RATED X - Rated X (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock

Label - Frontiers Records

Track listing:

01. Get Back My Crown

02. This Is Who I Am

03. Fire And Ice

04. I Don't Cry No More

05. Lhasa

06. Devil In Disguise

07. You Are The Music

08. Peace Of Mind

09. Maybe Tonight

10. On The Way To Paradise

11. Our Love Is Not Over

12. Stranger In Us All

The label contacted singer Joe Lynn Turner asking for a band of highest calibre musicians should be assembled to create an album of classic hard rock music. Turner, the former lead vocalist for both Rainbow and Deep Purple and a solo artist in his own right, agreed, and the search for the right players was on.
And what a bunch of players.
Alongside with Turner, we have living legend Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, King Kobra, Blue Murder), Tony Franklin (The Firm, Blue Murder, Whitesnake) and Karl Cochran (Ace Frehley) collaborating together. The album was made under the guidance of an aulic Frontiers’ producer, the omnipresent (and perhaps omnipotent, considering the vast amount as well as quality of his work) Alessandro Del Vecchio.
Do the iconic names in the band’s camp equal the fulfilment of the great expectations a listener should have?
Oh yeah.
Starting with thunderous drum roll that develops into the first track “Get Back My Crown,” Rated X is, to paraphrase an old adage, the best of four worlds. From the fiery drumming being the trademark of legendary Carmine Appice to Joe Lynn Turner’s powerhouse singing and charisma, it’s having all the key ingredients of hard rock masterpiece blended into one.
And although there might have been some Purple-esque flavors to the opening song on the album and you might have caught yourself thinking about Turner-fronted Purple album Slaves And Masters at times – the music is every inch contemporary, meaty rock sound that screams 2014 rather than the ‘80s or ‘90s.
The second track “This Is Who I Am” continues in a feisty, bluesy manner enhanced by the flawless modern-day production, with the infallible Turner belting out a powerful self-independence manifesto.
The mellow intro and slow-ish verses of “Fire And Ice” may have suggested there’s a ballad coming on, but it’s just the opposite with fiery choruses and fine guitar solo. Next is a groovy, Hammond-flavoured “I Don’t Cry No More” that has the reunited Blue Murder rhythm section of Appice and Franklin squeezing the blood, sweat and tears from their instruments – almost literally.
“Lhasa” begins with an eerie, mysterious intro that might have made your hair stand on end – only to develop into a monumental, slow, lumbering piece with some distant echoes of or Dio-era Rainbow. “Devil In Disguise” is another Purple-esque track that may remind you of Joe Lynn Turner’s work in either Purple or Stuart Smith’s Heaven & Earth.
It precedes a fine melodic mid-tempo “You Are The Music” enriched with what is perhaps the best guitar solo on the album. “Peace Of Mind” stands out because of the pounding bass sound and well-crafted choruses, while “Maybe Tonight” slows down a bit, a charming AOR / melodic rock piece much in Turner’s usual style (think Sunstorm or his solo albums).
“On The Way To Paradise” gets much feistier, bringing a solid dose of straight-in-your-face ‘70s-flavoured riffs against some powerhouse drumming. “Our Love Is Not Over” is a ballad-esque, AOR-ish mid-tempo featuring some tasteful guitar licks, again a nod and a wink to JLT’s melodic rock roots.
This being the next-to-last song on the album, the final one is a keyboard-laden, monumental track “Stranger In Us All” with many interesting changes of pace.
With Rated X, you may start to wonder what secret potions or magical practises keep the musicians in such a good shape – like a fine wine, they’re getting better and better with time, still able to amaze the listeners and release another milestones of their respective careers.
And even though the eldest of the pack, Carmine Appice, will celebrate his 68th birthday this year, there’s still no competition to the iconic drummer – none of the youngsters being able to rise up to such a challenge! If you have any doubts, check out the pounding drumming that’s been the backbone of Rated X and the core of their first album, against Karl Cochran’s tasteful guitar playing, Tony Franklin’s fretless-bass chops and the immaculate vocal talent of Joe Lynn Turner.
With such a line-up overseen by Alessandro Del Vecchio himself, you couldn’t simply have gone wrong. If you’re a Rainbow staunch aficionado or an avid Blue Murder fan, you know you can’t miss Rated X anyway, but if you’re just into the contemporary melodic hard rock that has its back-to-roots moments too – be sure to include it on your list of must-haves.
Highly Recommended.

