Raised on Radio: Trollheart's Journal of AOR and Melodic Rock

[Trollheart]

Bouncy keyboard passages, big soaring choruses, vocal harmonies and plenty of slushy ballads: yep, it must be AOR.

AOR gets a lot of stick, with people pointing to bands like Journey, REO, Foreigner and Toto, and usually laughing or puking. With good reason sometimes. AOR bands are not, to quote a phrase, reinventing the wheel. They're not even customising it. AOR bands are not known for their innovation or progression, and to the untrained (and sometimes even the trained) ear, one can sound much like another.

But there are some great bands out there, and in this journal I'm going to try to show you them. Not just AOR, but melodic rock, maybe even melodic metal (what, really, is the difference between the two?) - anything that veers more in a pop direction without actually losing its rock roots. Feel free to comment, drop in your own suggestions or just shake your head in despair.

[Trollheart]

What is AOR?

And before you wiseguys give me the predictable answer, here's what I see as a basic, if not perfect, definition of this genre of music.

From what I read, it grew out of the practice of many of the FM radio stations in the USA for taking tracks from albums rather than just playing the singles, leading to its name, and acronym, which can mean both Album Oriented Rock or Adult Oriented Rock (and not, as I used to think, Airplay On Radio, though if you think about it that certainly fits. Then again, so does Awful Old Rock, so let's say no more about it) which covered initially the radio format and then later became a catchall term for the genre. Essentially we're talking rock here with a softer edge, rock with banks of keyboards, guitars that punch but don't draw blood, and vocals that can always be understood. Another, perhaps less kind name for it might be Pretty Boy Rock, and in some ways AOR does share certain traits with what became known as Hair Metal. Not that there's that sort of image in the genre - or indeed any image - but the idea of punchy, commercial rock finds its expression too in this genre.

Subjects are usually love songs, though not always, and some AOR can be downright political, but overall the bands tend to shy away from the more controversial subjects and go for the low-hanging fruit lyricwise. Not always of course, but it's seldom you'll see a protest song or anything necessarily politically relevant in an AOR song. Mostly AOR is about having a good time (or bad; crying into your beer in the ballads, or crooning outside your lady's window in an attempt to woo her back) and much of it tends to look to the past, often wishing to undo mistakes. Doesn't sound like much fun, eh? Well that's the ballads mostly, though AOR has the ability to put sad/regretful lyrics into powerful songs - look at "Worlds Apart" by Journey as an example, or even (shudder) Europe's monster "The Final Countdown."

Anyway, if you want a better explanation of what AOR is, look it up on Wiki. I just wanted to give a basic idea of what I feel the genre is, what it encompasses, and what it is not. Overall, AOR is almost - but not quite, as we'll see - exclusively a male-dominated area, even more so than metal, and therefore the lyrics tend to focus mostly on women, though again, this is not by any means all AOR is about. But if you had to describe the genre in three words, maybe "rock love songs" would not be all that wide of the mark.

[Trollheart]

I guess if, as a hater of AOR, you were asked to pick the one band that epitomised all you despised about the genre, these guys would be right at the top of your list. Perhaps unfairly, perhaps fairly, they've been saddled with the hatred and derision and contempt of all those who mock AOR, mostly because they're seen as a ballads band, a bunch of lads who can't write anything but love songs. There is some truth to this, though listen to their four main albums - Frontiers, Escape, Raised on Radio (for which I stole the title of this journal!) and maybe Generations - and you'll hear more than enough to rock out to. However they are universally known for two songs, both off Escape, one of which gained perhaps unwanted notoriety through both the cover version sung on the TV show Glee, and due to being the last thing people heard when the final episode of The Sopranos faded to black, leaving some people maybe to associate that feeling of shock and anger and dismay with that song. That of course would not be fair, but may be how it is.

In the light of all that, then, this album doesn't go very far towards combatting the idea that Journey are a ballads band, because this one contains almost all ballads, so much so that I think it's Neal Schon or Jonathan Cain referred to it as "the ballads album". Can't get more damning than that. Word is that Journey themselves are not all that fond of the album. But they can suck it, and so can you, cos I love it.




