Various reviews of albums Tommy work on or is mentioned in

SLITZ
ATC - Cut In Ice

Att spela snällt är ingen lösning ur hårdrockens återvändsgränd.
Svenska ATC är snälla men de har också gett sig på att hacka lite på de värsta klichéerna.
I ett par låtar finns början till melodier och nyanser.
Men främst texterna har öppningar jämfört med andra hårdrockgrupper, som i "Nobody's Heroes" där de vänder sig mot våldet i stället för att förgylla det.
PER WIRTÉN

KERRANG
Cheese – Won’t Come Easy
(Cheese Import)

Another bunch of Swedes, and I won’t be drawn into making silly comments on that name.
Mind You, the music is so appalling, dumb, inept and lifeless that perhaps I should atleast say:the greater awaits!
Malcome Dome

FRIDA
Cheese – Hold On

Gladrock från några av de gamla medlemmarna i ATC.
Ibland är productionen lite väl mesig, men eloge till sångaren Magnus Lange och gitarristen Tommy Denander för sitt proffsigt avspända spel.
Det låter coolt!
B-sidan heter ”Cheese Won’t Come Easy”
Glimten i örat!
Kan mycket väl bli en liten sommarhit.
Annika Sunbaum-Melin

BACKSTAGE
Bernt Ek – BE

Bernt har ett förflutet som basist i bl.a Bedlam och Station/House Of Shakira.
På sin egen demo visar han att han även trakterar mikrofonen med beröm.
Bernt har hjälp av Tommy Denander på gitarr.
Tommy och hans flickvän Jonna har även hjälpt till att skriva musik och text på några låtar.
Nå, hur låter det då? Alldeles förträffligt!
Stilen är melodiös POMP/AOR med högklassiga låtar.
Det hela för tankarna till 70- och 80-talets bättre POMP-band som Trillion och Journey.
Visst, somliga låtar kan tyckas ganska snälla, men tar man sig tid att verkligen lyssna så finner man att låtarna är späckade med intressanta harmoniväxlingar och snygga arrangemang.
Mina favoritlåtar är nog den långa och ortoligt stämningsfulla balladen ”Legal Destruction” och så naturligtvis den tunga suggestiva höjdaren ”That’s How It Is”.
Det skulle vara mycket interssant att höra hur Bernt låter efter att ha fått härja fritt i Soundtrade studion i en månad eller två.
Janne Stark
Orginalitet / Idèer 5 av 5
Energi / Inlevelse 5 av 5
Låtmaterial 5 av 5
Proffsighet 5 av 5
Ljudkvalitè 3,5 av 5

FRONTLINE
Andy Eklund

(Adv tape 1993)

In the DENANDER review I presented this ANDY for you.
According to the style it’s the same type as DENANDER’s own project, and it’s nothing to wonder about – in both cases TOMMY has written everything.
This as well as DENANDER’s tape contains early mixes with ”demo vocals”, but TOMMY is the one who does all the instruments.
Varied AOR so to speak, with elements of both tougher and westcoast style.
Andy has a voice that fits very well with these songs, and therefore it’s good that the material isn’t pure westcoast (though it would not have been wrong with a little slicker style).
I can under no circumstances get that this guy’s just 20 years old.
Just because of the voice it’s an order to the reader to buy this record when (hopefully) it is released on CD.
Among the songs there is ”With A Little Love” and ”On My Own” to listen extra carfully to – the later with a lot of wescoast sound.
ANDY’s demo feels a little more uniform than DENANDER’s ditto, but it has fewer peaks.
Alas the guitar works!
Daintly fills here and there, and just think how it will be when it’s finished!
It’s gonna be exciting to hear.
Surely AOR has a future in Sweden! WOW!
Ola Gränshagen

AOR WEBSITE
LION SHARE "Entrance"
(Massacre Records)

In retrospect,Lions Share's last album, the brooding & introspective 'Fall from Grace', seems to have marked the closing of a chapter in the career of this band of much promise, by so far little concrete achievement. This impression is reinforced by the unveiling of new singer Tony Niva, a melodic child of messrs Tate & Halford( hey, let's start a rumour!), and a tighter focus in their sometime sprawling approach.
From the now traditional semi-baroque opener, the instrumental title track, the album crashes in with the Priest gone Scandie metal one two of 'Shotgun Messiah' followed swiftly on hobnailed wings by 'Waiting', the latter really bringing out the the Halford areas of Niva's assured voice.
'Through the clouds' is a Masqueradish style ballad, good but overshadowed by the focus and restrained power of 'Believe', whilst 'Mystery' is a Queensryche stripped back to fighting weight mid-tempo pounder with a chorus to die for, and a few nods and winks at Zeppelin in Mats Olausson's ( he's getting around these days!)keyboard melodies.
Blessed with a clear and sympathetic production by guitarist Lars Criss, and driven by the catalyst of Niva's arrival, Lions Share have, with 'Entrance' given us solid and more accessible evidence of their promise.
by Andrew Paul
RATING 78/100

MELODICROCK.COM
LION'S SHARE
ENTRANCE

Produced by: Lars Chriss
GENRE: European Hard Rock

The guys of Lions Share have been bugging me for ages to review this release and I send out my personal apology for taking so long.
This is a solid, well recorded and well played European hard rock album.
Their brand of melodic hard rock/metal draw comparisons to that of Masi and Primal Fear - pumped up guitar driven hard rock with vocals in the higher range.
Helping the band out is Goran Edman and Thomas Vikstrom on backing vocals, plus Mats Olausson and Tommy Denander on keyboards.
Lions share are one of the better examples of this style of melodic heavy metal, but aren't afraid to slow it down a little with a few well placed mid-tempo ballads.
If European heavy rock is your bag and you are fans of the style of music the guest artists are usually involved in, you won't go wrong here.
Andrew Mcneice
RATING 82/100

MELODICROCK.COM
Lions Share
Entrance

Killer CD!!!New vocalist Tony Niva makes a huge impression on all of the tunes here!!! This, in my opinion, is the best Lions Share album. The songwriting is superb and the production is also top notch. I noticed Tommy Denander's name in the credits as the keyboard engineer and the person who recorded this melodic hard rock opus and his influence is definitely felt throughout!! Lions Share sound more melodic on this release but still maintain their heaviness. It's also less prog than their previous efforts. "Mystery" is a great song that should put these guys on the map. "War Machine" is a real heavy tune that has an awesome chorus which doesn't surprise me since backing vocals are handled by Thomas Vikstron and Goran Edman!! "Believe" is another killer track that had a hook that you'll be humming for days after you first hear it. Guitarist Lars Chriss shines on rhythm and leads but his strength has definitely become his songwriting. Don't be fooled by the Death Metal cover artwork, this CD is one of the top 5 melodic hard rock releases of the year!!!!
Phil V
RATING 10/10

STARK MUSIC
LION'S SHARE
Entrance
Massacre/Showtime
 
Omslaget må visserligen lämna en del övrigt att önska, men musikaliskt har Lion's Share fått in ett skott i krysset. Från att tidigare ha övergått från melodisk hårdrock till en mer progressiv metall, har lejongrabbarna nu hivat i heavy metal-växeln till fullo och skippat alla progressiva ornament. Nu är det rak, okomplicerad och renodlad heavy metal som gäller. Paralleller kan otvivelaktigt dras med Judas Priest anno Defenders Of The Faith och Point Of Entry eller Accept på Balls To The Wall och Death Row, fast med bättre sångare. På Entrance introducerar de förresten den nya vokalisten Tony Niva, som förutom att ta bandet ännu ett snäpp högre, dessutom sätter topptonerna till fullo även live. Bandet har även förvandlats till en kvartett, utan keyboards, vilket satt sin prägel. Efter ett kortare intro sparkas högväxeln in direkt i och med låten Shotgun Messiah. Dubbelstampet regerar visserligen, men det man reagerar över är hur pass rena gitarrerna är. Detta ger en klart distinktare och luftigare ljudbild med mer attack. Det är över lag ganska mycket up-tempo och pump på A-strängen, men med lite mer variation än på åttiotalet och med betydligt intressantare sångslingor. I låtar som Through The Clouds, Mystery och metallballaden Believe visar de dock att de gamla melodiska, lätt AOR-aktiga takterna sitter kvar. Mitt favoritval faller dock på den tunga War Machine. På plattan har visserligen lånats lite takter och toner, fast på ett ganska förlåtligt sätt. Lost låter till exempel högst inspirerad av Michael Schenkers Into The Arena, för att inte tala om versriffet i Waiting och bryggan i Shotgun Messiah, som även de låter misstänkt bekanta. Även om detta kan ses som Lion's Shares stilla flört med tyskmetallen, kan jag inte låta bli att tycka det är förbaskat bra. Detta är absolut ingen tänkarplatta utan ett stycke högst medryckande headbangarplast.
Janne Stark

ROCKGUIDEN
Locomotive Breath med gäster
 
Train Of Events
(BlueStone/Border) © 1997 53 min 7(7)

Janne Stark är mannen bakom både det bästa hårdrocklexikonet på svenska och rockfestivalen i Karlshamn. Han är musiker också och har fått ihop en stark laguppställning till sitt eget band Locomotive Breath.
Jodå! Jethro Tull-låten som gett gruppen dess namn finns förstås med. I en mycket annorlunda tappning lyckligtvis. Resten är gitarrbaserad hårdrock i den högre skolan med Mattias "IA" Eklundh, Micke "Nord" Andersson, Kjell Jacobsson, CarlJohan Grimmark och Tommy Denander som sologäster.
Det Locomotive Breath ibland brister i när det gäller låtmaterialet kompenseras av det fräcka spelet och de omsorgsfullt utarbetade arrangemangen.
Kul med den kultiga Gentle Giant-influensen i Dream V/S Reality! Den fungerar som ett välkommet avbrott till alla gitarrerna.

AOR EUROPE
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH: "Heavy Machinery"
SwedenRock Records 2002

It's been five long years since their debut and some of us started to wonder, if there would ever be a second album. Don't hold your breathe the rumors said as guitarist Janne Stark (ex-Overdrive) has been busy with other projects. Besides writing and collecting information for his book Swedish Hardrock & Heavy Metal encyclopedia pt:2. You can also find him working as freelance journalist for a couple of magazine's out there.
However, the loco's are finally back with new album and singer though. "Heavy Machinery" is the title and Mattias Osbäck is the frontman. The overall music has become a bit heavier since last time and the riffs are even more complexed. This is actually a re-launch of the album at first released at Record Heaven, earlier this year. Now with a bonus track I may add.
Locomotive Breath has often been described as the Swedish version of King's X, in several magazine's. This may be true to some point, but you can also find other dimensions here. The music is very much riff-oriented and basic 1-2-3 with guitar, bass, & drums is the game. At times not that far from the sound of fellow Swede's at Freak Kitchen. By the way, their singer/guitarist Matthias 'IA' Eklundh (also ex-Fate) guests on one of the tracks here. Other guests include Roland Grapow (Helloween) and Tommy 'Been There, Done That' Denander. All songs are written by Stark and he's a much better songwriter nowadays. Thank God! Since I always found Overdrive to be crap, more or less. The problem I have with this CD are the endless riffing. What's wrong with lots of guitar riffs you ask? Not much is the answer! Nevertheless, this CD gets a bit boring in the long run. Simply because many of the riff-oriented tracks here, do sound simular to each other. They are all shaped around the same basic construction, when it comes to songwriting. It doesn't always mean 'they all sound alike', it's rather the fact, that not many sticks out from the rest. For example, I can't really name any favorite tracks here. May still be worth checking out, if you're into above mentioned bands and/or lots of power riffs. Since everything from production to the musicians performances are very professional done.
Urban "Wally" Wallstrom
RATING 6/10

BABYLON
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH
"Heavy Machinery"

