Hardroad - Miles

Published August 01 2009

*=Staff's pick	Hard Road* Nobody* Miles And Miles* Fighting For Outta My Mind My Life* Tempted Headed Home*

Genre	Classic Hard Rock	Russ Graham	Vocals
Tracks	8	Earl Johnson	Guitar
Runningtime	30 Min.	-	Guitar
Label	Cyclone Records	Rick Lazaroff	Bass
Release	17 Sept. 2009	Morgan Evans	Drums
Country	Canada	-	Keyboard
Similar artists	Moxy, Killer Dwarfs

When I first heard about this constellation I was pretty excited, I must say. Russ Graham, singer extraordinaire from the Killer Dwarfs, Earl Johnson from my old Canadian favourites Moxy, Rick Lazaroff from the fantastic melodic rockers Santers and drummer Morgan Evans with Lee Aaron on his CV. However, I didn't dare put my hopes up too high, however, as I've seen constellations that look great on paper, fall flat on their back when producing.

Well, after having given the Hardroad debut a first spin, I'd say my fears were nicely blown away. Hard Road may consist of rockers that have been out there a while, and the sound is sure classic, but it sounds really fresh and vibrant, as Gordon Ramsey would have put it. Russ sings with more power and conviction than ever and I can see why Earl has always been on my list of Canadian favourite guitarists. As the rhythm section delivers with the same power and conviction this just can't fail.

The album opens with the ultra powerful riff-rocker "Hard Road" showing these guys mean business! "Nobody" opens with guitars fat enough to tear down walls, but it's actually a very melodic rocker that should appeal to fans of classic heavy Canadian AOR. "Miles And Miles" could as well have been a hidden Moxy gem of a ballad. "My Life" is a fat and crunchy kick-in-the face up-tempo rocker with a cool quirky riff that sneaks in now and then, while "Tempted" is a cool stomper with a party chant chorus.

The album's eight and final track "Headed Home" also reminds me a bit of Moxy with an almost folky feel to the riff. This is a prime example of classic rockers that still deliver first class hard rock the way it's supposed to be played. My only complaint would be that it's way too short. I'm already looking forward to the next album!

Performance	Originality	Production	Vocals	Songwriting
8	7	8	9	8

Summary
8 chalices of 10 - Stark