First Signal - 'FACE YOUR FEARS'

Back to the Future!

The singer in question is Harry Hess and like his melodic peers Overland and Vaughn the man’s voice has not dropped one single step over the years. Rumour has it Mr Hess took a more hands on approach after being disappointed with the sound of the last outing and you can hear it all over the record. Gone is the underwater drum sound that has plagued several Frontiers releases and some of the hooks and choruses are absolutely immense. There’s also a heavier vibe to the whole sound due mostly to it being underpinned by those stellar drums plus what we’ll call some ‘gentle liberation’ from one of the genres current darlings Eclipse.

The first five tracks on the album were penned by the afore mentioned Jane Gould (if you’re not familiar then go check out her album from last year called Forget Me Not) and the fresh writing allied with Hess’s vocal delivery make it sound like you’re listening to a greatest hits album. ‘Unbreakable’ launches of the start line with those killer drums, groove driven verses and the first of several anthemic choruses that will have you smiling from ear to ear. ‘Situation Critical’ again opens with another furious drum line and a wee hint of the Eclipse vibe before racing away into another belter of a rocker, some of the drum fills on the verses are insane.

Track three is ‘Shoot the Bullet’ and again it’s the familiar ground of an up tempo rocker, huge pocket driven groove that stutters brilliantly into another anthemic chorus. Time to take a breathe as we pull over and take in the view for ‘Always be There’, an utterly gorgeous piece of music. Wonderful heartfelt lyrics sung beautifully from Hess but the real star here is the arrangement. Back to the future road we go again as ‘Dominoes’ explodes as if someone has retro fitted the flux capacitor with an instant ‘88’ gear! Furious drums and a stunning guitar solo set up a breathless four minutes of hard rock nirvana.

The fabulously named ‘Rain for your Roses’ is up next and it sits in that mid-tempo slot that has been missing up until now. Brooding, almost restrained in the verse you’re just begging the chorus to be let loose and boy do they let it loose. Put simply, it soars! ‘Face Your Fears’ is up next and it’s another glorious trip as Hess delivers a masterclass in vocal play that acts as the perfect foil for some intricate and powerful guitar lines. ‘Never Gonna Let You Go’ allows us to take a pause for the cause again as it meanders through a harmony laden tale that is probably as close as you’ll find to a Harem Scarem song.

Three songs to go and we start the final straight with ‘Not this Time’. Opening with another harmonic hat tip to Eclipse before opening up into a foot stomping, fist pumping anthem. There’s always time for a ballad, right? That’s what we get with the penultimate track ‘In the Name of Love’. Opening with just the slightest hint of the classic Bonnie Raitt ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’ it unfolds into a proper old school tear jerker, stellar song writing again from Jane Gould that Hess tears his heart (and vocal chords) open on. Finishing line in sight and we head there on the wings of ‘Never be Silenced’, another hook laden anthemic slice of melodic loveliness.

If like me, you thought you were done with Frontiers then I’d suggest you strap yourself in and go back in time for some of the best melodic rock you’ll hear this year and if you don’t believe me then let me finish by paraphrasing young Master McFly…

“I Guess You Guys Aren't Ready For That Yet. But Your ‘Parents’ Are Gonna Love It."

Much Love

Ross Macdonald