Band nordeuropea che propone un Hard Rock che strizza l'occhio volentieri alla melodia, questi Locomotive Breath hanno messo assieme 11 pezzi di sicuro impatto e molto ben rifiniti. D'impatto perchè il muro sonoro c'è tutto, con chitarre dal suono tagliente e sezione ritmica solida e precisa; ben rifiniti perchè la produzione è ottima e il cd dà subito la sensazione di essere nato dopo un lungo e attento lavoro. Un melodic HR dicevo, ma non con la melodia come solo obbiettivo, al contrario la potenza la fa da padrone, rifinita dalle venature rock all'americana, nell'uso dei cori e della voce sopratutto. Ecco un modo di intendere "Sign Of The Times", a tratti bonjoviana e energica al tempo stesso, o di interpretare la successiva "High And Mighty", che è davvero un bel pezzo, pieno e senza soste con il refrain in grado di lavorare egregiamente anche on stage. Poi l'attimo più divertente, "Sacred Alien", con l'iniziale arpeggio che sa di AOR d'ispirazione country che si evolve in un brano tirato che sorprende visto l'inizio decisamente più tranquillo. Ottima la prova di Mattias Osbaeck, il vocalist, che in questo brano dà prova di ottimo controllo della voce e di doti di interpretazione davvero notevoli. Belli i riff di "Solitary Man", la nona traccia, e possente l'intro della successiva "Leaving The World Behind", un brano che, quasi in chiusura dell'album, dà allo stesso ancora una sferzata d'energia. Infine si chiude con l'arpeggio di "The Adventures Of Zaphod Beeblebrok" (feat. Roland Grapow) che anticipa una linea di chitarra bella per un brano di 5.37" strumentale che conclude il lavoro. Promossi, magari non la band più originale del mondo, ma onestissima.
Website: www.locomotivebreath.net
Stradivarius
RATING 7/10

NORTHERN LIGHT
Locomotive Breath, Heavy Machinery, Record Heaven, RHCD 64, Sweden, 2002

Locomotive Breath consists of Mattias Obsbäck (vocals), Janne Stark (guitars), Ulf Kronsell (bass) and Jimmy Lexe (drums). Stark is a wellknown figure on the Swedish rock scene, not only as a member of the Swedish band Overdrive, but also as rock writer/journalist. He has been writing for several rock magazines and is the author of "The Encyclopedia Of Swedish hard Rock & Heavy Metal", a massive and equally impressive labor of love covering all the ins and outs of every hard rocking band in Sweden that has ever put out a recording.
But let's go back to the band at hand. Locomotive Breath was formed in 1995, and the name was taken from an old Jethro Tull song. "Heavy Machinery" is Locomotive Breath's second CD, following the debut "Train Of Events" from 1997. Their sound is somewhere in the territory of Black Sabbath meets King's X, i.e. definitely metal and definitely dry and dark. There is definitely no AOR fluffiness yet there certainly is a lot of melodicness especially in the vocal performance by Mattis Osbäck. Osbäck is a pleasant surprise, with a deep powerful metal voice able to do all the huffs and puffs needed in this genre. Yet he pulls out a sweet melodic voice at times and a gnarling Ozzy-like nasal tone other times.
The CD is extremely coherent and consistent in terms of musical direction and quality of the material. The rhythm section is tight and solid and the guitars are driving all tracks with a massive amount of riffing. The production is clean, dry and very effective. As a whole the sound is modern yet it has a timeless metal quality to it.
My fave tracks are probably "Blind Lead The Blind" and "Reign Of Terror", mostly because they are the most melodic tracks of the 11 tracks on the CD. I am sure those who are more inclined to headbang to the more hardcore grinding guitars, favor other tracks, like "High And Mighty" and "Sign Of The Times", the latter with a solo added by Freak Kitchen's guitarist Mattias "IA" Eklundh. While on the subject of guesting guitarists it is worth to mention that quite a bunch of accomplished rock guitarists were invited to lay down some work on the CD. These include the aforementioned Mattias Eklundh (Freak Kitchen) together with Tommy Denander (Radioactive), Roland Grapow (Helloween, Masterplan), Micke "Nord" Andersson (Roxette) and Pontus Norgren (Great King Rat, Talisman, Humanimal). All of them, except Denander, play on the final track of the CD, the instrumental "The Adventures Of Zaphod Beeblebrox", where they each add a solo. Guitars galore!
Janne Stark and his bandmates in Locomotive Breath have definitely created a hard-hitting rocker that I am sure will appeal to the classic metal fans. Adequate production and a fine performance on all positions, all the way from the goalie through the defense up to the strikers (this is after all the time of the football world cup! ;)).

POWERMETAL
Locomotive Breath - Heavy Machinery

Warum nur vergleiche ich immer, wenn ich eine Southern-Rock-Band höre, jene mit MOLLY HATCHET oder BLACKFOOT? Tja, weil die beiden eben genannten Gruppen in diesem Genre wohl unerreichbar sind.
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH, benannt nach dem gleichnamigen JETHRO-TULL-Kultsong, bewegen sich in eben diesen Sphären der bereits oben erwähnten Combos. Das erstaunliche daran ist, dass LB keinesfalls aus Texas, sondern aus dem hohen Norden, nämlich Schweden stammen. Noch erstaunlicher ist allerdings die Tatsache, dass die ‚kühlen’ Schweden ziemlich nahe an die hochgesteckten Southern-Rock-Ziele meiner Wenigkeit kommen.
Grund hierfür sind zweifelsohne die rockig-bluesigen Songs auf „Heavy Machinery“, die dem geneigten Hörer sofort ins Blut gehen. Man führe sich der Einfachheit halber nur solche Songs wie „Naked To The World“, „High And Mighty“, „Solitary Man“ oder das erstklassige Instrumental „The Adventures Of Zaphod Beeblebrox“ zu Gemüte. Letzteres zeichnet sich mit Sicherheit dadurch aus, dass Ex-Kürbiskopf-Klampfer Roland Grapow die Soli zelebriert, wobei ich hier ausdrücklich betonen möchte, dass Janne Stark ein wirklich ausgezeichneter Gitarrist ist. Highlight, und dadurch auch absoluter Hörgenuss von „Heavy Machinery“, ist aber der rauhe und ausdrucksstarke Gesang von Mattias Osbäck, der einem richtiggehend unter die Haut fährt.
Alles in allem servieren uns LOCOMOTIVE BREATH mit ihrem dritten full-length Output deftigen Southern Rock, gepaart mit einem Schuss traditionellen Heavy Metals, der einfach nur Spaß macht und trotzdem ansprechend ist.
Anspieltipps: Naked To The World; High And Mighty; Evie; The Adventures Of Zaphod Beeblebrox
Alex Kragl

ANIMALIZE
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH – HEAVY MACHINERY

Nein, hier veröffentlicht keine Jethro Tull-Coverband eine Scheibe. Nein, diese schwedische Combo um den Gitarristen und alleinigen Songwriter Janne Stark klingt nichtmal nach Jethro Tull, sondern ist deutlich in den 70ern verwurzelt (quasi die einzige Gemeinsamkeit mit Jethro Tull). Auf „Heavy Machinery“ gibt’s von Pelle Saether (u.a. Fleshcrawl) superfett produzierten Retro-Blues-Southern-Biker-Rock, der phasenweise an eines meiner Lieblingsscheiben des Genres – Richie Kotzen’s „Mother Head Family Reunion“ – erinnert. Doch auch wer auf Bands wie Badlands oder Pride & Glory steht, dürfte an den elf Songs seine helle Freude haben. Die Stücke (oft mit mehrstimmigen Refrains veredelt) werden zumeist im Midtempo runtergezockt, haben einen kräftigen Blues-Touch, wirken allerdings durch die tiefergestimmten Gitarren unheimlich fett (ohne richtig Metal zu sein...). Dazu die dreckige, kratzige Stimme von Sänger Matthias Osbäck und Gastbeiträge von Leuten wie Roland Grapow (Ex-Helloween), Pontus Norgren (Ex-Odessa, Now-Talisman/Humanimal), Tommy Denander (Toto, Radioactive)  und fertig ist eine Scheibe, die man durchaus haben kann und auf jeden Fall mal antesten sollte. Mehr gibt’s nicht zu sagen. Jetzt liegt es an Euch... (OL)

METAL.IT
Locomotive Breath - Heavy Machinery

TRACKLIST: 01. NAKED TO THE WORLD 02. SIGN OF THE TIMES 03. HIGH AND MIGHTY 04. SACRED ALIEN 05. BLIND LEAD THE BLIND 06. REIGN OF TERROR 07. EVIE 08. PREZZURIZER 09. SOLITARY MAN 10. LEAVING THE WORLD BEHIND 11. THE ADVENTURES OF ZAPHOD BEEBLEBROX

Finalmente una formazione di hard/heavy rock che riesce a coniugare con successo grinta e dinamismo con una buona attitudine melodica senza rinunciare per questo ad una bella dose di potenza muscolare e, cosa ancora più importante, senza scadere in romanticherie mollicce. Questi Locomotive Breath vantano origini lontane che si perdono negli anni ’80 e sono una creatura di Janne Stark, chitarrista ex-Overdrive. Gruppo composto quindi da gente con buona esperienza sulle spalle, la quale viene messa a frutto proponendo un sound che attinge al metal della prima parte degli “eightees” aggiungendovi una indovinata ricerca di parti vocali catchy. Personalmente mi hanno ricordato i Badlands e addirittura qualcosa dei Black Label Society con meno pesantezza. Brani di discreto impatto, a tratti anche rocciosi e trascinanti, con un lavoro chitarristico mai banale ed una convincente performance del cantante Mattias Osback, dai toni ruvidi e leggermente bluesy, l’album vive ottimi momenti di hard “anthemico” quali “Naked to the world”, “Reign of terror”, “Prezzurizer”, “Sacred alien”, tutti arricchiti dall’intensa e pungente espressione solistica del leader Stark e da una ritmica sostenuta e precisa. Notevole anche la presenza di musicisti ospiti tra i quali spicca Roland Grapow, di fama Helloween, che offre il suo talento nello strumentale conclusivo dal bizzarro titolo, una vera e propria “piece de resistance” della chitarra nella quale si alternano ben cinque axeman per altrettanti brucianti assoli. Vi sono ovviamente dei momenti di stanca nel cd, anche perché la formazione svedese non lesina certo sul minutaggio dei brani, tutti intorno ai cinque minuti ed oltre, ma l’insieme è decisamente positivo. In “Solitary man” compare perfino un’atmosfera vagamente southern cosa alla quale sono particolarmente sensibile, per cui non griderò al miracolo ma vista certa roba che viene esaltata in giro, pollice alzato per i Locomotive Breath.
Fabrizio "Stonerman" Bertogliatti
RATING 7/10

RAY'S REALM
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH - "Heavy Machinery"

Anybody out there remember Sweden's Overdrive? They put out 1 crazily obscure EP & 2 more known albums in the early '80's, great metal filled with Kevin Heybourne-styled vocals & dripping with shards of violent lead guitar. Half of Overdrive's 2-pronged guitar assault was one Janne Stark who's love of '70's style hard rock led him to form LOCOMOTIVE BREATH in the '90's. Their debut, '97's "Train Of Events" put their foot firmly forward in the heavy rock sweepstakes. Not a Jethro Tull sound (as the name might imply), it is a masterful effort that calls to mind vintage '70's hard rock, mingled with a metallic sense that made me say, yeah Janne is still rocking. Well, good as that was, I just got this 2nd CD by LOCOMOTIVE BREATH & now I'm yelling: "Whoa! Brother Janne is seriously kicking some ass!" Taking the best influences from bands like UFO, Y&T & even newer gods like King's X, they explode on this disc in a way that just rocks you to the ground. Remember the classic hard rock albums of the '70's, where each cut was better than the last & you kept playing them over & over, in your car, at the beach, or in your bedroom with your broom-handle air guitar flying?! This has got that vibe. Each song, from "Naked To The World" all the way through the album's end is a study in powerful riffs, catchy melodies & scalding leadwork from top to bottom, proving Janne Stark to be one of the coolest players around today. The icing on the cake that makes this "Heavy Machinery" crank like a mutha is new singer Mattias Osback. He has that butt-kicking yet soulful voice that only a few can match & his work on something like "Solitary Man" is killer. As a final note, the lyrics are quite good, as a number like "Reign Of Terror" takes the time to look at something socially relevant, but not often covered in hard rock, child abuse. A marquee album for 2002, "Heavy Machinery" will rock your world beyond belief! Buy now!

