When David Bach told me a long time ago that the new Guardian album would not be a Fire and Love Part Two, I was disappointed. "How could they improve on such a great sound and style?" Well, these transplanted Californians (now Nashville residents) are takin' on the world with a little more class, a little more diversity and a little more volume. Much cudos go to the forefathers of R&B on this one, cause this album has some skyscraper tall grooves and sounds that rock ya big time. In the old days of hard rock, it was a crime to mention R&B and horns (what?!? Horns?? No way! Way!), even though bands like Aerosmith were boogie-in' full tilt with this mixture of Gospel-tinged R&B with hard and heavy rock and roll. Miracle Mile is a Texas-sized blessing to the musical world, but it ain't without its let downs to the hard rock world. For instance, tunes like The Captain and You And I may be good, but they stretch a little for this band. The Captain sounds like a Billy Squier-type ballad with big, breathing acoustic guitars and soft high notes sung by Jamie Rowe; and You And I sounds like Rick Springfield doing Beatles harmonies. Those minor flaws out of the way, let me get on to the greatness here. Thematically, the album is full of character stories. You've got people like Dr. Jones & The Kings Of Rhythm (a traveling preacher), Shoeshine Johnny (a lowly humble man who serves others with a joy from the Lord), Sister Wisdom (the Lord's wisdom--as mentioned in Proverbs and seen by some scholars as a reference to Jesus) and Mr. Do Wrong (the devil himself). I Found Love is one of those big sounding tunes built with plenty of loud, jangly acoustic guitars; kinda like what Tesla has used a lot. Sweet Mystery carries a similar vibe, but the band actually brings in a string section. Do You Know is another ballad that works well. It'll have the girls swaying and the bic lighters in the air in concert. Let It Roll is a winner. Mr. Do Wrong, uncannily has a monster groove like Motley Crue's Dr. Feelgood and tons of killer leads by Tony Palacios. Karl Ney's drumming and David Bach's bass put this groove right in the hip pocket. Curiosity Killed The Cat is another big hit with a decidedly Van Halen flair. See if you can't hear this song and not sing along. Miracle Mile is one of those great albums that "does its own thing," but does it so well that you can't knock it for being diverse. If diversity of styles is wrong, then Led Zeppelin's popularity was a fluke. They're serious musicians, yet they have fun. See if you can find their fun surprise on the album.