I am proud to present you the latest new AOR sensation: MARCO FERREIRA! Marco comes out of Denver, Colorado, USA and has released a CD which features 8 fantastic AOR/Melodic Rocksongs that can easily be compared to the likes of THE STORM, first HAREM SCAREM, DAVID VICTOR and especially FIORE. What strikes me most is the fact that years ago I heard a demo tape of a band called CARTOON who came out of Brazil and they played in the exact same style as Marco.

Even more striking is the fact that the CARTOON-vocalist also had the same voice. Now I wonder if I have now located this guy and Marco was indeed the CARTOON vocalist. Well, I will ask him in an interview we're gonna do very soon, because the music on his first solo-CD is very impressive purest AOR/Melodic Rock that will attract every fan of this
genre. It wouldn't surprise me if MTM would sign this talented multi-instrumentalist, because some of the songs on the CD sound very huge and are up there with most acts on that label.

The CD starts with "Someday", a fantastic midtempo AOR song a la THE STORM, HUGO (debut) with many harmonies that capture influences from BON JOVI. Just listen to this opener and you know that this is really good material you're listening to. It's even more interesting due to the fact that Marco has done everything on his own. This guy is a big talent and need much more attention from everyone. Anyway, the CD continues with
"Caminho de sol" and yes, these are Portuguese lyrics.

Also the rest of the CD has Portuguese lyrics, something which I don't mind, because the music is still pure AOR. "Caminho de Sol" is another fantastic midtempo AOR tune which has a very melodic chorus. The song has some 90s influences, but not much, kinda like FIORE. Next up is "Faria tudo outra vez", a brilliant Classic 80s midtempo AOR song a la THE STORM, first HAREM SCAREM…

Then we get to hear two instrumental pure AOR/Melodic Rocksongs titled "4-204" and "Patamo", both sound like THE STORM without vocals! Then comes one of the best songs of the CD, namely "Fonte", a classy 80s midtempo (again) AOR tune that sounds like a mixture between THE STORM and the old BON JOVI. This song also has some great pure AOR keys at the start. Following track is "Vou gritar" and this is another great midtempo melodic rocker. Closing track "Diga" is a very nice calmer semi AOR ballad with excellent harmonies.

Without any doubts, this is an easy target for fans of Latin-American AOR like TERCER ACTO, CODA, CARTOON, LA FASE, VOX DEI, TALISMAN… but I can also easily recommend this CD of MARCO FERREIRA to fans of the North-American AOR of bands like THE STORM, first HAREM SCAREM, FIORE… I will do an interview with Marco very soon and talk much more about his career.

For now, you can check out his music at his site: http://www.mp3.com/marcoferreira But there's more than his solo career, because Marco also plays in the band MONKEY BITE which I have reviewed below. Believe it or not, this band is playing in the exact same style, so another great AOR record and they sing in English, read below for further details!

Rating: 9/10

MONKEY BITE is a band that features the very talented multi-instrumentalist Marco Ferreira whose CD I reviewed above. Besides Marco, this band also features his brothers Marc and Alex. So, basically this is a very musical family and they sure know how to write some fantastic AOR tunes. There are 8 songs on the CD and MONKEY BITE is playing in the style of acts like FIORE, THE STORM, HAREM SCAREM… The album starts with two fantastic AOR songs ("It got to be" and "The way it is") that have an updated 90s sound, but super melodic catchy AOR choruses. These songs are in the same style as FIORE and they have harmonies all over the place.

Track number 3 "Talk about it" is Classic 80s midtempo AOR a la THE STORM. This song is quite superb and really captures everything you missed from the 80s. Next track "Mr. Cop dude" is the first weak song, a 90s groovy melodic hard rock oriented piece, kinda like the last few DANGER DANGER albums. I think I am in AOR HEAVEN when hearing the following track "U better wake". This track contains everything you want to hear in a Classic 80s midtempo AOR song. The song reminds me a lot of THE STORM and HAREM SCAREM (like their song "With a little love" from the band's debut). Just listen to the first few seconds of "U better wake", man, this is pure AOR HEAVEN!