PEACE DOGMAN
LOCOMOTIVE BREATH -"Heavy Machinery"
(Record Heaven)

Good Lawd! Readers of this page - we've got a monster here! LOCOMOTIVE BREATH are a Swedish 4-piece... Mattias Osback / vox, Janne Stark / gtr, Ulf Kronsell / Bass, and Jimmy Lexe / drums. Y'know how VH's "Fair Warning" album starts off ROARING with "Mean Streets"...and then kicks ass from front to back? That's what we have here, folks!
Janne Stark is a total guitar god! This band has a fresh, original sound (as many artists from the Record Heaven label), but are obviously influenced by bands like KINGS X and UFO. This is the definition of high-quality, high-octane rock! Janne Stark can blast out speeding, blistering leads like Schenker or mangle-it-strangle-it bluesy vibrato like Ty Tabor, but his axework never overshadows the rest of the band. The songwriting and lyrics are thought-provoking and original, the vocal harmonies here are top-notch, and Jimmy Lexe's work on the tom-toms is killer! Don't be fooled by the album cover - picturing an old black and white photo of a train, almost like a RICHARD THOMPSON album or something. In the opinion of this music fan, a more appropriate photo for the music contained here would be something like a gasoline tanker truck crashing into a firework factory!!! Special thanks to my friend Ray for turning me on to this sure-fire top ten album for 2002. THIS SETTLES IT ... I AM MOVING TO SWEDEN! www.rhcd.net

THE METAL INFORMATIVE
Locomotive Breath - Heavy Machinery

Sångaren Mattias Osbäck i detta band fångade min uppmärksamhet med en gång när jag läste att han har Jorn Lande, Jeff Scott Soto och David Coverdale som sina influenser. Duktig gosse tänkte jag först och satt med rys-attacker när jag satte på skivan och hör Mattias röst strömma ur högtalarna. Ingen dålig röst han besitter. Men musiken då? Kunde inte musiken låta lite mer maffigare när han har en sån pipa. Känns som om han överröstar musiken ibland. Mattias har en mästerlig röst men jag får absolut inget grepp om skivan. Musiken är något i samma veva som Rage och Rage tillhör mina favoriter men Rage senaste var också en skiva som var svår att få grepp om men efter att ha lyssnat på Locomtive Breath ett antal gånger så står det fortfarande still i huvudet och känner hur irriterad jag börjar bli. Varenda låt på skivan börjar bra med otroligt bra gitarrspel men sen kommer Mattias in och han överröstar musiken helt. Ska det vara så? Det ska ju vara ett samspel mellan sångaren och sången. I ”High and Mighty” börjar det släppa lite grann då musiken börjar låta just som den hårdrocken jag tycker om i ca 15 sekunder. Detta är var ingen skiva för mig men är man lagd åt den mjukare hårdrocken så är denna skiva ett klart köp. –
Nina

HEART OF THE ROCK
THE AFFAIR - SOLID GROUND (1996)

James Goare - vocals, guitars, keyboards; Brett Hardin - drums, vocals, Steve Edwards - bass, vocals
This trio came from Toledo Ohio, and were an accomplished outfit, fitting somewhere between AOR (a la Toto) and prog. For an independent release this is damned good. Full of variety, with interesting songs and arrangements. They had up to this point, been plying their trade throughout the mid-west area, and had racked up some interest locally, enough at least for messrs Goare, Hardin and Edwards to commit songs to vinyl (or digital as the case may be). Vocally, Goare sings with some similarity to Billy Trudel (The City, Public Domain, Elton John), while guitarwise, you could say he's probably heard the entire back catalogue of Toto, which is no mean feat.
They start out with 'Weight Of The World', which has a neat shuffle beat, somewhere between Toto and Lionels Dad. Next up is the mid-tempo 'Take No Prisoners' with a mesmeric arrangement, followed by the sensational 'Just To Be With You', which invokes all the moodiness that you'd expect someone like Tommy Denander to come up with. Love those guitar melodies, and the smooth solo! 'Miranda' sees Goare's guitar getting grunty. 'What You Mean To Me' has a blues edge to it, with distinct melodic overtones. I can see this one being jammed out in a bar somewhere. They return with some more AOR in the shape of the absorbing 'You Belong To Me'. while slowing things down a bit with 'No Goodbyes' though the solo is a killer (Steve Lukather styled). 'Man Of Trust' could be a CCM flavored track, while they end with the piano based ballad 'The Moment Still Remains'.
For an indie effort, you can allow some leeway on the production which is a little 'raw', but you get the gist of where they're coming from with the class of some of the songs. Unfortunately the band did not follow up this effort, and don't appear to be operating anymore, though locally in the Toledo area, James Goare is still performing under the handle 'Jimi Gunn'. Worth checking out for sure!
George Thatcher

INTERNET SITE
Yontz Sucre - Electric Jam
Buzzjam Music

Producers: Yontz Sucre

Verdict: A more enjoyable instrumental experience than I had anticipated.
Instrumental guitar albums! Bloody hard to review! You won't find too many instrumentals albums reviewed at Mood Swings. I always think that if you play guitar yourself then there is lots to listen to and perhaps emulate, but to people like me with all the musical talent of a brick, then they're a bit of a daunting prospect. However, I'm not totally against them & albums by Marty Friedman, Al Di Meola, Tommy Denander & Liquid Tension Experiment have all found their way into my collection.
RATING 6/7

ADULT CONTEMPORARY MUSIC IN JAPAN
FEE WAYBILL / DON'T BE SCARED BY THESE HANDS

Fee Waybill (Tubes lead singer) is back at last! Surprisingly, you can listen to Tommy Denander's guitar play on the track "Dying of Delight"
Label: Intercord Records (Germany) (IRS 993.168) Westcoast Records (Sweden) (WESTCD 11)
Release Date: September 26 (Germany), October 14, 1996 (Sweden)

Producers:Richard Marx, Bruce Gaitsch and himself

Musicians:
Guitars: Steve Lukather, Bruce Gaitsch. Tommy Denander
Bass: Randy Jackson
Drums: Jonathan Moffet, Ecrub Stiag, Mario Puzo, Rich Mann, George Bailey
Vocals: Richard Marx, Cynthia Rhodes, Janey Clewer, Samantha Gaitsch

Tracks:
1. I Know You
2. Tall Dark and Harmless
3. Shut Up and Love Me
4. Swing Of Things
5. Fools Cry
6. Surprise Yourself
7. I've Seen This Movie Before
8. Dying Of Delight
9. What's Wrong With That
10. Somewhere Deep Inside
RATING 4/5

AOR BASEMENT
FEE WAYBILL- "Don’t Be Scared by These Hands"

I will always readily admit that former Tubes singer Fee Waybill’s first solo album "Read my Lips" (from 1984) is one of my all time favourite albums - it is one of the finest albums Steve Lukather has ever been involved with and no real AOR fan should miss out on songs like "Saved my Life" and "Nobody’s Perfect". And, it was just superb to hear a David Foster production on an out and out rock record.
Lukather is back on this well overdue follow up as well co-writing and playing on two tracks (the surprisingly acoustic "I Know You" and the "Surprise Yourself" where the Toto correlation is quite obvious). The other eight tracks are all close collaborations with Richard Marx and the always dependable Bruce Gaitsch. The songs seem much closer to The Tubes than his first solo effort, but that’s still no bad thing - The Tubes produced some excellent AOR albums, with a real quirky edge, "Outside Inside" and "The Completion Backwards Principle" being particularly fine examples.
Standouts include "Shut up and Love Me" which has such a melange of guitar sounds that it could only feature Bruce Gaitsch, the panoramic and powerful "Fools Cry", and the detailed "Dying of Delight" with Swedish hot-shot Tommy Denander on guitar. "What’s Wrong with That" is the closest to his "Read My Lips" material and features some superb interplay between Gaitsch and Randy Jackson on bass.
If you, like me, like The Tubes or Fee, or both, you’ll like this a lot. One thing that it is really noticeable from this release is just what a clear influence Fee has on Richard Marx’s material, with "The Swing of Things" in particular being very close to one of Marx’s tracks.
Ian

GERMAN MAGAZINE
Fee Waybill: Don't Be Scared By These Hands (Edge Of Fluke, 1996)

Der ehemalige Frontman der Tubes veröffentlicht hier sein neues Soloalbum, nachdem er in letzter Zeit viel mit anderen Musikern wie Steve Lukather oder Richard Marx unterwegs war. Die beiden genannten griffen ihm hierbei ebenso wie Bruce Gaitsch und andere unter die Arme. Entstanden sind zehn Tracks zwischen Pop und Rock, die solide gemacht sind, aber oft nicht viel Neues bieten. Am besten gefällt mir die atmosphärische und schöne Ballade "Fools Cry", die auch moderner klingt.
RATING 6/10

FRENCH WEBSITE
FEE WAYBILL
Don't be scared by these hands

1. I Know you Waybill/Lukather : 3,41
2. Tall dark & harmless Waybill/Marx/Gaitsch : 4,02
3. Shut up and love me Waybill/Marx/Gaitsch : 5,06
4. Swing of things Waybill/Marx : 3,48
5. Folls cry Waybill/Marx/Gaitsch : 5,37
6. Surprise yourself Waybill/Lukather : 4,53
7. I've seen this movie before Waybill/Marx/Gaitsch : 5,09
8. Dying of delight Waybill/Marx/Gaitsch : 5,14
9. What's wrong with that Waybill/Marx : 4,31
10. Somewhere deep inside Waybill/Marx : 3,51
   
Recordered at A1M, One on One, Grinder Studio, The Record Plant, King Midas, Frantic, Los Angeles, Californie, USA, 1997
The Noble House, Stockholm, 1997
Label : Thoughtscape Sound Note : 7/10
Genre : Rock/Pop

Un album trés branché guitares, mais bizarre car trés synthétique, avec pas mal de boite à rythmes. Beaucoup de guitares rythmiques et la voix particulière de Fee. Trés rock.
Ca commence par une rythmique syncopées entre guitare et drums avec : "I Know you"
"Fools cry" : Trés bonne rythmique du morceau.
"Surprise yourself" : intro trés Toto, le reste aussi d'ailleurs, avec beaucoup de choeurs ( Richard Marx ), trés mélodique : Excellent.
"I've seen this movie before" : au refrain trés Westcoast.
"Somewhere deep inside" : beau slow acoustique agrémenté de nappes.
Best : Surprise yourself, Tall dark & harmless ( Pour les choeurs en insert à chque fin de phrases, et la guitare avec moult distorsion )

Musiciens
Guitars : Steve Lukather (1), Tommy Denander (8), Bruce Gaitsch.
Vocals : Fee Waybill.
Bass : Randy Jackson (9), Steve Lukather (1).
Keyboards : Richard Marx (10), Steve Lukather (6).
Drums : Georges Bailey (7), Mario Puzo (5), Ecurb Stiag (1), Rich Mann (6), Jonathan Moffet (9).
Background vocals : Richard Marx.
Programming : Bruce Gaitsch, Jaimie Jazz (9).
RATING 3/5

TOTO NOTES
FEE WAYBILL- "Don’t Be Scared by These Hands"

