Besides the Galactic Cowboys, this is the first project I've heard that really gives a nod to the Beatlesque harmonies of King's X. There are two sides to this story, though, as the second half of the album incorporates a sassier R&B flavor to its riffs a la Extreme. This is probably what would happen if Winger went in the studio with King's X tunes. The grooves are happy, thick and heavy, and the harmonies only make it sound sweeter. The commercial melodies (like the new Galactic Cowboys) get very progressive - enough to stop a musician in his/her tracks. Wow! I love it!
These guys use a lot of tricks and tools to achieve a very well-rounded sound. You'll hear fuzzy and mega crunch distortion on the guitars and a good drum sound throughout - all of which is utilized well with the great song crafting. This entire album is a great listen through all 10 songs, offering variation and plenty of things to get excited about.
It's essential in rock and roll nowadays to come out with a guitar sound that is clear and dominant, which is what you get here, but the extra umph that takes this band over the top is the awesome vocals.
Two standouts in the vocal category are "Welling Up" with a big, big, BIG harmony chorus and the lead vocals in "Golden Rule," which are panned back and forth in a floating action.
The big tunes guitar wise are "Take Me," which could be a monster hit, "We Are Not Alone" and "In The Sea" - all of which could be described as that sassy R&B groove sound that Aerosmith stole from their blues fathers and Extreme has taken a notch further sonically and attitude-wise. "Take Me" uses several different guitar sounds and tones all the way through, like the cool steel guitar solo midsong and the staccato rhythm crunch that carries the choruses. "In The Sea" takes a similar "let's not stick with one sound too long" approach as well.
The entire band comes together and really shines in "Just The Same," with several quick rests tightly performed together.
This album will undoubtedly stay in my car stereo a long time. A big thank you has to go out to John and Dino of Pakaderm Records for releasing three huge rock releases this year in Guardian, Fear Not and LoveWar. Yowza!