Moving on with "Give you away", another fantastic midtempo AOR song a la FIORE. The acoustic "Clear" follows and then the CD comes to an end with the 90s influenced "Only life". These two final tracks are a bit taking the level down which has resulted in lower score than the above reviewed solo-CD of Marco Ferreira. Nevertheless, this band is very much recommended to fans of FIORE, HAREM SCAREM… They were influenced by DEF
LEPPARD and JOURNEY, and I am sure the fans of those bands will love this band too, but I rather describe MONKEY BITE as a wonderful new AOR band which may cause some stir the coming months here in Europe.

For now, more info on MONKEY BITE can be found at their website which is located at: http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/84/monkey_bite.html but you can also check out the interview I just did with Marco Ferreira about his solo career and of course about MONKEY BITE and even CARTOON is discussed. Now go to their website and listen to their music.

Rating: 8,5/10

This band out of New Jersey sent me a tape copy of their CD ‘The calm before the storm’ because they were out of CDs. But it’s the music that counts and HEAVY RAIN is playing pretty good melodic rock. The CD was released back in 1996 and they are now hard at work on a follow-up. 4 songs are on ‘The calm before the storm’ which opens up with “Long open road”. This song starts calm, but later on it becomes a good melodic rocker.

Next track is “Underground”, a cool 80s typed straight-ahead melodic rocker (a la RATT/DOKKEN) with some very good melodic lead vocals by singer Mike Serrano.
Then comes the best track of the album. The song is titled “Destiny” and this is a lovely classy 80s typed uptempo AOR/Melodic rocker that sounds like the first DANGER DANGER. The chorus of the song has a slight progressive touch and actually this makes me thinking.

It wouldn’t surprise me if the band has now changed their style into Progressive Melodic Heavy Rock, because it has been 4 years since this release and I have learned from other bands that a lot of things can happen in such a long period. Well, we’ll have to wait and see. The album closes nicely with the good semi melodic rockballad “Closer to love”.

E-mail the band at: CARL4EMAJ@aol.com Visit their site at: http://www.heavyrain.com If you’re interested in buying the CD, then write to this address: The Record Store, 5174 Rte.9, Howell, NJ 07731, USA and ask if they have a copy of the HEAVY RAIN CD ‘The calm before the storm’.

Rating: 8/10

'All in a hard day's work' is the second CD of the San Francisco based band OUTRIDER. The music hasn't changed that much since their debut and so we can again listen to a fine Rockalbum. Besides some AOR influences, there are also a bunch of songs that can be labelled as Boogie, Bluesy, Southern and even Countryrock. A lot of times the band is now moving into a style which I could best compare to the band THE OUTLAWS, because those guys also had this kind of mixture of different rockstyles.

The CD starts with "Tell the boys", a nice semi AOR rocker like 38 SPECIAL and musically in the exact same style as OUTRIDER's debut. After the boogie rocker "16 will get you 20", there is another AOR song titled "Unchain your heart", a good AOR ballad. The following 3 songs are the mixture of Blues, Country, Boogie and Southern Rock I was talking about. These songs are not really interesting for melodic rockfans. Then the Melodic Rock comes back again on the following three songs "Outrider" (uptempo melodic rocker, best song of the whole CD), "My guitar" (semi AOR rockballad) and "The world walks by" (slowtempo melodic rocker/ballad).

This is the best part of the CD, because the following songs are all very bluesy and have very little to do with Melodic Rock. The song "Take me" features some wonderful 80s AOR keys that even remind me of the other OUTRIDER. The song itself is a nice rocker. I foudn the band's debut CD a little bit better, because it had a much more straight-ahead Melodic Rock approach, while this new CD has a wide diversity of styles. More info on this
OUTRIDER can be found on their website at: http://www.jfgrecords.com

Rating: 7/10

I really thought I had found the OUTRIDER who put out the CD 'No way out' in 1991. That CD contained some great AOR a la BOULEVARD, FOREIGNER, JOURNEY… so I was surprised to see the bandname OUTRIDER appearing on the internet. But when I read the bio, I saw that this OUTRIDER released it's first CD 'Long time comin' in 1996, so I came to the conclusion that it was a different OUTRIDER.