I will always readily admit that former Tubes singer Fee Waybill’s first solo album "Read my Lips" (from 1984) is one of my all time favourite albums - it is one of the finest albums Steve Lukather has ever been involved with and no real AOR fan should miss out on songs like "Saved my Life" and "Nobody’s Perfect". And, it was just superb to hear a David Foster production on an out and out rock record.
Lukather is back on this well overdue follow up as well co-writing and playing on two tracks (the surprisingly acoustic "I Know You" and the "Surprise Yourself" where the Toto correlation is quite obvious). The other eight tracks are all close collaborations with Richard Marx and the always dependable Bruce Gaitsch. The songs seem much closer to The Tubes than his first solo effort, but that’s still no bad thing - The Tubes produced some excellent AOR albums, with a real quirky edge, "Outside Inside" and "The Completion Backwards Principle" being particularly fine examples.
Standouts include "Shut up and Love Me" which has such a melange of guitar sounds that it could only feature Bruce Gaitsch, the panoramic and powerful "Fools Cry", and the detailed "Dying of Delight" with Swedish hot-shot Tommy Denander on guitar. "What’s Wrong with That" is the closest to his "Read My Lips" material and features some superb interplay between Gaitsch and Randy Jackson on bass.
If you, like me, like The Tubes or Fee, or both, you’ll like this a lot. One thing that it is really noticeable from this release is just what a clear influence Fee has on Richard Marx’s material, with "The Swing of Things" in particular being very close to one of Marx’s tracks.
Geoff o'Keefe

AOR EUROPE
Bruce GAITSCH: "Nova"

First of all a warning to all you die-hard rock fans out there!!! This CD doesn't have that much to do with neither 'Heavy Metal' or 'Melodic Hardrock', in the first place. Nah, the latest release by the multi-talanted musician (guitarist/songwriter) Bruce Gaitsch, is very soft westcoast & instrumental guitar music (as always).
Gaitsch was born and raised in Chicago Illinois, he joined Jim "Survivor" Peterik's 'Ides Of March' band in 1975 and recorded more than 3000 sessions before moving to L.A. in 1984. More than 100 rock/pop artists out there, have reorded one of all his songs since and Peter Cetera, Chicago, Kansas, Phillip Bailey, Agnetha Fältskog (ABBA), Richard Marx, Lara Fabian are just some of them.
His most famous work up to date is probably the song "La Isla Bonita", that he wrote for Madonna back in 1987. A #1 hit in over twentyfour (24) countries worldwide!!! Both Bill Champlin and Richard Marx do guest performances here and even Kelly Keagy (Nightranger) plays some drums. However, most of the tracks are soft, instrumental guitar music, very relaxing on a rainy afternoon. You can also find the Richard Marx/Fee Waybill (Tubes)/Gaitsh co-written song "Haunt Me Tonight" here. I believe it was also included on a Marx album (can't remember which one right now) before or was it Gaitsch [at least it was on the Radioactive album last year -Reviews Ed.]. "Nova" is a CD you pick out, if you like some smooth and excellent, mostly acoustic, guitar album. The instrumental version of "Don't Call My Name", originally a song from his "King Of Hearts" project together with Tommy Funderburk is one of the highlights here and the bonus track I may add. I enjoy this a lot actually, even if I'd rather prefer a couple of more tracks with vocals next time. Not a "party" CD though :-)
Urban "Wally" Wallstrom
RATING 7/10

HEART OF THE ROCK
BRUCE GAITSCH - NOVA (2002, LION MUSIC)

Bruce Gaitsch - guitars, keyboards, bass, drums; vocals - Janey Clewer, Bill Champlin, Tamara Champlin, Richard Marx; bass - John Patitucci, George Hawkins Jnr; keyboards - Jim Beard, C.J Vanston; sax - Marc Russo; fiddle - Randy Howard; drums - Billy Ward, Kelly Keagy

Bruce Gaitsch is one of those guitarists who just seems to be everywhere. He's popped up all over the place - too numerous to mention. What is apparent though, is he can run the gamut of musical styles, whether hard out rock, West Coast, or jazz and acoustic styles, but I suspect he's more at home on the cruisier side of Melodic Rock Boulevard. This collection of tracks spans a timeframe from 1989 through to 2001 - so it's expansive, perhaps too much so.
One of the highlights is the track 'Haunt Me Tonight', the track best remembered on the Radioactive album 'Ceremony Of Innocence'. This version however features the vocals of AOR god Richard Marx, and a good version it is too, though personally I love the Radioactive version better. Bill Champlin's raunchy workout on the Toto flavored back-beat of 'Aphasia' is energetic, while the jazz rock flavored 'The African Prince' is very hip, urban, and dare-I-say-it, street-wise. The guitar solos add some spice to the mix. Bruce's wife Janey Clewer sings on a few tracks, the best being the delicate 'That's When I Fell', and the near ethereal 'Give Love A Try', where Bruce stylises in the best George Benson/Larry Carlton tradition. The other tracks are an assortment of instrumental pieces which showcase the various styles Bruce dabbles in.
A talented guitarist without question, but the compilation like selection of tracks onboard here gives it an inconsistent feel and flow. Notwithstanding that slight bit of pickiness, some lovely tracks onboard, but don't expect over the top AOR. One for all the West Coast/fusion fans out there.
George Thatcher
RATING 8/10

STRUTTER
Mike Terrana - Shadows Of The Past
(Lion Music)

Drummer MIKE TERRANA has appeared on many recordings through the past, and also played in lots of bands, such as BEAU NASTY, RAGE, TONY MACAPLINE's band, AXEL RUDI PELL's band among others. Now, he has finally released his first solo-CD. This album, entitled 'Shadows of the past', is an instrumental affair on which Mike explorers his roots. The album is quite poppy, with a lot of groovy parts (and also a sax every now and then), and in general comes close to what TOTO and TOMMY DENANDER tried to reach on their albums. One of the best songs is "Samantha", but I had rather hoped for something heavier, considering the fact that Mike is a real 'Rock/ Metal' drummer. Nevertheless, still an interesting release for fans of calmer instrumental pop/ rock. Contact: www.terrana.com.
Gabor
RATING 7.5/10

STRUTTER
BENNY JANSSON 'SAVE THE WORLD'
(LION MUSIC/BERTUS)

'Save the world' is the third CD of the Swedish guitarist Benny Jansson. He also played in the band TWO ROCKS with whom he released an album in 1992 (though I can't remember how it sounded as I haven't played it in ages). Anyway, his new solo-CD is a semi-instrumental album. There are 4 vocal and 8 instrumental tracks included. Goran Edman (MALMSTEEN, STREET TALK) does the lead vocals on the 4 vocal tracks, while other musicians involved are among others Jens Johansson on keys and Daniel Flores on drums. The music is not that heavy, and is a nice relaxing mixture of late night Jazz and Progressive Rock/Metal with a clear swing to Fusion-Rock at times (especially on the instrumental songs it sounds like TOTO when they go experimental). Pretty nice are the TOTO orientated semi-ballads "Winter night" and "Deep wood" with of course excellent lead vocals of Goran, who is still one of the best Swedish singers ever! Fans of TOTO and TOMMY DENANDER can easily buy this new album of Benny Jansson, but don't expect anything sensational!
Gabor Kleinbloesem
RATING 7,5/10

INTERNET SITE
Tor Talle / Songs from the Heart

Tracklisting:Don't turn away; After love; Midnight Sun; Dreamzone; I wanna know; Across the sea; Tonight; Hard times; Just for you; Sister; West Coast; Songs from the Heart; Millenium 2000; In my dreams; Miles away; Finelline; Dance with Angels.
I didn't know what to expect after receiving the second release from this talented Norwegian guitarplayer Tor Talle!
6 of 17 tracks on this is with vocals - the rest is instrumental. On 2 tracks the vocals is handled by Jørn Lande from The Snakes and is done very well but the rest is totally a Tor Talle one-man-show.
On the innersleeve he thanks Dan Huff, Michael Landau, Michael Thompson and Gary Moore for their inspiration - but I'll say that his main influence is in the Westcoast genre with the likes of Bruce Gaitsch or/and his Scandinavian "brother" Tommy Denander. The over-all impression is that Tor Talle is very focused and aware of the quality of melodies instead of blasting tons of guitars in our speakers like Steve Vai and others - and thanks to that fact I'm looking forward to hear more from this Westcoast/AOR influenced guitarist in the future.
RATING 3/5

STRUTTER
FATAL ATTRACTION 'UNKNOWN WORLD'

Out of Sweden comes FATAL ATTRACTION, a band we reviewed many years ago, in 1995 to be exact. Back then they released their debut CD 'End of regulation time'. Now they sent me a new CD-single containing 4 fantastic new songs. Opener "Unknown world" is a classy 80s AOR tune like LE ROUX, URBAN TALE, T'BELL, TOTO circa 'Isolation'. Immediately you notice the high level this band is moving into with their pure AOR sound that is filled with hooks, keys, and catchy choruses, and with a superb lead singer (Anders Faltsjo) in their line-up, they are about to become the best Swedish AOR band at the moment. Also net track "Valleys of heaven" is impressive, as this is a beautiful AOR ballad a la SIGNAL, ALIAS… Following track "Perfect dream" is a good midtempo AOR song a la SAYIT, RADIOACTIVE, TOTO…
The final track of the CD-single of FATAL ATTRACTION is the excellent progressive AOR/Pomp piece "Silver son" that starts calm, but then suddenly changes into an uptempo harmonyvocal orientated rocker that reminds me a lot of that other Swedish band (KHARMA). Well, concluded I can add that this band is highly recommended to fans of T'BELL, URBAN TALE, BLIND LLEY, RADIOACTIVE, SAYIT, TOKEN and more of that Scandi AOR we have heard the past few years. The band is currently working on a new CD and they have finished 12 songs so far and are looking for a label. I think with this CD-single they have already shown the world that FATAL ATTRACTION deserves a change here in Europe with their pure AOR music, so it should not be so hard to get a good label backing them up. For now, more info at: http://www.hellman-wallman.se and e-mail them at: tanna@ebox.tninet.se
Gabor Kleinbloesem
RATING 9/10

AOREUROPE
STREET TALK: "Restoration"
MTM Music 2002

You like your melodic music the traditional way with fluffy keyboards, superb vocals and not too loud guitars huh? Well, then look no further as the new CD with Street Talk will surely please all your filthy little needs for pure AOR [:-)].
"Restoration" is the third release by the Swedish act with keyboard player /songwriter Fredrik Bergh at the frontline. We are once again blessed by the presence of out of ordinary vocalist Göran Edman (Kharma, Yngwie Malmsteen, Madison, Glory, John Norum etc.) as he sings 8 out of the 10 tracks here. Add that Hugo "I'm A Deadringer For Steve Perry" Valentine (ex. Valentine - the band, solo artist) sings the other two tracks and you're in for a treat.
This CD will probably be hailed by the faithful out there as the real deal with a classic sound. The only difference between then and now is the production really as the dudes back then (yes, we're talkin' bout the 80's here, I'm only trying not to write that four letter word again), sure had a couple of more zero's to add to their budget. Bergh can do no wrong as a songwriter really, but the downside is you almost already know what to expect from Street Talk by now. It's pretty much the same mid-tempo AOR/Westcoast without any sudden suprises or major upsets. Does this mean that "Restoration" is a lousy CD??? Heck No!!! However, it would be way cool to hear one or two real uptempo tracks with some kick ass guitar shredding or why not keyboard fanfare next time. Just to be able to change the pace of the overall good but 'mid-tempo' material from time to time. Still, I must admit that some of the songs here are actually a 'bit' more uptempo then in the past. You can't go wrong with songs like "Give Me A Reason", "Hare And Hounds", "Language Of Love", "Tables Turning", "Dancer In The Rain", "My Heart Beats For You", "Forever By Your Side" etc. Maybe I just need something to complain about as this is after all, great AOR in the Swedish tradition of Alien (with Jim Jidhed) or why not Journey's Raised On Radio. Good, smooth stuff though!!!
Urban "Wally" Wallstrom
RATING 8/10