Arrival - Journey - 2000 (Columbia)

So, what's my favourite Journey album? Escape? Nah. Raised on Radio? Do me a favour! Frontiers, maybe? Not even close. Although these albums are seen as being the best in Journey's large catalogue, particularly because of the hit singles that came from them, that's not how I see it. I often think a "classic" album like Escape for instance can rely far too heavily on its hit singles, and this then allows the acceptance of lower-grade, often filler tracks. It's like Manchester United without Wayne Rooney, or Liverpool without Steven Gerrard: without these lynchpins what is left is often shown up to be far below the grade, and this I find definitely to be the case with the three albums listed above. To my mind, a band's best album should be one which you can listen to all the way through, without having to skip one track. Now, few bands release albums of such calibre: there's usually one or more tracks that need to be fast-forwarded through, but on this album I really believe Journey got it almost perfect, despite the prevailing wisdom among the band's fans.

Even though it was less a commercial success than the aforementioned albums, my personal favourite album is 2000's Arrival, and here's why. From the opener "Higher Places" to the closer "We Will Meet Again", the boys hardly put a foot wrong, and it's as close to a perfect Journey album as I've seen them come.

The first test for new singer Steve Augeri, who had the almost impossible task of replacing talismanic singer and longtime member Steve Perry, it's actually scary how similar the guy sounds to his predecessor! In fact, if you were handed this album, and a Perry-era disc like Escape or Frontiers, I really believe you'd be hard-pressed to notice the difference. The guy's voice is clear and distinct, powerful and able to reach the high notes with Perryesque ease. "Higher Place", as mentioned, kicks the album off in superb style, rocking along at a great pace, Schon and Cain as ever on top form, and new drummer Deen Castronovo making his presence felt in no uncertain fashion. It's the ballads that really make this album though, and people can say what they want, sneer as they like at the "soft-rock", "slush-rock" or whatever that Journey produce, but man, they know how to pen a great ballad! There are no less than seven distinct ballads on this album, almost half the song count, and each one is a classic. Nearly.

First on the scene is "All the Way", a lovely piano-led tune on which new guy Augeri helps out with the writing, and he seems to know what he's doing: "Speak your heart and I will listen/ Don't hold back, we'll find what's missin'/ I'll take you all the way/ Close your eyes and think forever/ If you believe we go together/ I'll take you all the way." Okay, it's not "Who's Crying Now?" but it's a damn fine ballad. Moving things up a gear then for the next track, "Signs of Life" is a refusal to lie down after bad things have happened. It's a mid-paced rocker, with great drums and piano, and a lyric that just makes you want to say YEAH! "Try to not think about you/ I'm not a dead man walkin' without you/ You know I'll be alright/ I'm showin' signs of life/ You left me barely breathing/ But I've had time for the healing/ Now I've opened my eyes/ I'm showin' signs of life." Castronovo's drums punch a triumphant military beat throughout the track, and as usual Neal Schon lets his guitar do the talking, even throwing in a cheeky riff from "Who's Crying Now" near the end!

Things stay fast for "All the Things", then slow down again for the second ballad, "Loved By You". It's a gorgeous little song, with Jonathan Cain again taking control of proceedings as his fingers fly like whispering breaths across the keyboard. Sung with power and passion by Augeri, particularly the chorus, this sends a shiver down my spine whenever I hear it: "If I should die before I wake/ I'd go into the night whispering your name/ If lying in your arms is the last thing that I do/ At least I'll know that I've been loved by you." The following track is also a ballad, but a little heavier and more urgent, evoking a sense of urgency and things which have to be done before it's too late. Introduced in a lovely little piece of pick guitar, "Livin' to Do" is a real bluesy ballad, and again Augeri's voice shines through on this, as on most if not all tracks.

"World Gone Wild" and "I Got a Reason" recall memories of tracks like "Be Good to Yourself" from Raised on Radio and "Faith in the Heartland" from later Generations, but for me they're a little unremarkable, and it's not till we get to "With Your Love" (yes, another ballad) that things again click into place for me. It's not that the previous two tracks are poor: they're not, but the overall quality of the ballads on this album forces most of the faster tracks into second place for me, and while I realise it's few albums that would consist only of ballads (step forward, Air Supply!), and you need a few uptempo tracks on any recording, these two just don't cut it as well for me as those which have gone before, or indeed some of the ones to follow. I have to admit though, "World Gone Wild" features a, well, wild guitar solo from Schon to take it to its conclusion. Great to see the man can still rock out with the best of them!