Nevertheless this OUTRIDER is also interesting, because they play AOR influenced Rock which reminds me a little of 38 SPECIAL. There are 12 songs on their debut CD and the musicstyle is not only AOR, but also elements of Pop and pure Rock music can be found throughout the CD. Of course the AOR oriented songs are the most interesting ones and so I can conclude that the best songs of the CD are "Ready for a change" (semi AOR
ballad), "Silent tears" (good semi AOR rocker like 38 SPECIAL), "Friends" (semi AOR ballad), "The gospel" (semi AOR), "Healing tough" (semi melodic rocker) and "Ashes to ashes" (semi melodic rocker).

The rest of the material is a bit weaker and are very diverse. "Come on son" for example is a simple 80s typed Partyrocker a la SILVER CONDOR (2nd record), HOLLAND, B'ZZ… And songs like "I am what I am", "Nothings ever as it seems" and "I gotta boogie" are not really my cup of tea. The band has just released a follow-up to this 'Long time comin', read review above.

Rating: 7,5/10

CENTERSHIP is a band out of Brazil who are playing a very interesting musicstyle, because the demotape ‘Starbound’ they released back in 1997 contains Symphonic Pompous AOR rock with many keyboards and great harmonies. I am a little surprised to hear a Brazilian band playing this style. The band consists of guitarist/lead vocalist Marcus Ceravolo, keyboardist Luciano Ceravolo and drummer Vinnie Ceravolo. You might notice they all have the same surname, but that’s easy to explain.

CENTERSHIP started as duo, the brothers Marcus and Vinnie Ceravolo. A few years later Marcus met a girl and married her, she became keyboardist/vocalist for CENTERSHIP. ‘Starbound’ contains 6 songs and it all sounds very professional. Musically it is hard to compare, because actually they have created an own sound that is very melodic. The tape starts with "Nature's demands", a very good Sympho/Pomp influenced AOR song with many great keys and some very impressive lead vocals.

Next up is the acoustic ballad "You're bound to be yourself". Then there's the semi sympho-AOR ballad "Pilgrim", there are some great harmony-parts in this song. Following track "Asgard" is a good mixture of AOR, Progressive and 70s Pomprock. Although the production lacks a bit in the song "Waiting for it to arrive", the song itself is great pompous AOR.

Final track of this demo tape is the midtempo sympho-AOR song "Cherished lullaby" which features the lead vocals of female singer/keyboardist Luciana Ceravolo. This song sounds a little like LANA LANE and is actually one of the best song on the tape, also due to the very good lead vocals of Luciana. This band is pretty good and I can easily recommend it to people who like their AOR a bit symphonic oriented, kinda like LANA LANE. More info at: http://www.geocities.com/centership and e-mail them at: centership@yahoo.com

Rating: 8/10

This band out of the UK sent me a tape copy of their CD '…Rest of forever…'. Musically LIAZON has created an own style that still can be described as AOR/Melodic Rock, yet they sound different than most other bands in this genre. The keyboards and vocals are sounding a bit spacey every now and then. Above all, this LIAZON reminds me of bands such as MARIAH'S TRENCH and JIM STEEL who also both produce this type of spacey AOR/Rock. The beginning of the CD is also very much in this style with good AOR songs such as "Back in it's place", "Heartlands" and "Words", these are also the best songs on the
album.

Towards the end of the end of the CD, the band comes with poppish songs like "Setting off the flame" and "This Mountain" which remind me of THE OUTFIELD meets 1927. Even a band like PINK FLOYD comes to mind when listening to this band. This band has a very diverse style that is hard to place in one particular style, but if you like any of the mentioned bands, then you'll probably like this. If you're starting to become interested in LIAZON, you should visit their website at: http://www.mp3.com/liazon

Rating: 7/10

These guys seem to have reformed after many years. JAGUAR is one of the original bands that participated in the N.W.O.H.M. movement. They released two records. The first one saw them playing Heavy Metal a la SAXON, RAVEN… The second LP is a pretty nice American oriented Melodic Rockalbum that became a big flop for the band. Now they have
released their third album. The new CD is titled 'Wake me' and there's only one label that would put out such a record and that's Neat Metal Records, the label for this type of early 80s Heavy Metal, because JAGUAR is back playing the style that made them famous in the first place.

