Often imitated, yet never equaled, Joe Lynn Turner is still standing as a timeless vocal legend, the legitimate king in his classy roaring style. Even if Joe Lynn Turner's career was stretched as a long rocky road with a large number of hits & many highlights, those albums at least most of them will remains as classics dear to our Metal Hearts, set at the pinnacle by reaching the highest ranks in our extensive library of music. SUNSTORM is one of the numerous projects where Joe is involved lately in this contemporary part of his rich musical history. If "Emotional Fire" was interesting and inspired recently the mood was set in an more bitting heavy style, very similar to the angry spirit developed back in his solo period circa "Slam" this was a smart move ! This time the line-up was upgraded by the addition of newest players/composers with a fresh but high profiled reputation such as the very busy & skilled guitar wizard Simone Mularoni of DGM fame (also heavily implicated in the modernized song-writing/Sonic concept... ) providing a venomous dose of six-strings frenzy and of course the ubiquitous Pianist Alessandro DelVecchio (ELEVENTH HOUR/SILENT FORCE/HARDLINE) reigning at each and every states of this recording, a strong musical inputs while directing the artistic side at the helm of the producer role, then acting behind the refined keyboards rack, injecting some layered orchestrations and finally controlling the mixing desk in the ultimate focus at the most determinated fashion.

This is a proverbial and an exemplary second chance review, this analysis is set in my purest self-indulgent over-analysed ultra fancy writing style, coming straight from my own perplexed & complicated mind. This album needs some time to reveal its full potential, so I felt that I had to take it for some additional spins in order to capture its essence and damn, once again I was right ! "Edge of Tomorrow" was, released in the middle of spring by the always pertinently efficient and most of the time great Frontiers Records label in their typical regular stream of monthly excellency. The team was entirely renewed and updated to the max, as i stated before, but as if it wasn't enough they also hired a double writing squad reinforced with magic musicians borrowed to FIND ME coming from Sweden (a duet of confirmed writers such as Soren Kronqvist/Daniel Palmqvist already concerned at the "Emotional Fire" time in 2012) and in order to confirm loudly this overwhelming purpose, as the ultimate external writer, the guest-star personified. Indeed, enter none-less than SURVIVOR's mythical mastermind to please the purists : the iconic Mr. Jim Peterik himself sole author for the catchy track "The Sound of Good-Bye" (very typical and with a nostalgic commercial appeal...maybe the only passeist cut).

I will never had room to write enough compliments concerning Italian guitar Dominator Simone Mularoni, starting as a master Shredder in a promising Prog Metal outfit (DGM/EMPYRIOS/NOVERIA). He soon demonstrates his numerous perspectives and amazing qualities, as a studio knobs twister but also as a very gifted composer, still technically/sonically always impressive and sharp as a guitarist, obviously talented to say the least, with some glorious albums under his belt, totally succesful in every Metal sub-genres released, alternatively as convincing as sonic Producer or just ripping your head-off as lead axeman of the highest breed ! He could be the winner in a fair competition with legendary players like his notorious predecessors namely Yngwie/Ritchie/Akira Kajiyama or Al Pitrelli with ease & serenity! Of course, you could read here or there about the supposed tarnished voice of Joe Lynn Turner, but my advice is « forget about that» and enjoy one of the best Heavy AOR albums of 2016 with full confidence ("Heart Of The Storm" will convince anyone with a pair of functional musical ears). This could be one of the few CD that can reveal a consensus, of course the Frontiers Records naysayers and the biased old farts will found a bunch of excuses to raise the polemical. I think, that with songs like the title track, "Everything You've Got" followed by the heavy riffages found in "Tangled In Blue", the standout "You Hold Me Down" and the great verses of "Nothing Left To Say" or "Burning Fire" no serious fanatic of this music could be picky enough and deny it, without adding a good dose of bad faith...The real enthusiasts will be delighted by such an inspired heavenly offer, the perfect soundtrack to spend the last summer weeks ! The Japanese edition published by WARD Rec (gqcs 90128) is enhanced with an additional acoustic version of the song by A.DelVecchio "Angel Eyes" as a bonus track!