TERRA NOVA - review added 2nd July 2010
Album Review: Come Alive (2010)
For fans of: Hard Rock... and Journey Vs. Grand Illusion
Dutch group Terra Nova - Gesuino Derosas on guitars, Lars Beuving on drums, Ron Hendrix on keyboards, Fred Hendrix on vocals, and Eric Coenen on bass - came into existence in the early 1990s, releasing their debut "Livin’ It Up" in 1996. "Break Away" followed a year later, and "Make My Day" came along in 1999.
After a number of record company issues, the band split. Six years down the line, Italian record label Frontiers commissioned a new album. The critically acclaimed "Escape" was the result. In 2008 the guys started work on what was to become "Come Alive", the band's 5th full studio release.
The sound is pleasantly upbeat, fresh and a nice balance between hard rock, pomp and AOR. There are nods to Journey's soaring hooks, Grand Illusion's multi-layered vocals, Brother Firetribe's speedy rhythms and more. Truth is this band has been going long enough to have it's own style by now. The fact it crosses paths with a few other groups is strangely irrelevant.
Yes, there are occasional accent-issues with the singing, but in general the vocals are very top-end. Same goes for the musicianship and production. Terra Nova is packed full of talent, and this album demonstrates it admirably. I'm especially fond of the retro keyboard flourishes that bridge the gap between the rocking present day and the progressive past.
Few of the tracks on "Come Alive" are likely to be all-time classics, but several of them really do get very close. As a whole this is an album to savour like few others. Just about every song is hugely memorable, and picking a favourite is surprisingly difficult. Take your pick from the warm title track, the keyboard-licious 'Fighting Yourself', the very Journey-esque 'Holy Grail', the slower but achingly catchy 'Here Comes The Night', the sparkling love-ballad charms of 'Those Eyes', the accelerated 'Under Pressure', the wonderfully chorused 'Do Or Die', the fun 'Who Can You Count On', the theatrical 'My Own Way' and the thoughtful 'The Final Curtain'. My money goes on 'Here Comes The Night', but you could comfortably put together a case for any track.
It took several listens to get into, but this new one from Terra Nova is worth the effort. It's a superb release and without doubt an essential purchase for fans of the genre...and it's one of the very best this year.
Check out... All of it.
Track List:
01. Come Alive
02. Fighting Yourself
03. Holy Grail
04. Here Comes The Night
05. Those Eyes
06. Under Pressure
07. Do Or Die
08. Who Can You Count On
09. My Own Way
10. The Final Curtain
Label: Frontiers Records
Artist's website(s): Terra Nova | MySpace