This CD is filled with early 80s typed Heavy Metal and is an easy target for the fans of the band's debut as well as people that like SAXON, RAVEN and perhaps RIOT. Get a copy of this CD when you dig that 'Steel' Metal style from the early 80s (yes, the time before bands like BON JOVI and EUROPE were big-time and SCORPIONS were still playing Metal, a long way back!).

Rating: 7/10

Out of Canada comes multi-instrumentalist Chris Krastev who did everything on his own on his CD 'The end is near'. The CD features 6 well-produced songs and musically it is Melodic Hardrock. The CD opens with the instrumental "The end is near". "After this nothing" follows and this is good uptempo melodic rock which actually reminds me of a Japanese band called GRAND SLAM. Also the following track "My best friend" is in this style. These are two good songs and very much pure Melodic Hardrock.

Then comes the semi melodic rockballad "Silent lady", a very nice song that has great harmonies during the chorus. Following track is "Huatulca bay", a 70s oriented melodic rocker that even has some Pomp influences, so quite a diverse and interesting song. Closing track of the CD is "Dirty money", the only song that sounds a bit weak. Nice record from Chris Krastev, obviously a talent who does everything on his own. For more info, e-mail Chris at: krisk@yesic.com

Rating: 7/10

This is a pleasant and easy listening pop/semi-aor album,what I hear is very good and enjoyable songs in the style of Kyle Vincent, TOTO, Richard Marx, Peter Cetera. This duo had huge success in another band years ago that was managed by Pete Waterman of Stock/Aitken and Waterman fame.They are very very good and i'd imagine that the aor purists of the world will love this.

I'm well into this cd, and songs like the ballad "Open Arms",the up-tempo "Heart And Soul" which is very catchy and has some great lyrics,this song is in the vein of TOTO,Martin Noakes vocals are veru unique and come across like a soothing Bryan Adams and Peter Cetera.Other good songs are "The Dream That Comes Down" which is very uptempo and catchy aor with some great synthesiser work from Martin Lawrence.The whole sound reminds me of those early eighties aor rock albums,the band have had two major hits in the UKand according to the press release they were signed to A & M records,funny how I
don't remember any of this then huh?,try tracking them down if you can,as this will become quite collectable and obscure. Email: martin@winmill1.demon.co.uk

Rating: 8,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

Pure And Rough is a collection of unreleased AXXIS demo songs that kick off with the EUROPE, MSG sounding "When The Cat's", an ok song but nothing to shout about, "All What I Want" is like FAIR WARNING and UDO and is a nice melodic rocker with a catchy chorus, "Julia" is a glorious ballad full of heartwrenching emotion and is one of the best songs on offer.

Of the weak and uninspiring tracks there are three "Lazy Sun", "Ride On The Daylight" and "Through The Gates". These songs are just middle of the road German melodic rock that is played without any fire and passion. Then you get an accoustic song with a Russian atmosphere called "Kings Made Of Steel", which is probably the standout song because it is radically different and fun to listen to. EUROPE have often done something like this live and actually it reminds me of TESLA's cover song "Signs", it's played in that sort of style and is a great song to listen to.

Of the rockers the best to listen out for are the melodic heavy "Moonlight" which rocks like AXEL RUDI PELL and BALANCE OF POWER and "Burning Rain", a song that's starts off slow but then builds into a pure melodic rock song with a very addictive chorus, it's like a mellower HELLOWEEN mixed with CASANOVA and PINK CREAM 69, once those huge vocals hit you there is no letting go. This is a great song, amost magnificent in structure, I simply love this song. This collection isn't too bad, I would purchase it just for the ballad "Julia" a huge piano led melochony ballad. Let's hope the next AXXIS record rocks and they get the success they so richly deserve.

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

Jane Fallon is one of those special artisits whose music you cannot really categorise, her songs are simple poetic and delecate accoustic dittys that have a unique subtle charm and delight about them. Each song is beautifull crafted, and often has a slight celtic pressence whilst Jane's voice is lovely and soothing, you feel really relaxed after listening to some of her magical moments on"Faces". My favoutite song is the opening track "Beginnings" which is a just a simple equisite song that hardly features any instrumentation at all, this is gentle lullabye, a subtle ballad with really lovely vocal parts from Jane, the accoustic guitar gently
comes into the song as Janes voice spreads across the lyrics, which leaves you totally breathless and speechless.