Once you hear those crystal clear piano notes you know another ballad is on the way, and "With Your Love" does not disappoint. With its lyric it surely was and will be played at many a wedding of Journey fans: what girl wouldn't be impressed to hear lines like"On this day, to be standing here with you/ There's no doubt: I know this love is true/ See my tears; only you can understand/ A state of grace; I feel blessed to hold your hand." Another great solo from Neal completes a great, great ballad, and before there's time to draw breath and let that sink in, we're into another. With a powerful punchy drum intro and then the ubiquitous piano, "Lifetime of Dreams" is another of those songs you just know people will be holding lighters up at concerts for, and swaying side to side. It's not quite as deep as the previous song, but a nice ballad nevertheless. In ways it's sort of reminscent of Bryan Adams' megahit "Everything I Do"...

"Live and Breathe" is a heavier ballad, somewhat in the mould of "Livin' to Do", and the penultimate slow song on the album. There's real passion in the singing here, and for once it's less piano-driven, riding along on a nice guitar and bass line, with keyboards taking more of a background role. Castronovo's drums punctuate the track perfectly, giving it that slightly heavier feel, as Schon's guitar breaks out the power chords as if he's just realised what you can do with an electric guitar!

"Nothin' Comes Close" is a good standard rock song, but nothing about it stays with me the way some of the other tracks on this album do. I wouldn't go so far as to call it filler, but I could certainly listen to Arrival without it. "To be alive again", on the other hand, is an instant classic. There's a great exuberance about the song, with the band clearly enjoying themselves. Great hooks, great chorus, nimble fingerwork on the piano keyboard, Augeri's powerful voice and solos from Schon - what more could you ask for?

There's one more ballad to finish up with, and it's a good one, though not in fairness a great one. Given the admitted oversaturation of ballads on this album, it's possible we could have gotten away without "Kiss Me Softly", but it's not a bad track, certainly a better closer than "We Will Meet Again", which actually closes the album. To be honest, my choice for closer would have been "To Be Alive Again", but that's how the disc spins, I guess. Sort of takes away from the general brilliance of the album that it ends relatively weakly, although it must be said that it's only due to the superior quality of the tracks which have preceded these last two that they are seen as substandard: on another Journey album they would probably be hailed as triumphs. Shows you how high the bar was raised on this album.

I would suppose that anyone who was worried that Journey would fold, or be less than they were, after the departure of Steve Perry, had their answer with this album. Although it suffered low sales and chart position, I believe that was more down to fans not giving Steve Augeri a chance, and assuming that he would ruin the album. Perry purists, I'm looking at you! Hey, it's your loss!

TRACK LISTING

1. Higher Place
2. All the Way
3. Signs of Life
4. All the Things
5. Loved By You
6. Livin' to Do
7. World Gone Wild
8. I Got a Reason
9. With Your Love
10. Lifetime of Dreams
11. Live and Breathe
12. Nothin' Comes Close
13. To Be Alive Again
14. Kiss Me Softly
15. We Will Meet Again

[Trollheart]

Hourglass - Millenium - 2000 (Frontiers)

Those of you who know me may know that I am considered something of a "spelling Nazi" - there's nothing I hate more than bad spelling (well, there is, but you know what I mean!), and I'm forever sighing at and correcting others' spelling and grammatical mistakes. So it is with no small sense of irony that I review an album by a band who seem unable to spell their name, though perhaps it's a clever method of differentiating themselves from other bands who might have the same name, or getting their name first in Google results? It doesn't work, as Google ignores what it perceives to be a spelling error and presents results for the word "millennium". Ah well...

I just mention this to point out beforehand that I KNOW the word is misspelt, but that's how this band spell their name, as you can see from the sleeve: one 'n', not two. They're from Tampa, Florida, and will probably be unknown to 98% of you. They're not exactly superstars. Which makes the tremendous quality of this album all the more surprising, and gratifying.

I do believe it was another of those heady in-the-record-shop-with-spare-cash moments, and I just liked the sleeve - sort of reminded me of Hawkwind - and checking the track titles they seemed a rock band, so I thought why not? In the end, I was glad I did. Information is scarce on Millenium, but I think this is their third release, and it's a corker.