Rated - 9/10

ACE FREHLEY - Space Invader [Deluxe Edition] (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock

Label - Steamhammer (SPV)

Track listing:

01 - Space Invader

02 - Gimme a Feelin' (Radio Edit)

03 - I Wanna Hold You

04 - Change

05 - Toys

06 - Immortal Pleasures

07 - Inside the Vortex

08 - What Every Girl Wants

09 - Past the Milky Way

10 - Reckless

11 - The Joker

12 - Starship

13 - Space Invader (Radio Edit) [bonus track]

14 - Gimme a Feelin' (explicit version) [bonus track]

One of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame’s newest inductees, ACE FREHLEY, is unleashing a nugget of rock gold next week on August 19, entitled... “Space Invader”. Yes, not only the title and the album artwork has a nod to his KISS years, but so does the music inside, a little too much in place if I am honest.
The first thing you realise listening to the title track which opens the CD is that this could well be a track from Frehley’s legendary 1978 solo album. Despite or maybe because of all the space-age technology available, Ace you see is still stuck in a time warp, and this is the best thing about this album. It's pure late seventies / early eighties.
"Gimme A Feelin" that follows has that trademark bombastic riff, a rough but charming vocal and slightly awkward lyrics that were always a huge part of Frehley’s boyish charm. When you add to that a ‘could only be Ace’ solo it’s a track that’s ‘perfectly imperfect’ like all of Ace’s best numbers.
"I Wanna Hold You" is a cool track that gives Ace another card in his deck of tricks. The song has a playful melodic rock sensibility without losing the edge that his voice and guitar lend to virtually every track in his catalogue.
"Change" has a meaty riff that starts the track, but the chugging rhythm underneath the vocals adds depth and grit to the track that makes this a bit heavier than other tracks here without deviating from Ace’s signature sound.
"Toys" rides over a groovy bluesy riff that offset the chunky guitar parts in the verse. The vocals and lyrics are all Ace. The tempo and mood of this track remind me of the song 'Dolls' from his first post-Kiss solo disc, 1987′s Frehley’s Comet.
"Immortal Pleasures" is a different track from Ace standards that features a muted guitar line that adds depth to the song, especially once the vocals kick in and give the song an identity. "What Every Girls Wants" is a return to a sound and era for Ace. The feel of this track sounds like a riff he would have constructed in his formative Kiss years, while adding the experience of being a seasoned solo artist who has developed his own sound.
"Reckless" plays off of other tracks on this disc, while adding a playful vibe from earlier Frehley gems. This song helps tie pieces of Ace’s past with the present, and hopefully the future.

"Inside The Vortex" gives all Ace fans exactly what they are looking for: tight vocals and tighter guitars. The drumming and bass on this track are really hard rockin' without bringing the vibe of the song down. 

"Past The Milky Way" is reminiscent of his 1978 solo album, in that it breaks the mold of what is expected from him, but comes off as only an Ace Frehley track can. The chorus and bridges are chock full of guitar fire that duet nicely with his vocal. 

"The Joker" is an interesting take on the Steve Miller track. Although cut from different clothes, you see how adaptive Ace and his playing can be in creating his own spin on an all too familiar track without totally changing it.

"Starship" is a good instrumental from Frehley that brings all of the facets of this disc and his career together in a cool 7:00 opus. The use of effects and his playing harken back to 'Fractured Mirror' while updating that groove and feeling to 2014 with this song. The track is a bit heavier, but reminds us why we loved Ace in the first place.

This Deluxe Edition, apart from two very nice posters, includes two bonus tracks; a Radio Edit of "Space Invader" which I think has been slightly re-mixed, and a worthwhile 'Explicit Version' of the catchy single "Gimme a Feelin'".

Ace Frehley surprises with “Space Invader”: not only for the very classic songwriting but also for the production / sound, very vintage yet with a 2014 recording technique.

This album sounds, to my ears at least, much more like KISS Klassic than anything on Monster did. 

Space Ace has out KISSed KISS. He even got Ken Kelly, the guy who did the album art for Destroyer and Love Gun, to do the cover artwork. This may end up being the best KISS album KISS never recorded… hell, it may end up being the best KISS album since Revenge.

Anyway, forget comparisons to any bands Ace has been associated with in the past – a great record is a great record… and this is a great recording. 

With “Space Invader” Ace has outdone himself and proven to the world once again why he has influenced guitar players and that he is still relevant in 2014.

Highly Recommended.

Rating - 9/10

Ace Frehley - Anomaly

The original Spaceman returns with an awesome new album,'Anomaly', which is up there with his very first solo album from ’78!
'Anomaly' has the classic Ace sound, with the former KISS guitarist deliberately having tried to get close to his very first solo outing which he pulls off with ease here,
The album kicks off quite heavy with Foxy & Free, which is one of the two oldest songs on the album. (he basically used material he worked on over the last few years (only two songs were written before the time Ace joined KISS again to do a reunion tour in ’96), It’s a bit of a Jimi Hendrix tribute with references to the Hendrix classics Foxy Lady and Voodoo Chile. This is one of my favourites on the album.
'Outer Space' another rather heavy tune (which was written by Ace plus Jesse Mendez and David Askew) is a close second!
Other stand out tracks include ' Pain In The Neck ', The Sweet’s classic 'Fox On The Run', 'Too Many Faces', which has some great lyrics and 'Space Bear'.
To be honest 'Anomaly' is a great album throughout, with its only weakness really being the vocals, but Ace has often commented that he is no virtuoso singer!
Lets just hope that the new Kiss album is as solid when it comes out later this year!

Rating 9/10