The whole album is like this, it's dark and wintery and reminds me of JANE SIBBERY and very early HEART when they were a bit folky sounding. I get the feeling that the matrial featured on "Faces" is of a personal nature, it's hardly rock music at all, but it's hugely enjoyable if you have an open mind, this whole record is very peaceful and elgant, now and again you get catchy uptempo moments like "Too Long, Too Blue" which reminds me of AMANDA MARSHALL and FIONA APPLE, and the excellent and funny "I'm In Love" check out the lyric content :-

" You may not have the looks of Patrick Swayze, the girls in town may not sigh, swoon or go crazy, you may have a face only your mom would be fond of , but if you can fix my car i'm in love" sounds cheesy I know but it works, as it goes "Faces" has won a very special place in my heart. Email: jane@janefallon.com Website http://www.janefallon.com

Rating: 7,5/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)

In my never ending search for the ultimate ladykiller in aor/pop rock, this latest discovery almost tops them all!!! Richmond USA based singer/songwriter Betsy is an extradonary talent, her music is based around synthesiser led pop melodies, this is every bit as good as any album released by the male infested aor/pop world of MARK SPIRO, STAN BUSH, HUGO, JOURNEY etc.. "On My Way Home" is wide collection of pure mid tempo pop/aor songs that is certain to start a big chain reaction in aor circles worldwide.

The first three tracks "On My Way Home", "It's Not You (It's me)" and "Mask" follow in the footsteps of , ALANIS MORRISETTE, TORI AMOS, MELISSA ETHERIDGE filled with accoustic guitar playing and modern melodic pop, "I'm The One" follow's the same path but is slightly more in touch with HEART, FIONA APPLE, KATE BUSH, CHER (In her pop/rock days) and JAIME KYLE, a great sophisticated pop songs. Then comes one of Bet's first trump cards in the shape of the diamond ballad "Love For The First Time", this is a jaw droping gorgeous ballad in the same vein as SHERIFF's beautifull "When I'm With You" and SAMMY HAGAR's sensuous "Karma" from "Marching To Mars", in fact this song could be SHERIFF's little sister, it has exactly the same amount of passion, you could just imagine FREDDY CURCI singing this track, each moment left me motionless as Besty capture's your heart and imagination with her very powerful and heartfelt romantic baby like voice, totally awesome!! The sad thing about this record is that it could have so easily been missed, every track is a winner of pure aor pop melodies, the like I haven't heard in years, another ace in Bet's pack is yet another subtle ballad, "Can't Get You Out Of My Mind", a tender piano led ballad that is very inspirational, infact if you gave this to STEVE PERRY or
MARIAH CAREY then you would bet your arse they would have a world wide hit in their paws. Just sit back and listen in awe to Bet's voice, every word she's sings is a moment to be treasured, this song tends to remind me of LILLIAN AXE's "The Day That I Met You" from "PSYCHOSCHIZOPHRENIA"

"On My Way Home" has a huge amound of great songs that other artists could have hits with, that said Betsy could easily become the next SHANIA TWAIN if given the push by a willing record company, "The Secret Tha I keep" is a great uptempo aor song that is made for RICHARD MARX or JOHN WAITE to song, this is glorious music that is bettered on the next track "I Will Follow", If you don't singalong to this track then you are tone deaf, again someone like KENNY LOGGINS could make good use of this wonderously enchanting song. "The Promise" is like a JONATHAN CAINE/DANTE FOX track, a
piano led pure pop song that's every bit a winner, the final outburst of melodies falls into the hands of "Say Goodybye", this song ends the album on a lush notes and leaves you wanting more and more. Overall I can't praise this album enough, this is exciting music and is frsh and original, look do yourselves a favour and turn Betsy into the next big thing.AWESOME!!
http://www.wydview-records.com email: betsy@wydview-records.com

Rating: 9/10 (Review by Nicky Baldrian)