It blasts right off with "Power to Love", which opens with an acapella choral vocal before smashing into a mad, reckless, pop-metal AOR slice of Heaven, drummer Oliver Hanson thundering the song along while guitars from Ralph Santolla and Shane French elevate the track to AOR supremacy, and the clear, strong vocals of Jorn Lande present a man who had surely missed out on being a true star, somehow. It's a great start, and things go from good to better with "Wheels are Turning", recalling Journey at their heaviest, and yet somehow better, perhaps because this sort of quality is unexpected in a band almost unknown, and on whom I took a chance and hoped not to be wasting my money. Seriously, you would not believe some of the axe work here! How these guys aren't more successful and recognised I honestly do not know.

The title track is also the longest, just over six minutes, and brings things down a gear with a crunching, slow rocker in the best mould of Dio's "The Last in Line" or "Holy Diver". Jorn Lande manages to come across as a mixture of the best of Ronnie James and David Coverdale here, and he really stretches his vocal range, completely equal to the task. "We all answer to the hourglass/ No escape from the world of the lonely/ Feel the fire burning deep inside/ The soul of the lost soldier... " It's a powerful track, a real stomper, and while the twin guitars are a little more restrained here, they're still very much present, particularly for the solos near the end.

There are only two ballads on the album, but they're so equally great I really can't decide which, if either, is the better. The first up is "No More Miracles", a tender, piano-led melody with a heartfelt lyric sung with conviction and passion by Lande. "Remember when we heard the bell/ It rang for us, we knew it well/ And now we know our dream of love is dying..." It's just further proof of how criminal it is that this band has been largely ignored, as this should be played in a stadium to thousands of cigarette lighters held aloft. You think REO and Toto write good ballads? This blows them all away, I kid you not. There's real drama and pathos in it, and it most certainly does not sound like just a slow song put on the album so there'd be a single for airplay. However, if this HAD received time on the radio, I'm sure it would not only have been a hit, but would be forever cropping up in those "Best Power Ballads" programs shown on the likes of MTV.

Things settle back into a faster groove then for "Superstar", more AOR than the previous tracks, and  slightly inferior, somewhat by-the-numbers, with noticeable Queen overtones in places, while "Rocket Ride" fails to bring the bar back up to the high level set by the likes of "Power to love" and "Wheels are turning". It's not till the second ballad makes its appearance that the huge untapped potential of this band is on show again. "I Will Follow" - NOT a cover of the U2 song! - is another passionate and powerful song, though where "No More Miracles" was gentle, this is raunchier, with a bluesy beat and some great guitar from Santolla. To be honest, just to get two ballads of this quality on the one album would have represented value for money to me. But there's so much more.

"I Still Believe" momentarily fools you into thinking it's a third ballad, but that idea is quickly dispelled as Santolla ramps up the riffs and the song takes off, becoming a mid-paced rocker with an almost jazz/funk backbeat which actually works, and the song changes yet again, becoming quite anthemic as it goes on. Great vocal harmonies help to lift this track out of the realms of the ordinary, and the tempo keeps rockin' for "Masquerade", where a great combination of keyboards and guitar carry Lande's vocals along and create a song reminiscent of Canadian AOR merchants Glass Tiger. The album ends on  the powerful "Chasing Time", its opening recalling ELO with its somewhat skewed harmonies, but soon gets going and takes Hourglass to a satisfying conclusion.

As I say, for an album I picked up "on spec", and did not expect too much from, this turned out to be something of a diamond in the rough, the musical equivalent of a rare antique bought for ten quid at a car boot sale. It truly beggars belief that Millenium never hit the big time, but at least they did craft an album that can comfortably and proudly sit up there with the best AOR has to offer.

TRACK LISTING

1. Power to Love
2. Wheels are turning
3. Hourglass
4. No More Miracles
5. Superstar
6. Rocket Ride
7. I Will Follow
8. I Still Believe
9. Masquerade
10. Chasing Time

Note: Since writing this I see that Jorn Lande has in fact his own band (Jorn) and has indeed become something of an AOR superstar. Fair play t'ya pal, as we say here! Delighted for him. As for the band? Well, this was their third album, seemingly the only one on which Lande sang, so possibly he might be seen as a sort of guest vocalist? Hmm. Very odd. Original vocalist was one J. Todd Plant, and this was the only album he was not the singer on, though he returned for their fourth, and final album, Jericho, released in 2004, dropping the J and just credited as Todd Plant. After that album it looks like Millenium hung around a bit but disbanded in 2018. Lande has gone on to work with Ark, Masterplan, Ayreon and as mentioned then formed his own band under his own name.

Guess wheels were turning for him, all right, whereas for the rest of Millenium, they fell right off.