Adriangale - Re:Program

While alot of bands have promised to deliver retro-style hard rock recorded fresh for the here and now, more of these attempts have failed than succeeded. Its difficult to resurrect a genre and pinpoint the style in the present day without being a blatant copy of a past band, or worse yet, not igniting the spark and nurturing it into the flame it could bloom into being. That's why throwback artists such as Airless, Fury and Shameless come across as being enjoyable entertainment, yet lacking the elements that made the music they are trying to re-create timeless. Everything has its expiration date, and perhaps hard rock is now attracting more mold than sporting Zip-Loc freshness. Atleast things seemed so until Silver and Westworld came around to shake up the rafters with their nu-breed of rock, superbly written and glowing with vibrance, it was just what a fan could hope for. But some of the old geezers who refused to give up their dusty records in favor of the glitzy new wave, holding steadfast to everything 80s wanted something that was more or less a copy of the old sound. But most bands want to spice up the aging genre, not walk in the same paths that lead to its destruction. But when Def Leppard goes pop, Foriegner not recording and glam era bands now but a sleazy shadow of their former selves, what is a die hard to do? Latch onto Adriangale.

"Re-Loaded" is the band's second effort, the debut being starry eyed but not quite cutting it in the major leagues. They don't have to worry about such quibbles now, for "Re-Loaded" is definitely 'loaded' with first class hard rock that guarantees to transport one to the glory days again, without the modern day tricks, and more importantly, completely free of any cheesiness. Its completely serious and packed with 100% grade A material. Imagine "Return of the Great Gildersleeves" Danger Danger, "Adrenalize" Def Leppard, and self titled debut Harem Scarem thrown into a melting pot and squooshed down into a cd oozing with melodic goodness. This dream is now reality for that describes the disc to a 't'! The production is big, the songs simply smokin', and the performances are top notch. A great deal of metal fans will also recognize their lead singer, especially those following the bible thumpin metal that was red hot and heavenly on the heels of Stryper's yellow and black attack success. He is none other than ex-Guardian crooner Jamie Rowe who sounds remarkably similiar to Danger Danger's leadman Laine. Going back and checking out Guardian's 1990 release, "Fire and Water", its crystal clear that Rowe has improved tenfold since his Christian metallin' days. His pipes still handle the same range and although he's roughened a bit since then especially in the lower registers, its an asset to delivering melodic rock, where such little nuances add more character to the voice. Chunky guitars, bubbly melodies and sizzling vocals flourish in each streamlined action packed track. Whether its rough n tumble rocking, simmering and balladesque or melodically flowing like a sheer gauzy fabric on a floaty springtime breeze, the well written material is tackled with a sense of style and exuberance.

01.] "Still Burning"
A solid chunky hard rock tune that kicks the disc in the tail feathers with a crunching start. Its a lyrical sendup to the MTV generation. Us fans of the old style won't give it up just because the media pressures it too. So what if it isn't cool to the mainstream, its fine and dandy with the fans of real rock. "They told us no, to let it go but now they'll have to see..."

02.] "Closer"
Harem Scarem to the core but a well placed rocker that goes through the melodic excerises with graceful wings and an uptempo ease that layers it on like frosting on an angel food cake. Fluffy underneath but with a thicker, richer topping that balances the lightness out with a topical heaviness. Of course the theme is one we all know well, living for the weekend... Tight and catchy, this one goes down like sugar, rough on the surface, energy charged but sweeter than candy pie.

03.] "Heartbreak Guaranteed"
Jamie gets upfront and aggressive, especially on the strutting verses with their thickly sliced rhythm riffing groove that leads into the huge melody stuffed chorus with the entertwining layers of background vocals pushing a Def Leppard feel to surface that sends the song to soaring. The dazzling guitar solo blinds the listener for a few seconds with a bubbly electric extravangaza before smoothly transistioning back into the chorus. Its all pulled off so wonderfully.

04.] "If"
A runaway smash right from the first note. This is a divine songwriting flavorful mixture of Dianne Warren's fluid starstruck style and Def Leppard's decadently delightful forgotten classic "Stand Up (Kick Love Into Motion)". The lingering tingle of deja vu sweeps in from the very opening notes since it recalls a tweaked version of the attention snapping melodic opener of "When Love and Hate Collide" from the Def Leps. The verses smolder but the sing-a-long friendly chorus explodes with raw emotion. "If it doesn't show then we'll let it go in a storybook fable." A mega size track that shows how everything can fit so snugly together without a hitch recalling the greatest moments of AOR. "If you're playing with fire gotta deal with the burn, my heart's an empty parking lot, gave it everything we got."

