Are you ready to Rock?, I cross-examine. Yeas, ECLIPSE is ready to Rock our brains out, with some impressive melodic hard Rock bunch of tunes that easily stand out lots of the familiar label's releases. For CDs like this one - bearing in mind it's a 3rd album - the coin flips in our - the fans - behalf; provided, we also are Ready to Rock.
When you want to make a hardened Rock album in our days, you usually choose in between your influences to sum up good ideas for a beginning. Brief example: whereas many bands bring on the e.g. conceptual forms of JOURNEY when they want to focus on keys-based AOR tunes, despite the fact other acts count on the 'blessings' of BON JOVI to reveal a more sentimental yet 'arena' Rock feel, it's bands like ECLIPSE that step on the WHITESNAKE English recipe dressed up with Scandinavia's (EUROPE or TREAT, for example, but also SILVER MOUNTAIN and TALISMAN) charisma in 'hook' choruses mixed up to deliver the goods in top quality and endless dozes of valid fulfillment. I 'see' ECLIPSE being such case.
Erik Martensson (known to many by his appearance at BRAZEN ABBOT's latest My Resurrection release): what a voice...The warmth of David Coverdale, the distinction of Joey Tempest, the 'bluesy' aura of Glenn Hughes, the temper of Eric Martin. The founding member of ECLIPSE takes no prisoners: in every single song his throat scores high in providing the most proper harmonies, being equally good in sounding furious, 'classic', passionate, sentimental and mature. In a rather gimmick reference, bring Jorn Lande's dynamics to mind.
Truth is the songs themselves lean on the 'good' side. Compared to 2004's Second To None - who's center style was more melodic - this album is driven by a more 'pedal to the medal' notion; hence it's good to be played loud in a Rock Club, your car stereo or else applicable. Even if the clichés float around, truth is enough interest comes up with the volume the production has, the efficient push-up of Erik's voice, the elegant use of keyboards, the pounding rhythm section. The dynamics and British 'breeze' of WHITESNAKE, the dynamics of 'heavy' EUROPE/TALISMAN and another couple of bands brought to mind (e.g. FAIR WARNING, FRONTLINE) can act as the summary. Still, it's not enough or fair to end up here.
The work provided by the guitars is as hardrockin' as it can be for a 'melodic' Rock album. Smart riffs (Sykes-related but Norum-promoted) lurking power, nerve, perception, retro-admiration. The leads, too, both in solos and themes, will not leave someone unsatisfied. Most tempos are mid-to-rollin'-to-speed and this justifies the decision of the band to take it 'heavier' and - in specific songparts - more virtuoso-keen. Would not exclude some track in particular, while To Mend a Broken Heart (mainly - even if I don't dig this chords aggression in general), 2 Souls, Wylde One and Breaking My Heart Again kinda rolled on a little bit more in the CD player.
This is an excellent 'just-over-40-minutes' album, with exceptional music and first-rate vocals. Really hope it'll sell much.