AOR SWEDEN
Street Talk - Restoration

Fredrik Bergh: keyboards, piano
Göran Edman: vocals
Hugo: vocals
Sven Larsson: guitars
Björn Lodmark: bass
Christian Johansson: drums, percussion

Jag blir nästan rädd när jag hör denna skivan. Colloboration var bra, Transition ännu bättre, men den här skivan är faktiskt den bästa som svenska Street Talk släppt hittills. Fredrik Bergh är mannen bakom alla låtarna, han skriver tillsammans med Göran Edman på 6 låtar, med Hugo på 1 och med Urban Tale´s Kimmo Blom och Erkka Korhonen på 2 stycken. Dessutom så har han skrivit 1 tillsammans med Jim Jidhed, Tommy Denander och Ricky Delin. Ni förstår själva att detta är en fantastiskt bra skiva. Det är en blandning mellan Kharma, Hugo´s soloskivor och de gamla Street Talk-skivorna, med inslag av Urban Tale lite här och var. Göran Edman sjunger lika bra som vanligt men han hamnar ändå lite i skuggan av en av mina absoluta favoritsångare just nu. Hugo är det närmaste Steve Perry man kan komma och Perry är för mig normen för hur en bra röst skall vara. Jag är dessutom väldigt imponerad av Christian Johansson´s trummspel, han tillhör definitivt en av Sverige´s absolut bästa. Fredrik Bergh är som vanligt också bra.
Det finns ingen låt som är mycket sämre än någon annan på skivan men de låtar jag fallit för är Tables Turning (lyssna på refrängen!), Hare And Hounds, Dancer In The Rain, Forever By Your Side (mycket Urban Tale-inspirerad) och de båda låtarna som Hugo sjunger, My Heart Beats For You och Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight, där den sistnämnda är skivans bästa låt. Jag vågar knappt tänka på hur nästa skiva skall låta, går det att göra bättre än detta?
RATING 97/100

AOR WEBSITE
STREET TALK
"Restoration"

Third album for this Swedish band formed in 1994 by Fredrik Bergh (keyb, vc) originally featuring two musicians later in Tad Morose, and the ten songs included (as I argue reading the raw paper attached to advanced-cd) have been written by Bergh himself with the help of Tommy Denander, Jim Jidhead (Alien) plus not identified members of Urban Tale.
The line-up features Goran Edman (Malmsteen, Kharma, Madison, John Norum, Glory, Brazen Abbot) and Hugo (Valentine, Open Skyz, Hugo) on vocals, Sven Larsson (Madrigal) on guitar, Bjorn Lodmark on basso, Christian Johansson on drums and Bergh on keyb. My impression is a collection of songs with a soul of AOR and a harder approach plus a higher uptempo compared to ST previous albums, bringing to my mind Boulevard of their second album as stated by tracks like "Hare And Hounds", "Language Of Love" (with also traces of Bad Habit), "Dancer In The Rain" (more westcoast oriented).
These days it’s really hot in my town so my tired mind cannot realise where my ears heard the refrain of dynamic AOR "A Place In The Sun", and Larsson emulates Neal Schon touch and just Journey style is evident in opener "Give Me A Reason" (with the worst sound of this cd) and in semi ballad "My Heart Beats For You" passionately sung by Hugo.
Nothing new from anyway pleasant AOR of "In The Arms Of Love" smelling of 707, Boulevard and Journey, from calm going of catchy track "Table Turning" and from closing "Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight" featuring again Hugo on vocals.
Bergh confirms his attitude to write ‘easy to listen’ melodic songs, well arranged and performed, but I still preferr his previous albums althought the gap is short and you won’t be disappointed by "Restoration".
RATING 80/100

BABYLON
STREET TALK
"Restoration"

Dopo aver dato alle stampe uno strepitoso disco di pomp/hard rock con i suoi Kharma, Goran Edman torna in pista con il terzo lavoro degli Street Talk, band dedita a sonorità AOR di forte derivazione Journey, senza però trascurare sia la solita perizia nella costruzione delle armonie vocali, sia l'abbinamento con tematiche westcoastiane, entrambe qualità tipiche di molte melodic rock band scandinave. Ad aumentarne le caratteristiche Journeyesque di questo "Restoration" ci pensa anche Hugo, uno dei pochi, credibili, epigoni (o se volete cloni) di Steve Perry (anche la somiglianza fisica con lo stesso Perry è imbarazzante!), qui nelle veste di secondo special-lead vocalist in "My Heart Beats For You" e "Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight", due tra gli episodi più soft di questo "Restoration". Per il resto il platter in questione alterna escursioni in territori più hard, come nelle iniziali "Give Me A Reason", "Hare And Hounds" e "A Place In The Sun" con le vocals di Edman a metà strada tra Glenn Hughes e il già citato Steve Perry, con puntate nell'AOR più tradizionale, come sottolineato da mid-time iper-melodici del calibro di "Table Turning, "Dancer In The Rain" e "A Place In The Sun". Su tutte le canzoni spicca senza dubbio "Language Of Love", assoluto highlights di "Restoration", nobilitato da un enfatico refrain, guidato con molta maestria dalle suadenti vocals di Edman. Non un platter all'altezza della magnificenza di "Wonderland" dei Kharma, ma pur sempre valido in campo AOR, anche se qualche sferzata hard in più non avrebbe di certo guastato il pur buon risultato di "Restoration".
Website: www.streettalk.rocks.it
Roberto Giordano
RATING 7/10

CONCRETEWEB
STREET TALK: "Restoration"

Members: Göran Edman (lead & backing vocals; ex-Malmsteen, ex-Glory, ex-John Norum, ex-Kharma, ex-Brazen Abbot, etc), Hugo (lead vocals on "My Heart..." & "Is My Heart..."; ex-Hugo, ex-Valentine, ex-Open Skyz), Sven Larsson (guitar), Freddrik Bergh (keyboards, piano), Bjorn Lodmark (bass), Christian Johansson (drums); plus additional guitar by Tommy Denander (on "My Heart..." & ""Is My Heart..."); additional backing vocals on "My Heart..." by Frank Adahl, on "Is My Heart..." by Kimmo Blom, Erkka Korhonen & Tuomo Kovalainen.

Track-list: Give Me A Reason; Hare And Hounds; Language Of Love; Tables Turning; Dancer In The Rain; A Place In The Sun; My Heart Beats For You; Forever By Your Side; In The Arms Of Love; Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight.

For their third album this Swedish band around keyboardist Fredrik Bergh have been able to put no less than two new lead vocalists on the spot, one of which most people into A.O.R. have come across at some time. Indeed, Edman is no stranger. The music has a definite lead part around the keyboards (which doesn't mean they've been put on the forefront), with the guitar playing rhythm. These are no beginning musicians, that are clear, and Edman even brings memories alive of Journey's Steve Perry. So, looking at the points at the bottom, where does the shoe hurt? Simply, the vocals could've done quite better with a lot less backing vocals, which really aren't up to standards (surprisingly, as most of the backing vocals are done by Edman himself!). Then there are the two songs on which Hugo does his singing, and he's of quite a different calibre, as are the songs on which he's featured (real soft stuff, man!). I'm also un-impressed with the writing co-operation with Urban Tale on "Why Is My Heart...", or the fact that Denander played along on the 2 songs with Hugo singing! Overall a good album, but for the few things I mentioned.
Tony
RATING 79/100

DESTINY
Street Talk - Restoration

'Transition', the last album from Swedish AOR act Street Talk was arguably the best release of its type in millennium year, with only the monumental Journey comeback 'Arrival' in a position of strength to dispute such a bold claim. As such, follow up 'Restoration' has some awfully big shoes to fill. Essentially the brainchild of supremely talented keyboard player Fredrik Bergh, Street Talk specialise in slick, super smooth and seductive AOR which owes a debt of gratitude to the likes of Journey, Foreigner, and Alien (to name but three). Leaning a little more towards an American sound this time around, 'Restoration' is once again packed to the gills with high quality, emotionally charged songs such as 'Give Me A Reason', 'Hare And Hounds', and 'Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight'. Something which will be of special interest to AOR freaks is the inclusion of two tracks sung by Hugo, the remaining eight once again delivered to perfection by the inimitable Goran Edman. Add in a special guest appearance from Tommy Denander, and Bergh has once again come up with a genre defining AOR masterpiece.
D.Cockett

EXTENDED MIX
Street Talk
Restoration  

STREET TALK ’s tredje album är ute. Sveriges eget lilla Journey. Tre plattor på tre olika skivbolag. Nya albumet ”Restoration” ligger på MTM Records och det är väl inte mer än väntat när sångaren heter Göran Edman som bl. a. spelat in en platta med svenska bandet Kharma tidigare på etiketten. Nu är ju inte STREET TALK Göran Edman’s band utan hjärnan bakom musiken är i första hand keyboardisten Fredrik Bergh. Göran sjunger och det gör han som vanligt mycket bra.
Göran är en flitig aktör i olika svenska band och har varit sångare med Yngwie Malmsteen, Medusa, John Norum och tidigare nämnda Kharma. Han har även varit med på STREET TALK’s tidigare två album, ”Collaboration” och ”Transition”. På första plattan delade han sången med två andra sångare, på ”Transition” fick han eget förtroende. På nya albumet sjunger Göran på åtta av de tio spåren. Två spår, ”My heart beats for you” och ”Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight” sjungs av ingen mindre än Steve Perry-kopian och f.d. Open Skyz-sångaren Hugo. Kan detta vara ett tecken, månne?
Göran Edman är en suverän sångare och han gör ett oerhört bra jobb och Hugo tar sig an två av de lugnare spåren och resultatet är lika suveränt. Sången är det minsann inget fel på. Fredrik Bergh har tidigare bevisat att han är en mycket kompetent låtskrivare och han visar på ”Restoration” att han har utvecklats vidare i samma fåra som han påbörjat. Största inspirationskällan måste vara Journey vilket kanske är anledningen till varför Hugo dyker upp på två spår. Jag har hört ett rykte om att Steve Perry var tillfrågad att medverka först, men att han inte ens svarat (vad gör den mannen idag?), om det stämmer eller inte låter jag vara osagt. Rykte är ju trots allt bara ett rykte.
Låtar som står ut lite extra är ”Hare and hounds”, ”A place in the sun”, ”In the arms of love” som är skriven tillsammans med Kimmo Blom och Tuomo Kovalainen från finska gruppen Urban Tale och ”Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight” med Hugo med sång ruskigt lik Steve Perry . Fredrik Bergh och hans STREET TALK är ett av Sveriges bästa band i sitt slag och även ute i övriga världen så tycker jag att de kan hävda sig väl.
Det som jag inte riktigt kan med när det gäller gruppen STREET TALK är den fega produktionen. Allt låter kanonbra, speciellt sången som är så kristallklar att man hör vartenda ord som sjungs utan att använda texthäftet och det är ovanligt. Gitarrljudet (och spelet) är också det bra. Trummorna däremot är minst sagt för jävliga (OBS. Ljudet och inte spelet)! När ni ändå är inne i en studio med god kapacitet så borde det kunna gå att få ett bättre trumljud. Nu låter det nästan som en trummaskin som ligger i bakgrunden på en demotape. Synd! Dock får STREET TALK klart godkänt ändå och ”Restoration” är bandets hittills bästa platta!
Roger
RATING 7/10

GRANAHEAVY
STREET TALK "RESTORATION"

