the late eighties.

To their credit the band have toured with acts like Bang Tango,Vince Neil, Jackyl, Ugly Kid Joe, Ace Frehley and Arcade and have released the afforementioned album "Abusement Park" which some fans consider to be a classic of the genre.

If Guns 'N' roses killed the market flat then Erotic Suicide are the band along with Sweden's Loud 'N' Nasty to build a new stepping stone for rock music into the new millenium..Their music combines the sleazy rawness of Ratt, Motley Crue ,Skid Row, Hanoi Rocks and all those eighties big hair bands, tracks like "I Want" are big riff-punching rockers of pure genius filled with a catchy chorus that reminds me of a mens version of Joan Jett's "I Love Rock And Roll", "Blown Away" sounds like a rockier version of Guns 'N' Roses' "Patience" but totally more convincing original and straight forward, "Can't Stop It" is pure
eighties hard rock a'la brit rockers The Almighty and Faster Pussycat, Skid Row and Babylon A.D. a song that builds and builds into huge proportions of riffage headbaning mayhem,"All Fall Down" is a monsterous sing along with cool lyrics with some rapid drum fire from D.Rose, check out the guitar playing on this too.

And then "All Fall Down" offers truck loads of thumping bass pounding and AC/DC style chorus lines,look my opinion of this album is of a very high standard,this is the buisness,and rocks big time, BUY OR DIE!!!!!!Pure and simple!!! Outrageously fun and totally over the top bonk rock melodic rock mayhem!!Big chorus, big hair big everything, this is the shit!!!!! Fuck I haven't mentiond the semi-ballad "Weekend One Night Stand" with it's gigantic chorus yet?We are going to hear a lot from Erotic Suicide in the future.

Rating: 9,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

WET come from South Florida, and are led by the beautiful and very talented Angel, their music mixes pop goth with aor and hard rock ,and had a local hit with the song "Grace". This demo is their first studio offering and it's not bad at all, actually this is quite pleasant and interesting and I would like to see how this band develops in the future as clearly they have produced a good quality demo with great catchy songs.

"Lover" is a neat little pop ditty a'la Lisa Dalbello, This features gorgeous guitar playing that will leave you singing along,the song is very infectious aor/goth rock."Hey Buddy" lets things down a bit,but "Grace" on the other-hand pulses with vibrant rock/pop energy a'la Blondie ,Lisa Dalbello,Siouxsie And The Banshees, there enough toughness on this song to wake up all the other all girl rock band out there.This is a sexy song with great versus and lyrics, "Crystal Clear" is led by accoustic guitar playing and nicks the melody from Cat Stevens' "Wild World". If you are intrested in checking out WET then be advised to visit their website for more details on how to purchase the cd. http://www.pompano.net/~wetband or e-mail: wetband@mediaone.net

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)