05.] "Over, Said N' Done!"
Smacking back onto the hard rock track the band thunders on with another sizzler in the Danger Danger direction. The verses are weighted down with Rivera's chugging guitars and the overall feeling of pure rhythmic hard rock. The bridge throws us for a dizzying loop, it being a period of pop paradise that signals for the chorus to take over that adds a little more rock into the momentary pop concoction. The thumping drum takeovers add favorably to the structure of the track.

06.] "Runaway"
The Harem Scarem leanings have returned in full force, as this sounds as big and bold as anything from Harem's debut disc. The chorus is instant combustion, it certainly doesn't play around! The whole song runs smoothly with nary a hitch and while not containing any landmark portions that require deep analyzation, rest assured that its a slick rocker that flexes some modest muscles and keeps the engine purring from beginning to end.

07.] "Heartgames"
The potpourri of pure pop pleasure persists with this pleasant diversion. The bridge is smooth as glass yet moody, building to the smashing climatic chorus with its abrasive vocals that ripple with contained fury underneath, for no one likes having their emotions played with for the thrill of the chase and the satisfaction of the winning of the heartgame. This one owes much to monster AOR rockers, Steelhouse Lane.

08.] "41394"
This is as raw as it can be, the band exposed in their natural acoustic state. A stripped little promising piece of the following song...

09.] "Part of Me"
...which is a ballad-esque track. The chorus is thickened with plenty of hot coal guitar laying down the electric rhythms and the drums thumping along with confidence. In contrast, the verses are softened in their toned down power ballad fashion. While instantly unforgettable, it takes a few run throughs for its hooks to set in deeply enough. The final few moments and Jamie's one-off "ooh" have this spooky Warrant "Heaven" feeling to it.

10.] "Heather Please"
Thickening the melodic soup is more large and in charge guitar riffs and an edgier vocal performance by Rowe. The entire thing has this modern TNT/Westworld vibe that made "Transistor" fare such as "No Such Thing" and "Because I Love You" so insantly infectious. The chorus lines are humming with energy and the verses are chilled off and straightforward. Another slow burner but worth the extra effort involved in becoming better acquainted.

11.] "No More Chances"
Investing time to thoroughly latch ahold of a track is not a problem for the final song on "Re:Program", so those that require their music to become an instant addiction will be at heaven's gate with this uptempo rocker. Vic Rivera's guitar drives this one home with not a second lacking style and flourish. The chorus is tough and vibrant with the prominent guitar sounding off ecstatically and Rowe's voice grinding his voice right into the forefront. Anthemic and the perfect kind of no frills, first class rollicking rocker to top off the disc. You can almost hear the applause go up after this final hoorah fades into silence.

Its hard to imagine any AOR flag waver not absolutely flipping out into amazed adoration over this album. Those that have spent more than their fare share of listening time with bands like Harem Scarem, Danger Danger, older & less 'top 40 pop' Def Leppard and Steelhouse Lane will be over the moon with joy for this disc. There's not a track that doesn't tickle the fancy in some form or fashion or another and the only complaint is actually the cover art. Its so incredibly cheesy, the dorky kid with the milky eyes, ick! Bury this one at the bottom of the pile but enjoy the music itself. For "Re:Program" is totally loaded, while it does have its moments of close brushes with above averageness. "Still Burning" and "Heather Please" could have used an extra flame lit behind them but the rest is purely superb, climaxing with "If" and mining excellence with "Heartgames" and the pure class of "Heartbreak Guaranteed". It might not win Slayer fans over, but for its genre, it stands among the best of the new crop. Their sound is exquisite, the music well-written and performed, and the production not quite as overblown as it could have been, but serviceable enough to not detract from the overall package. Its a winner throughout and one of the first 'must haves' from this year, right along with Frontline, The Cage and Manowar.

Ratings and Wrap Up:
8.8
Songs - 9.0
Performance - 9.0
Production - 8.0
Lyrics - 7.5

Hot Spots: "If", "Heartgames", "Heartbreak Guaranteed"
Bottom Line: Jamie Rowe is back with a brand new invention...the result is, great AOR, familiar in scope but terrific in execution.

Review by Alanna Evans -

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