Elements Of Friction is an All-Star-Band that includes Robin McAuley (MSG, Grand Prix, Far Corporation), Ricky Phillips (Bad English, Coverdale / Page, The Babys), Tommy Aldrich (Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Ted Nugent) and Marcus Nand (MSG, Freak Of Nature) while Mark Spiro, Neal Schon (Journey), Dann Huff (Giant), Jonathan Cain (Journey), Tim Pierce, John Waite (Bad English), James Christian (House Of Lords), Gregg Giuffria (House Of Lords) and others are the song-writing team. Is there a possibility for this project to fail? No way!

The self-titled debut of the band, is mostly mid-tempo and that is the only drawback of it, since when I was done listening to it I found myself missing the fast / happy songs. Apart from that the album has all the elements needed for a great Melodic Rock album: Good melodies from experienced songwriters, great lyrics, catchy ballads, amazing vocals (whoever doesn't like Robin McAuley's voice has my contempt ), remarkable musicians and a clear production made by Ricky Phillips himself.

There are definitely some strong cuts on the set, like the amazing ballads One Man One Heart and Forever. I Got Loaded is a song that I got obsessed with. Anyway, there is no point mentioning every song since all of them are special (except King Of Fools that is maybe the weakest song of the album).

The album definitely worths your attention, but don't expect another MSG album since it's unique and has a more mature sound. Yes, I know that this album is out for quite a while, but if there is any Melodic Rock fans that haven't got yet... go out and buy it, you won't regret it!!!