ANGELS OR KINGS - Kings Of Nowhere

[AlphaMale]

from odayrox:

 

The uploads are my own:

 

 

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If ever there was an '80s British AOR that were criminally ignored by record labels, then A.O.K. fitted that bill perfectly. Founded in Manchester, England in 1988, they were made up of ex members of Sam Thunder, Circus and Strutz, to name a few, and tore it up on Oxford Road – Manchester’s answer to Sunset Strip – playing the Banshee and Rockworld and as opener in larger venues for Dare and Danger Danger.

 

After 30 years this superb band pull it out of the fire. Now under the complete name ANGELS OR KINGS, the band is releasing "Kings Of Nowhere", their debut CD on AOR Heaven Records.

Like a fine wine or single malt whisky, "Kings Of Nowhere" has been worth wait.

 

A fault with many of the modern AOR/ Melodic Rock bands is writing to a formula, and they try to make every song an anthem.

 

There's nowt wrong with this, but AOK are old-school and their craft comes from a time when some of the greats put great time and effort into their writing.

 

Think of some of your favourite bands – Journey, Giant, & Giuffria from the past and the newer age such as HEAT, Vega, Eclipse; well Angels or Kings ride this AOR train hot on the coat tails of these luminaries past and present.

Opener "Any Other Girl" is a song that just slaps you around the face and deserves to be heard by the masses. After just one listen I guarantee that you’ll be humming and singing into your hairbrush (if you still have hair) along with lead vocalist Baz Jackson, making 5-part harmonies, and begging for more.

 

"Ice Turned To Rain" is a song that would be a huge in in '80s FM Radio America. Come to think of it, the last time I was there, they still think its 1988. "Real Life" is the type of song the likes of Overland's FM tried to write in the early 90s – it’s a blood and guts, fire and brimstone epic number.

Then "Same Star" just oozes melodic class. Halfway through and I just feel as if I have have run out of superlatives to describe this crackin' slab of lovliness!

 

"Left In Love" has yet another singalong chorus and again keeps the Angels Or Kings momentum up high. Keyboards galore feature high on the 'AOK Jonathan Cain scale' and they definitely add to the quality, with "Another Lost Boy" being a prime example. "If Her Tears Could Talk" and title track "Kings Of Nowhere" keep the album strong right to the bitter end.

 

 

 

 

Angels Or Kings play pure, I mean PURE, '80s AOR / Melodic Rock.

 

If you love this genre and love well crafted little nuggets of gold, then look no further than "Kings Of Nowhere", easily among the best AOR albums of 2014 (and I dare to say the decade).

 

Superb songs, excellent production, classy playin' n' singin'... you'll will love this.

 

An album that if released in 1988 would be a classic these days... well, never it's too late, "Kings Of Nowhere" is destined to be a classic in years to come.

 

SUPER HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.


01 - Any Other Girl
02 - A Harder Place
03 - Ice Turned To Rain
04 - Real Life
05 - Same Star
06 - Someone To Save Me
07 - Left Me In Love
08 - A Night Like This
09 - Another Lost Boy
10 - Same Old Love
11 - If Her Tears Would Talk
12 - Kings Of Nowhere

Baz Jackson – Vocals
Tony Bell – Guitars
Rob Naylor – Bass
Steve Kenny – Guitars, Keyboards
Andy Chemmey – Drums
thanx to aorwxm


BUY IT !
www.aorheaven.com/pages/ooze/ooze_sounds.php?3150

 

[Geoff]

Sounds absolutely excellent. Both those songs are superb. Makes me think of the brilliant Arti Tisi. