I was surprised in the best way of all, by the track that was featured onto the double CD compiled by Andrew McNiece for his MelodicRock.com N°9. So I was quite ecstatic while putting this album into my CD player. Wearing a fun & sexy cover-art, "Save Tomorrow" by BONRUD is the sophomore effort by this straight out of the 80s melodic Hard Rock band, created by guitar player Paul Bonrud helped by talented high pitched vocalist Rick Forsgren. The team surely took its time to provide the best work possible as "Save Tomorrow" is indeed only the first release for this project in eight years.

And I'm glad they chose to purse a level of perfection, because I wasn't totally convinced by the first album but this time I have to admit that I was more than pleased with what I heard a good mix of heavy AOR and melodic Metal with an edge and some smoking & blistering lead guitars. But this album isn't just about guitar, the lead work is indeed virtuosic but quite compendious and always judicious. The whole disc is more about melodies, sing-along chorus and songs, the arrangements are lush and well-crafted as always, with some intelligently played layers of keyboards. The things that strike the most is the powerful voice of Mr. Forsgren, known for his four octave range, a cross between Steve Perry, Ted Pilot (ex-FIFTH ANGEL) and Tony Mills (TNT / ex-SHY) or Mike Matijevic (STEELHEART). His rendition is flawless and very diverse; his recruitment was definitively a smart move and the obvious asset in the BONRUD's cards.

The second remarkably notable and memorable fact is the clear and sharp sound, but wait a moment, as it was the case for the 2004 CD, the production duties were shared by both mastermind Paul Bonrud but also by star producer Keith Olsen known for his numerous works with many of the most respected names in Hard Rock, like WHITESNAKE / SCORPIONS / FOREIGNER / NIGHT RANGER / OZZY etc...

If we compare with the first album, this one is more imposing and mostly stylistically particularized by giving a more defined clear focus to each track, but the pure-sheer-quality of those songs are quite stable and the standards are set pretty high. It hails from JOURNEY like radio-friendly cuts as "American Dream", "I'd Do Anything" or the titled track of "Save Tomorrow" to strongest heaviest tracks as openers "We Collide" or "Bullet In The Back" with almost a Euro Metal vibe or also some impressive heavy AOR songs as "Last Sunrise", "Blinded" and "End Of Days". But there are also some potential hits or power-ballads in "Liquid Sun" or "You're The One"...Only low-point is the generic number called "Dominoes".

I suppose that you understand why this disc is very and warmly recommended by yours truly but only and if only, you still are into the old fashion Rock that once ruled the airwaves of the world.