Llegó el momento del sosiego y la calma, llegó el momento del mejor y más completo AOR europeo. Estoy hablando del nuevo trabajo de la banda sueca Street Talk, que regresa, en este tramo final del 2002, con otro buen disco cargado del mejor AOR y Hard melódico.
Street Talk practican un relajante AOR escandinavo, cargado de dulces y aterciopeladas melodías, que harán, sin duda, las delicias de todos los fanáticos de un sonido más comercial dentro del rock.
En este nuevo lanzamiento, los suecos cuentan con dos vocalistas al frente. En primer lugar y como encargado del grueso del disco, se encuentra el mítico Goran Edman (Ex - Malmsteen, Kharma, Glory, John Norum,...), que al igual que en discos anteriores, realiza una labor impecable, con todos los recursos que caracterizan su acaramelada y elegante voz. Edman vuelve a encandilar a su público con su complaciente falsete, con la ternura de sus giros y, por supuesto, con el refinamiento de su interpretación. Unido al sueco, en las voces, nos encontramos a otro insigne personaje dentro del rock melódico, nada más y nada menos que el señor Hugo (Valentine, ex - Open skyz,...), que se encarga de la interpretación de dos temas ("My Heart beats for you" y "Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight"), en los que destaca su afable y melódica trabajada voz. En fin, dos voces de primerísimo nivel que cooperan en el atractivo del plástico final.
En el ámbito puramente instrumental destaca el trabajo de Fredrik Bergh a los teclados, que se encarga de una manera muy notable tanto de las partes solistas como de las rítmicas, además de la composición del grueso de los temas. Quizás, el disco tenga una ambientación instrumental demasiado blanda, lo que incide en una percepción bastante insípida de las partes rítmicas.
Al hablar de los temas, el nivel global es bastante homogéneo, con temas muy similares, en los que destaca, por encima de todo, el altísimo nivel vocal de los mismos. A la hora de destacar alguno, me quedaría con "Give me a reason" y "Forever by your side", cortes en una onda muy Yngwie en la melodía, en los que Goran Edman rememora los mejores momentos de su intensa carrera.
Un disco hecho para fanáticos del sonido melódico, que, por supuesto, será del agrado de todos aquellos que gozamos con trabajos de vocalistas del máximo nivel. El AOR permanece presente en la actualidad rockera y que así sea por mucho tiempo.
Por Jorge Alberto Domínguez Fariña

HM PORTAL
Street Talk - Restoration

'Restoration' farà correre un lungo brivido di intenso piacere lungo la schiena degli estimatori dell'A.O.R puro. La terza fatica discografica degli Street Talk, gruppo di punta di una scena melodica già di assoluto rilievo quale è quella svedese, ha tutti i numeri per far breccia nel cuore degli appassionati e rimanervi a lungo: sul piatto, una manciata di canzoni dall'inarrivabile gusto melodico dove ad episodi di ampio respiro tipici del genere se ne alternano altri più elettrici ed accattivanti, in un continuo gioco di tastiere ariose e chitarre graffianti nel quale le superbe linee vocali cesellate da Goran Edman si incastrano alla perfezione. La rockeggiante opener 'Give Me A Reason' vede subito sugli scudi il chitarrista Sven Larsson (altro protagonista di rilievo dell'intero lavoro, autore di pregevoli assoli) prima di esplodere in un chorus stellare che farà venir meno i fans dei Journey, mentre la successiva e più keys-oriented 'Hare and Hounds' sembra uscita di forza dal songbook dei migliori Toto. E' evidente come siano le influenze di questi due gruppi a dettare le coordinate sonore lungo le quali si sviluppa l'intero lavoro, ma sarebbe sbagliato ed oltremodo riduttivo liquidare gli Street Talk come pallidi epigoni: al contrario, la lezione dei nomi sopra citati è stata assimilata, re-interpretata e restituita con spunti originali, allontanando con forza lo spettro della banale e pedissequa imitazione. Ecco perché piacciono e convincono anche le successive 'Language Of Love' (dove la robusta chitarra di Larsson ci guida ancora verso un altro chorus da svenimento) e 'Tables Turning', che con le sue atmosfere rilassate ed il suo incidere sinuoso, da manuale del rock melodico!, si rivela uno degli highlights del disco. Risulta comunque difficile stabilire una priorità assoluta tra le varie tracks, poiché tutte hanno più di uno spunto interessante che le rende singolarmente apprezzabili, senza considerare il fatto che ogni brano può contare su hooklines micidiali che al primo ascolto ti entrano dritte in testa e sembrano non volerne più uscire! Proseguendo nell'ascolto - una citazione d'ufficio per 'Dancer In The Rain' (con bellissimi inserti di chitarra) e la dinamica 'A Place In The Sun' (col ritornello più 'ruffiano' della raccolta), che non aggiungono ne' tolgono una virgola a quanto scritto fino ad ora - ci imbattiamo in una ballad in puro Journey (ancora loro…) style: per ribadire bene il concetto, gli Street Talk mettono dietro al microfono Hugo, che ormai veste i panni di Steve Perry con un'incredibile naturalezza, per un titolo ed un'interpretazione da brivido, da segnare con la matita rossa. Non riponetela, perché dopo 'Forever By Your Side' e 'In The Arms Of Love', due pezzi ancora appannaggio di Edman che hanno il grosso pregio di non abbassare minimamente il livello qualitativo di un disco che sta per avviarsi verso la conclusione, ecco un'altra traccia impreziosita dall'ugola di Hugo (per un gioco di parole che è venuto da se'!) ma non soltanto, poiché in 'Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight' troviamo anche Tommy Denander ed i ragazzi degli Urban Tale (altra bella ed interessante realtà made in Sweden). Anche in questo caso il risultato non delude - e come potrebbe! - le aspettative: un distillato di intenso e vibrante A.O.R. con il quale gli Street Talk scrivono, come meglio non avrebbero potuto fare, la parola fine ad un disco che è decisamente il loro disco migliore fin qui, sebbene i due precedenti - è giusto ricordarlo - non siano poi così distanti dallo standard palesato in quest'occasione.
Se non siete avvezzi all'A.O.R. più classico lasciate perdere… per gli appassionati, un MUST assoluto!!!
RATING 90/100

LA TORMENTA
STREET TALK
"Restoration"

Street Talk: is the project of Fredrick Bergh (Keyboards) , to the one that initial and circumstantially the great vocalist united Goran Edman (Yngwie Malmsteen) . Rest of the band is formed by Sven Larsson ,guitar, Bjorn Lodmark, bass and Christian Johansson drums. This CD also bill with the collaborations of Kimmo and Erka of Urban Tale to the choirs and Tommy Denander to the guitar in some of the topics, also, Hugo, (Valentine, Open Skyz), it puts the voice at 2 of the songs of this 3er work of S.T. call "Restoration."
10 songs of Melodic Rock, very clean and defined guitars and a very good production make some of this CD without a doubt the best in the three published by the band. Cuts with the quality of "Give Me TO Reason", "Language Of Love" or "Hare & Honds", "Dancer in the Rain" or the quiet "Tables Turning." If to that we add the 2 topics that like we comment before, Hugo Valenti sings, ("My Heart Beats For You" and "Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight"), giving him the feeling and good style that it characterizes it and maintaining that voice tone that he reminds us in occasions to the same Steve Perry of the classic Jouney.
In conclusion: Rock AOR with Class that won't defraud you.
RATING 8/10

MELODICROCK.COM
STREET TALK
Restoration

This is the third album for Sweden's Street Talk. The band's previous two albums have been great examples of soft European Westcoast/AOR, featuring the super smooth tones of Goran Edman.
I believe soft and soulful are terms I have used, all delivered in a smooth Journey-esque AOR style.
Nothing is too much different for the new album Restoration, except for a couple of notable changes.
Firstly, while the style is still very much AOR/Westcoast and is still super smooth, the tempo of this album has been lifted and there is a more prominent role for guitarist Sven Larsson. While we aren't talking hard rock or anything, there is no denying that the 10 songs here are more powerful AOR than previously featured. Goran Edman is back at the helm for 8 of the album's 10 tracks and sounds his usual flawless self. A bonus for the album, and fans of Journey-esque AOR, is the addition of Hugo on lead vocals for two tracks. The first is My Heart Beats For You, a very laid back and very soft pop AOR ballad. It fits Hugo's charms, but doesn't utilize his power. The second track is much better – Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight is a great example of a big uptempo AOR ballad and isn't far removed from Hugo's own solo material. The track is packed with guests, including Tommy Denander and the guys of Urban Tale. No wonder it sounds so good.
Elsewhere on the album, In The Arms Of Love is a great uptempo AOR track, as is Language Of Love, while Tables Turning is a great ultra-smooth Westcoast style track and A Place In The Sun wins the feel good track of the album, with a very memorable hook and a Toto-ish AOR sound.
Tommy Denander guests on two tracks, so fans of his Rainmaker projects will know exactly what is on offer here.
The Bottom Line
If you are a fan of ultra smooth AOR and the soft dulcet tones of Westcoast pop rock, then Street Talk are your band. That this is their best effort yet is even more reason to check them out. And if that isn't enough, Hugo on two tracks should be.
Goran Edmon delivering his usual faultless performance is the clincher.
Very good artwork, solid running time, ok track arrangement. Hugo is well placed, despite the best track up last.
Line Up
· Goran Edmon, Hugo: Vocals
· Sven Larsson: Guitar
· Fredrik Bergh: Keyboards & Piano
· Christian Johansson: Drums
· Bjorn Lodmark: Bass

Guests: Urban Tale, Tommy Denander
RATING 88/100

METALSHRINE
Street Talk
Restoration

Street Talk bildades redan 1994 av förgrundsfiguren och tillika keyboardisten och sångaren Fredrik Bergh. Han skapade en episk, bombastisk Journey inspirerad AOR som låter oerhört mäktig. Det är sköna tongångar som strömmar ur högtalarna och nästan alla låtarna behandlar kärlekens mångfasetterade känslor. Skivan består av starka låtararrangemang och resultatet är väldigt imponerande. Fredrik har fått hjälp på 'Restoration' av bland annat Hugo från Open Skyz och Valentine, Göran Edman som sjungit med Yngwie Malmsteen och Alien sångaren Jim Jihed återfinns också på skivan. Låtarna är lågmälda, vackra och ibland dystra; "Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight" är min favorit. I väntan på att Steve Perry ska återförena sig med Journey så funkar Street Talk alldeles utmärkt.
Mikael Ekström
RATING 3/5

NEH
STREET TALK
"Restoration"

"Restoration" is a good, energized AOR/hard rock release, combining the ear-friendly feel of classic Westcoast-ish hard AOR with the grit of Midwestern AOR and a few light touches of Scandinavian depth and mood -- indeed, it is a formidable-sounding disc. Led by producer/keyboardist Fredrik Bergh, who clearly has a fine ear for pop, Street Talk boasts superb, polished performances; guitarist Sven Larsson, in particular, takes several tasty turns. The vocals are also effectively engaging, presented by supersingers Goran Edman (8 songs) and Hugo (2 songs). Throughout, the record feels comfortable and accessible to any fan of the genre.
Likable as "Restoration" is, however, it may not excite longtime, more jaded AOR fans. Its sound/feel is great, but its songwriting lacks the consistent, hooky spark that elevates the best of the many similar-sounding albums on the market. The songs are good, but overall, the record is neither quite adrenalinized enough to gets hearts racing nor quite consistently engrossing enough to be captivatingly cool.
Its performances are far too wonderful to be ignored, and "Restoration" will surely win avid supporters who can (rightly) point to its many excellent qualities. But for too much of its audience, it does not have the excitement needed to command repeated listens.
RATING 79/100

