Let the dramatics break the door; allow the stone bestowed to be shattered into pieces for the revelation of a bleeding heart. It is like trying to shield your eyes from a spiking sun above, its heat rays attempting to burst through your defensive hands and while you think that you can stop them, your failure is imminent. Like a wringing heart always bare for reaching eyes that wish to gaze upon it, so is the sun, always there without a way to hide from it. And now for some music, bursting with a fervid disarray, a shift through periods and eras, 70s, 80s, 90s in a flash as a time machine was running on every flick of the switch, the Greek KINGDRAGON, a melodic Hard N' Heavy group, may have found one of the routes and ways to connect the dots between the timelines. Upon the release of their debut full length, "Hide The Sun", via Retrospect Records, fire is set ablaze, resuming echoes and reverberations of early DOKKEN, KISS, BON JOVI, HOUSE OF LORDS, WHITESNAKE, early DEF LEPPARD, THIN LIZZY among others. It all cracks pretty simple, not too flashy, yet spirited and a journey well taken.

Thinking out loud, setting common sense into gear, KINGDRAGON, at least in overall, resembled to a pack load of Hard Rock bands enshrining AOR as a means to be sensitive and touching as they go. Undoubtedly that even though KINGDRAGON have been lurking around the first thirty years of Rock music, toughing up at times, the 80s era rules their perspective, and of course the last thing I could think of commenting about that it is bad. Following the Anastasis F.'s classic riffery, which shaped up as such an integral emblem of this album's position, the AORish Keyboards endorsements paved by lead vocalist, George Aspiotis, took their toll. This guy's simple atmospheric playing retained a leap of faith with yours truly, as I had my doubts at the beginning due to the fact that several of the Keyboards' lines sounded way Popish to my liking. Furthermore, Aspiotis's singing sounded so sonorous, rich, emotive as every AOR frontman, embraced by the Blues occasionally but also inflicted by the hails of Rock. Some might find his abilities and voice as ordinary, yet that slight Joe Elliot meets Doogie White vibe is hard to ignore really. Back to Anastasis F., I had my ears enjoying the George Lynch blended with Ritchie Sambora spectrum, especially solo wise. Though his riffs also turned out like your average conventional Hard Rock / AOR Joe guitarist, talent is still a talent. With all due respect, I had nothing to comment about the rhythm section of Mark Kontopidis and Andrew Roumeliotis as it was hard to distinguish something outstanding, needless to say inventive or over the top, although I would say that their efforts sounded pretty sharp.

Though still at the writing table, maybe you were able to catch my drift regarding this album. I am positive that I already stated the upcoming more than a fair share of times, but I will keep it short. There is nothing bad with being commonplace; however, just that tiny tweak can make wonders. In the case of "Hide The Sun", I noticed slightly different views on "Asian Star". This song appeared to be groovier, heavier, penetrating with a 90s attitude, particularly with drumming and guitaring, turning slowing into a catchy hit that might indulge BON JOVI to get back to writing some non-sellout material. I also found powerful pressure points on the DOKKENish riffery flavored "Victim Of Love" and the HOUSE OF LORDSian emotional spots of "Only Winter" and "Dreams Are Broken", a haze in a colder breeze, keyboard induced with an acoustic enhancements. "Judgement Day", leading to a few WHITESNAKE signals, conjuring the vibrant vocals of Aspiotis, sometimes appeared as arduous, falling a bit dry, yet its guitaring sequences and grandiose Keyboards saved it. Generally, even with a certain amount of aridness, nothing could take from KINGDRAGON their vintage appreciation for the melodic quality of melodic Hard Rock, their songwriting is basic and to the point, keeping it marketable, yet with a measure of craftiness.