Hardline - II
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Hold Me Down |
| Genre | AOR/Light rock |
Johnny Gioeli
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Vocals
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| Tracks | 11 |
Joey Gioeli
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Guitar
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| Runningtime | 47 Min. |
Josh Ramos
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Guitar
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| Label | Frontiers Records |
Chris Maloney
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Bass
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| Release | 19 May 2003 |
Bob Rock
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Drums
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| Country | USA |
Michael T. Ross
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Keyboards
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| Similar artists | Whitesnake, Van Halen | ||
Unfortunatly I have not heard it myself but after what I have heard and read, the debutalbum by Hardline that was released in 1992, Double Eclipse, was a killeralbum and had a big impact in the AOR world when it was released. After a long while of inactivity the band has now reformed with only the Gioeli brothers as original members left and a follow up to the debut has been released.
What a load of crap it turned out to be. Its flat and non-saying and any sign of interesting melodies and refrains and good riffs are absent. There is not even a groove or something that drives it forward except for a few rare pieces here and there. The song Paralyzed is in fact both heavy enough, has a good flow with good hooks and refrains. Everyone that is even remotely interested in the german metalscene might know that the vocalist Johnny Gioeli also sings in Axel Rudi Pell and that combination is the most amazing thing I have ever heard. On this album, however, he is hardly making a big impression as the pondus and charisma that he projects in A.R.P is just not there.
This might very well be the worst case of "coming-in-through-one-ear-and-immediatly-going-out-through-the-other" that I have come across in a very long time. We are talking riffs that even I sit and fool around with in the tv sofa at home every now and than, but I dare to say that I make them sound better than this by adding a few more notes to make it sound more full and something close to hard rock. Sometimes they try to "rough it up" a bit but the riffs sounds so dry, standardized and amateurish that it's just way too much even before the first bridge has been reached. I am well aware of the fact that the guys are all good musicians but for god's sake - boooring!!
Pheewww......I am glad Gioeli get to make his godsend
voice heard in Axel Rudi Pell. The man is probably the best singer in
the world in this genre - but it sure does not do any good to this mushy
soup of sleezy and gray rock.
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Production
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Vocals
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Compositions
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7 |
7,5 |
2 |
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Summary
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3 chalices of 10 - Tommy |
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