NOVEDADES
STREET TALK  “Restoration”
MTM

Dos de la mejores voces europeas, dentro de la escena del Rock Melódico europeo, se dan cita en este tercer trabajo del proyecto del teclista Fredrik Bergh,  Goran Edman, quien ya participó en anteriores álbumes y Hugo Valenti, que pone voz a dos de los cortes de éste.
Sin duda nos encontramos ante el mejor trabajo de Street Talk hasta la fecha. Mucho más maduro, con temas más trabajados y con una muy buena producción, con guitarras sonando claras y voces muy  limpias, un verdadero ejercicio de AOR en estado puro. En la concepción del disco han colaborado gente de Urban Tale haciendo coros, además de Tommy Denander tocando la guitarra en los dos temas que interpreta Hugo.
Dentro del Cd podemos encontrar a un Goran Edman en estado de melodía pura, con temas como “Hare  and  Hounds”, “Forever by your Side” o “Dancer in the Rain” (para mí el mejor tema del Cd) en los que el vocalista nos demuestra que no ha perdido en absoluto el gusto a la hora de construir las partes vocales de un tema. “My Heart Beats for You” y “Why is my Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight” son los dos temas interpretados por Hugo Valentí dos medios tiempos hechos a la medida del vocalista, para lucimiento de la voz de éste.
Con todos estos elementos, el resultado no podía defraudarnos, o sí? Bueno el caso es que un poco,  si los músicos son buenos, si los temas también, si tiene buena producción, que falla? Pues el resultado final, es complicado de explicar,  durante todo el disco se echa en falta alguna variación, es demasiado lineal, demasiado previsible, aunque no exento de calidad por supuesto.
Diego L. Pérez.
RATING 3/5

ON THE ROCKS
STREET TALK "Restoration" (MTM)

Wow, what a great leap forward! I did really like the first two efforts
"Collaboration" and "Transition" from Swedish AORsters STREET TALK, but I
never expected their new album could become so strong. "Restoration" is a
brilliant AOR album and establishes Fredrik Bergh and his partners in crime
as one of the genre's leading acts! All 11 songs impress by a stylish
songwriting and a fireworks of memorable hooklines. Well, and with KHARMA
singer Göran Edman and former VALENTINE frontman Hugo, the album features
two absolute top singers whose expressive voices add a very special note to
the songs which are rockier than the material on the predecessors. "Give Me
A Reason" is a very fluent and surprisingly upbeat track that lives on Göran
Edman's unmistakable lead- and background vocals and that comes up with a
instantly likeable chorus. The same applies to the following "Hard And
Hounds". Not as fast paced as the opener, it is still a very straight AOR
song that that plays with atmospheric keyboards and features a absolutely
brilliant hookline at the chorus - pure ear candy! "Language Of Love" sees
the band increasing the tempo again. The guitar driven rocker has a good
verse, a better bridge and an even stronger chorus. Next is the absolutely
fantastic and balladesque rocker "Tables Turning". Carried by a soft riffing
and lovely keyboards this dreamy AOR song offers the perfect opportunity to
Göran Edman to bring his emotional voice to bear. "Dancer In The Rain" is
nothing less but a brilliant AOR song. The very softly sung verse and bridge
play with multiple layers of background vocals which add a very dreamy note
to the song. At the chorus the song becomes a little harder but retains it's
very melodic base. "A Place In The Sun" is another very fluent up-tempo
track that due to its background vocal arrangements reminds me a little bit
of KHARMA. Perhaps the chorus could be a little stronger and have a little
more grip, but it's still a good song. "My Heart Beats For You" is the album
's first real ballad and the first song with Hugo on vocals. Based on his
Steve Perry-ish vocals and a very soft instrumentation this song won't leave
cold and JOURNEY fan. "Forever By Your Side" sees Göran Edman returning to
the microphone. During the verses the song sounds pretty muffled, but as
soon as the catchy chorus sets in it turns into another clear winner. "In
The Arms Of Love" is a highly melodic and uplifting AOR tune that was
co-written by RADIOACTIVE mastermind Tommy Denander and former ALIEN singer
Jim Jidhed. The album closes with the softly instrumentated and beautifully
melancholic ballad "Why Is My Heart Feeling Lonely Tonight". The song was
co-written by AOR hotshots URBAN TALE and is the second one with Hugo on
vocals. No wonder that it is another very JOURNEY like song, what is meant
as a true compliment! Let's cut it short: When you buy only two AOR albums
this year then make sure it is MECCA's self-titled debut and STREET TALK's
"Restoration"!
MARCO SPAETH,
RATING: 93/100

PEITERSEN
Street Talk / Restoration

This is the - for me - long awaited third album from Fredrik Bergh and his "project" Street Talk. The first two titled "Collaboration" from 1996 and "Transition" from 2000 is AOR classics in the true sense of the word - they are smooth, well produced, melodic as hell and ....overseen. But let's hop that this "Restoration" will change that - this time Fredrik has MTM as new record label, maybe that fact can give the album a much better distribution and availability.
Street Talk has made use of the excellent vocalist Göran Edman (Kharma, Yngwie, Glory and John Norum) before - but this time around keyboardist/songwriter Fredrik Bergh has made a scoop adding Hugo Valenti (HUGO, Valentine, Open Skyz) on two songs - the rest of the band is as follows: Sven Larsson from Madrigal on guitars, Björn Lodmark on bass and Christian Johansson on drums. Additionally Tommy Denander plays a tasteful guitar on "My Heart beats for you" and "Why is my Heart....".
In the song writing department Fredrik Bergh has almost wrote all song on the album - but he got help from Kimmo Blom & Erkka Korhonen from Urban Tale on "Why is my Heart...." sung by Hugo and the busy Tommy Denander & Jim Jidhed wrote "In the Arms of love". All songs very tasteful, well balanced and top produced by Bergh himself - but all mid-tempo, semi-ballads with very few variations.
Taken one song at the time - this release is an absolute killer. There are a lot of "classics in spe" on this album - my favorites are hard to choose but I instantly fell for the slow "Tables turning" and the quicker (yup..) "A place in the Sun" and "Forever by your Side" - but also the two Hugo ballads "My Heart beats for you" and "Why is my Heart feeling lonely tonight" are great tracks, too.
All in all Fredrik Bergh and the rest of the guys involved with Street Talk deliver the expected good, well produced, easy-to-digest Scandic AOR with a touch of classic Journey and with the the significant fingerprint by Bergh's songwriting and keyboard playing - a must buy, and definitely one of the best AOR/MHR releases so far this year!
RATING 4/5

RANKINGROCK.COM
STREET TALK "Restoration"
MTM, 2002

This is the third album of this Swedish band that shows how to improve based on hard work. Collaborations of Hugo (ex-Valentine, ex-OpenSkyz) in two songs, the knowledge of Tommy Denander and the members of Urban Tale. This is by far their best record and will conquer fans of soft AOR as well as the ones who like more guitar oriented sound.

REVELATIONZ
Street Talk - Restoration

This is the third release from the Swedish Melodic Rock band Street Talk. I haven't heard their first two releases, but this one, along with the "Thine - In therapy" release has been another nice surprise discovery this month.
This is true Melodic Rock with a big M. Restoration has some quite fantastic melodies and countless vocal harmonies. The album is fronted by two excellent singers. I already knew Hugo from his solo releases and love his voice. Most people will know Goran Edman from his time with Yngwie Malmsteen. So, two consistent singers. Hugo is the lead singer on only two songs and even though Edman voice fits the music great, it would have been nice to hear Hugo on some of the faster tracks.
Hare and hounds is an excellent song where the chorus sticks in your head and the solo at the end finish things off nicely.
Language of love is even better. The drive of this song is so good. Goran Edman's singing lifts the song even further. This is as close as you get to a perfect melodic rock song.
The feel of Tables turning really reminds me of another AOR band called Dakota and their brilliant release "The last standing man". It must be the voice of Goran Edman that does it…
A place in the sun, Dancer in the rain and Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight are other standouts.
One good song follows the next and always the melodic touch is there. No bad songs and no fillers, only catchy melodic rock, which puts you in a good mood. But somewhere along the way I couldn't help thinking that everything was just too nice and polished and something might be missing.
The only thing I can think of that would make this record even better would be the inclusion of a crazier guitarist. It feels as if the guitar playing on the album is a little held back. There are many solos, all nice and melodic, but none of them go really wild. Probably because that's not what the band was going for, but still I miss some heavier guitars at times and some experimentation or variation in the guitar sound.
All fans of AOR and Melodic Rock can get this release without hesitation. The album only contains 41 minutes of music, but every song is high class and that is the way it should be.
Steen
RATING 7.5/10

ROCK AVENUE
Artist: STREET TALK
Title: “RESTORATION”
Music: 3+
Sound: 3
Artwork: 3
Highlights:”Language of love”, “Forever by your side”

Als erstes möchte ich zur neuen Street Talk CD kurz ein Geständniss machen. Schon immer gehörte Göran Edman, der so vielen Projekten seine Stimme lieh zu einer meiner Lieblingssänger und auch auf dem aktuellen ST-Werk stellt er sein Können wieder deutlich unter Beweis. Wie schon in einer anderen CD-Rezension erwähnt, sind scandinavische Produktionen mittlerweile absolut ‘On Top’. Auch Street Talk sind ihrem Stil treu geblieben, das heisst ein durch Keyboardklänge getragener Sound, mit leichten Journey Anleihen. Aus diesem Grund ist es auch nicht verwunderlich, dass Ex-Valentine-Open Skyz-Frontman Hugo auf mehreren Songs von Restoration die Lead Vocals übernahm, was mit Sicherheit zur Ausgewogenheit dieser Scheibe beigetragen hat. In den 80ern wären Street Talk zumindest in den USA mit diesem Album bis an die Spitze der Charts gestürmt, aber auch aktuell sehe ich gute Chancen für ein gutes Abschneiden dieser CD.    Wer sich bei dieser Art von Melodic Rock angesprochen fühlt, der sollte hier in jedem Fall zugreifen...
DJ Bonne

ROCK REPORT
STREET TALK
Restoration

The new album of Fredrik Bergh's Street Talk goes on where the two previous albums left off. That means (again) superbly played AOR with a slice of westcoast, but most of all it takes the quality another step further upwards.
Fredrik Bergh is a true mastermind in writing ultra catchy AOR tracks and this album can easily be described as the man's best work up to now. The winning formula is not only the songwriting, but also the use of two of the best voices in AOR at this moment, namely Goran Edman (Yngwie Malmsteen, Kharma, Brazen Abbott, Reingold) and Valentine/Open Skyz vocalist and Steve Perry sound & look-alike Hugo. These two guys gave the already brilliant tracks something extra, let's say "the cream on top of the cake".
The production is top-notch and all songs are real anthems, so that this album should turn out as one of the AOR highlights of 2002. It's not easy to lift out a couple of tracks, but if I was put against the wall I should say, just listen to tracks like "Hare And Hounds", "Language Of Love" or the gorgeous ballad extra-ordinaire "My Heart Beats For You" (which has a tremendous performance of Hugo) and you will be overwhelmed.
Goosebumps all over! Don't wait a second longer and rush yourselves to the record store and buy this killer album now! Not to be missed! 
(EK)

Line-up:
Goran Edman (lv, bv)
Hugo (lv)
Fredrik Bergh (k, pi)
Sven Larsson (g)
Bjorn Lodmark (b)
Christian Johansson (d, p)
+
Frank Adahl (bv)
Kimmo Blom (bv)
Tommy Denander (g)
Erkka Korhonen (bv)
Tuomo Kovalainen (bv)

Producer(s):
Fredrik Bergh

Songwriter(s):
Fredrik Bergh
Kimmo Blom
Peter Broman
Ricky Delin
Tommy Denander
Goran Edman
Hugo
Jim Jidhed
Erkka Korhonen

ROCK TIME
STREET TALK "Restoration"

