VEGA - review added 30th November 2010
Album Review: Kiss Of Life (2010)
For fans of: Hard Rock... and being away from Eden
Vega, featuring former Kick/Eden vocalist Nick Workman, renowned writing duo Tom and James Martin (House of Lords, Ted Poley, Khymera, Sunstorm) on guitar and keyboards respectively, and Dan Chantrey on drums, is a new project that's more showcase of talent than real band (at present, though things may change). Still when there's this much talent - and bear in mind John Greatwood and Dennis Ward are working behind the scenes on this one - you've got to take notice.
Tom and James may be unknown to a lot of people, but some of the songs they have written or co-written are astonishing. Khymera's 'Burn Out' and 'Love Has Been And Gone', Ted Poley's 'If I Can't Change You Heart (Then Let Me Blow Your Mind)', and From The Inside's 'If It's Not Love' are just some of them, and that's barely scratching the surface. If they get close to repeating that sort of material here, I may fall off my chair with excitement.
The sound is potent keyboard-driven hard rock with a load of big hooks and melodies. The dominating force however is Nick Workman's vocals. He sounded great - if a little like James LaBrie (Dream Theater) - on their release earlier this year, so we'll see what happens here...
Good:
The vocals, musicianship and songwriting are all (at the very least) rather splendid. These are talented guys and they aren't afraid to let the world know that fact. The production is so crystal clear you could make shot glasses from it. The songwriting is, whilst not as amazing as hoped, still better than most people ever manage. Don't be surprised to see these guys creating chart toppers before their days are up.
Not So Good:
Nothing of any significance. I hoped Tom and James may have saved their best songs for this album, but they haven't. Hardly a problem though. Nick can teeter over into the realms of shouting on occasion, but even then he sounds great.
The Songs:
'Into The Wild' is a boisterous catchy opener. The title track is about a thousand times bigger though, boasting a massive sing along chorus and clever understated verse structure. 'One Of A Kind' is pleasant but a tad flat after the previous entry. The rocking 'Staring At The Sun' is back on route with another contagious chorus. 'Too Young For Wings' is a lovely ballad made brilliant by Nick's vocals. It takes a time to get going, but it's all worthwhile once the man cranks his voice into heaven. 'Another' again takes a while to get going, but again the chorus is magnificent.
The U2-esque 'Headlights' is more of a rounded track - better as a whole, but lacking the monster chorus. 'Hearts Of Glass' is a racy little number with a cool moody vibe. Love it. 'Stay With Me' is very Khymera-like, and I actually think Dennis Ward would have sounded better singing it...strangely. The spunky-sounding 'Wonderland' is jolly interesting, but I'm not sure if I like it or not. 'What It Takes' is a memorable upbeat ballad. 'Sos', which is possibly called S.O.S. in reality (although I'm not sure, blame the press sheet) is a very pleasant if uneventful end to the album.
In Summation:
The album occasionally fails to hit the highs I expected, but that's only because expectations were set so stratospheric. By any normal measure "Kiss Of Life" is a bit of a monster. Buy it.
Entertainment/Enjoyment:
Musicianship:
Vocals:
Song Writing:
Production:
Overall:
Check out... The title track, and the rest of it too.
Track List:
01. Into The Wild
02. Kiss Of Life
03. One Of A Kind
04. Staring At The Sun
05. Too Young For Wings
06. Another
07. Headlights
08. Hearts Of Glass
09. Stay With Me
10. Wonderland
11. What It Takes
12. Sos
Label: Frontiers Records
