The limits between Hard Rock, Heavy Metal and Glam Metal are a matter of a subjective analysis and demands time and experience to be understood. Even an album can have songs being on of these sides and no one will see/hear such thing. Again: it’s a matter of experience and understanding the deeper elements of all these elements, and the evolution of them throughout the history. And the 8th album of the UK based quintet VEGA, “Battlelines”, can depict such aspects. Their musical work, labeled simply as Hard Rock, at first sight, can deceive the fans.

At the second, one will check that elements of Glam Metal, AOR, Heavy Metal, Progressive Rock, Pop Rock and ‘dirty’ Hard Rock (the way that bands like AC/DC follow) can be heard on the entire album. But the band tries to have a more elegant approach on their music, and although all these words, their musical work is full of energy and arranged with care, but spontaneous as well, in a way that hard to resist to its melodic and elegant appeal. Produced and mixed by Pete Newdeck (the quintet’s drummer) and mastered by Harry Hess, the sonority of “Battlelines” is vigorous, strong and ‘thick’, allowing the band to sound spontaneous and organic, but defined and clean. And the instrumental tunes chosen for the recordings are very good as well.

It’s almost impossible to say one of the tracks of “Battlelines” is superior to the others, because the experience of the quintet to create songs that will bind the hearers at the first hearing. But for the lazy ones, “Heros and Zeros” (a fine combination between Hard Rock melodies and AOR chorus is heard, all based on strong vocals and backing vocals), “Killers” (that brings some elements of Heavy Metal into the account due the strong guitars heard on it), “Battlelines” (the strength of bass guitar and drums on the rhythms doesn’t tear apart the silk melodic ambience created by some keyboards’ parts that brings the song to near AOR limits), “Love to Hate You” (this one brings the experience offered by Glam Metal acts as ALICE COOPER and KISS during the 80s, when they chose to use a heavier appeal), “Don’t Let Them See You Bleed” (in the middle of the melodic Hard Rock mass used by the band, one can hear some Pop Rock elements), “Embrace the Grey” (it’s one filled with some Prog Metal elements due the technical work of bass guitar), “33’S and 45’S” (again a melodic song filled with Pop influences on the silk parts),… Kick off the laziness, because “Into the Fire”, “Run With Me”, “Not Enough”, “God Save the King” and “Gotta Be You” are great as the others, so hear all the songs!

VEGA really shows that as time passes by, their music becomes better, and “Battlelines” is that kind of album that the older fans will love, but that’ll conquer new ones for the band.