Les aventures de Street Talk sont toujours restées assez confidentielles mais cela n'empêche pas le maître de bord, Fredrik Bergh, de réaliser un album tous les ans. Le line up n'est jamais le même, outre Göran Edman (ex-chanteur de Glory, Malmsteen, Karma) dont la participation est toute aussi régulière que bonifiant pour le groupe. Cette fois, un autre chanteur met le pied à l'étrier : Hugo, plus connu pour ses essais solos et ses débuts au sein de Valentine et Open Skyz que pour ses engagements épisodiques sur d'autres albums. 2 vocalistes se partagent donc le travail, ce qui donne un côté peut-être plus intéressant à ce nouveau chapitre. Il est vrai que Street Talk est assez répétitif dans l'ensemble, Fredrik Bergh gardant une ligne de conduite qui ne semble pas vouloir dévier d'un pouce. On finit par se lasser, bien que ce soit plutôt bien fait et agréable à écouter. Restoration apporte une légère variante au schéma pré-établi car d'autres compositeurs sont venus épauler Fredrik dans son travail d'écriture (des membres de Urban Tale, Tommy Denander et Jim Jidhed). D'un côté, toujours ces morceaux FM aux sonorités et arrangements bien propres, presque trop soft ("Give me a reason", "Hare & hounds", "Why is my heart"), de l'autre, des titres qui bougent un peu plus ("A place in the sun", "Forever by your side", "In the arms of love") mais où l'on regrette que la rythmique soit aussi linéaire. La production très aseptisée sied parfaitement au style de Street Talk mais peut-être qu'en y mettant plus de peps, l'album aurait une toute autre allure.
Jee Jacquet

STRUTTER
STREET TALK 'RESTORATION'

'Restoration' is album number 3 of the Swedish AOR band STREET TALK, and just like it's previous records, also the new CD is quite a sensational record with pure high quality AOR in the style of JOURNEY, FRONTLINE, HUGO, THE STORM, SURVIVOR, SIGNAL… Everything is included, uptempo rockers, midtempo songs and (semi) ballads, while the vocals, guitars and keys all sound perfect from start to finish, so basically this is an awesome AOR record. Leader of STREET TALK is Fredrik Bergh, who (co-) wrote all 10 songs, produced the album and played all keyboards. There are guest appearances by HUGO (he sings two songs), GORAN EDMAN (sings the other 8 tracks), TOMMY DENANDER (played guitar on the 2 HUGO songs) and the members of URBAN TALE.
My favorite songs are the uptempo classy AOR rockers "Give me a reason", "Language of love" (very catchy!), "Dancer in the rain" (superb chorus) and "Forever by your side" and the midtempo AOR ballad "Why is my heart feeling lonely tonight" (with HUGO on vocals, this is pure JOURNEY!). People who bought the first 2 releases of STREET TALK can easily buy this new record, although there are not many surprises here (except for the 2 songs with HUGO on vocals). This is a high quality release that is a must for every AOR fan, and especially those of you who like URBAN TALE, JOURNEY, HUGO and FRONTLINE. Soon another interview with one of Sweden's best AOR acts ever, now buy this CD when it's released on the 23rd of September!
Gabor Kleinbloesem
RATING 9/10

AOR WEBSITE
"Tribute To Boston" (Escape Music)

Will the tribute mania ever come to an end? I agree to get out and listen to a local cover band playing live, but I’m bored of similar projects althought the present one has been realized with class and is a pleasant album to listen to. It’s also true that after few spins these cds gather dust on a shelf.
Anyway today it’s the turn of Boston with 13 songs taken from their catalogue (to tell the truth I own a cdr of the Japanese version sent to me by Escape’s Italian distributor with "A Man I’ll Never Be" as bonus track, don’t know the correct European tracklist) performed by singers Peter Sundell ("More Than A Feeling", "Piece Of Mind", "Don’t Look Back"), Terry Brock ("It’s Easy", "Rock And Roll Band"), Steve Overland ("Amanda", "Long Time"), Tony O’Hora ("Something About You", "Smokin’"), Chris Ousey ("Cool The Engines", "A Man I’ll Never Be"), Sean Harris ("Don’t Look Back", "Hitch A Ride") and Timmy Lewis ("Can’tcha Say").
On guitars we have Steve Morris with sometimes guests like Ronnie le Tekro, Vinnie Burns and Tommy Denander; Tim Hewitt on bass; Frank Baker on drums; Don Airey on keyboards but in "Amanda" featuring Dave Chapman.
As often usual, songs are recorded the most faithful possible both in the typical guitar sound and in the multi layered choruses and it’s no doubt that this is a collection of some of the best AOR written and performed by a band that’s essential in music history and that should be back soon with a brand new album.

HEART OF THE ROCK
VARIOUS ARTISTS - TRIBUTE TO BOSTON (2002, ESCAPE MUSIC)

Featuring: Steve Morris - guitars; Tim Hewitt - bass; Frank Baker - drums; Don Airey - keyboards; Vocalists - Steve Overland, Timmy Lewis, Terry Brock, Chris Ousey, Peter Sundell, Per Svensson; Sean Harris, Tony O'Hora; Lead Guitar Spots - Tommy Denander, Vinny Burns, Ronnie LeTekro

Well it's timely isn't? Topical too. What with the new Boston album out around about the same time. In all honesty, if you wanna listen to how Boston used to sound like, then this excellent compilation is the way to go. Forget 'Corporate America' folks.. It ain't Boston.. period, well not the way we'd like to remember them by. Instead, let's focus on those people trying to spin us a different take on their material through the albums 'Boston', 'Don't Look Back' and 'Third Stage'. The Escape Music team have assembled a vibrant team of players, led by Heartland's Steve Morris, assisted by Canadians Frank Baker and Tim Hewitt, while journeyman keyboardist Don Airey adds his hundreds and thousands on keys. The vocal talent is a Yellow Pages compendium of melodic rock. Steve Overland (FM), Sean Harris (Diamondhead), Terry Brock (Strangeways, The Sign), Chris Ousey (Heartland), Peter Sundell and Per Svensson (Grand Illusion), Tony O'Hora (Praying Mantis, Horakane) and Timmy Lewis (Departure).
As is the case with albums like these, it all depends on what you're looking for. Either the closest representation to the original, or a unique representation that shows the music in a different light. Well, it's definitely a case of the latter rather than the former. It's probably agreed anyway that Boston will always be difficult to reproduce at the best of times, but the guys do a good job and have fun doing it too by the sounds of it. I could pick each track to pieces, but I won't. I'll just give a brief summary as to how 'my ears' interpreted it. My fave tracks are those with Steve Overland singing. Yeah, admitedly he's no Brad Delp (but who is?), but his ever cool voice with a slight blues twinge makes 'Long Time' and "Amanda' an interesting listen. The other guy who does surprisingly well is Sean Harris. I loved 'Hitch A Ride', perhaps it was the track which came closest to the orignal on this album. 'Peace of Mind' is another highlight. The twin guitars of Morris and Vinny Burns do the Scholz/Goudreau duo thing perfectly. Tony O'Hora does a great job on 'Something About You', even though his voice is probably not a good match. Elsewhere, some of the songs don't quite hit the 'G' spot for me: 'More Than A Feeling' is weak by comparison, while 'Cant'cha Say' doesn't do a great deal either(neither did the original to be honest).
A couple of tracks which I thought would have been 'shoe-ins' for this album aren't here: 'HollyAnn' from 'Third Stage' and 'Used To Bad News' from 'Dont' Look Back'. Those two would certainly have added more value to an already interesting venture. The Japanese CD has a version of 'A Man I'll Never Be', sung by Chris Ousey. What did the Japanese do to deserve that privilege I ask? In any case, I'm certain that Boston fans and collectors will snap this up for it's posterity value. But melodic rock fans in general will also see great appeal with it too. So, who's the next band to lampoon?

Track listing (European/North American):
01.Long Time (Vocals Steve Overland)
02.Rock 'N' Roll Band (Vocals Terry Brock. Lead Guitar and Split Lead Guitar Vinnie Burns)
03.Smokin' (Vocals Tony O'Hora)
04.Amanda (Vocals Steve Overland. Keyboards Dave Chapman)
05.More Than A Feeling (Vocals Peter Sundell. Outro Guitar Solo Ronnie Le Tekro)
06.Cool The Engines (Vocals Chris Ousey. 2nd Guitar Solo Tommy Denander)
07.Hitch A Ride (Vocals Sean Harris)
08.It's Easy (Vocals Terry Brock)
09.Somethin' About You (Vocals Tony O'Hora)
10.Peace Of Mind (Vocals Peter Sundell. Split Lead Guitar Solo Vinnie Burns)
11.Can'tcha Say (Vocals Timmy Lewis)
12.Don't Look Back (Vocals Sean Harris/Peter Sundell. Split Lead Guitar Tommy Denander, Outro Solo Tommy Denander)
Japanese CD features 'A Man I'll Never Be' with Chris Ousey on vocals as a bonus track, plus it has a different track listing.
George Thatcher
RATING 9.0

MELODIC JOURNEY
Tribute To Boston

Die Tribut zollenden Musiker auf dieser Welt scheinen nicht gerade spärlich gesät zu sein. Immer wieder huldigen diverse Mucker ihren Heroes. Diesmal hat es BOSTON erwischt, die von überwiegend britischen Melodic-Rockern unter die Lupe genommen wurden. Es geben sich die Ehre: Terry Brock (THE SIGN/STRANGEWAYS), Tony O’Hara (PRAYING MANTIS), Peter Sundell (GRAND ILLUSION), Chris Ousey (HEARTLAND/THE DISTANCE), Steve Overland (FM), Timothy Lewis (DEPARTURE), Sean Harris (DIAMOND HEAD), Vinny Burns (TEN), Tommy Denander (RADIOACTIVE), Ronni Le Tekro (TNT), Steve Morris (HEARTLAND), Don Airey (DEEP PURPLE), Kenny Kaos (POKERFACE) und diverse andere Genre-Vertreter. Insgesamt wurden zwölf Evergreens der weltbekannten Rockband um Tom Scholz neu interpretiert, darunter ‚Smokin’’, ‚Amanda’, ‚More Than A Feeling’, ‚Hitch A Ride’, ‚Something About You’ und ‚Don’t Look Back’, wobei Overland mit seiner souligen Stimme aus allen Performances am positivsten herausragt.
Chris Grenzer
RATING 8/10

MELODICROCK.COM
Tribute To Boston

Produced By: Steve Morris, · Exec Producer: Khalil Turk

This is the second tribute album from the production team of Escape Music. It follows the rather good Foreigner tribute from a couple of years back.
This I am pleased to say is even better.
Better produced, better sounding and another solid collection of classic Boston tunes.
At times this seems more in tune with the original line-up of Boston than their new Corporate America album.
The Tribute features a host of musicians and vocalists, including the talents of:
Terry Brock (Sign, Strangeways), Tony O'Hara (Praying Mantis), Peter Sundell (Grand Illusion), Chris Ousey (Heartland, The Distance, Virginia Wolf), Steve Overland (FM), Timothy Lewis (Departure), Sean Harris (Diamond Head), Vinny Burns (ex-Ten), Tommy Denander (Radioactive), Ronni Le Tekro (TNT) with Steve Morris (Heartland) on guitars, Don Airey (Ozzy Osborne, Deep Purple and more) Hammond Organ and Keyboards, Mike Walsh guitar and Hammond Organ (Departure), Kenny Kaos (The Distance, Pokerface, Paul Laine) on guitar, Frank Baker (Heartland, Prism) on drums and Dave Hopia (The Distance) on bass.
Chris Ousey sings on 2 tracks, as does Terry Brock and Steve Overland. Grand Illusion's Peter Sundell sings on three tracks.
Now we al know this stuff is hard to reproduce, but I think an admirable job has been done here.
This is clearly a release aimed to Boston fans, but the performances of those involved will make it appealing to their fans too.
I am not overly fond of the remake of the biggest hit of all More Than A Feeling, but the majority of the album's other tracks are classic.
I think very highly of these versions of Amanda, Peace of Mind, Something About You, Don't Look Back and especially Can'tcha Say.
Something that needs to be mentioned here is the production quality of the whole tribute. It's tight, well mixed and sounds great, with extra credit going to the big harmony vocals, which were always going to be essential to any Boston tribute.
The Bottom Line
Out of all the tributes on the market, this one ranks as one of the better ones and certainly one of the best by a smaller label. It features a major sound and mix and should appeal to most pomp rock and classic Boston fans.
A liking for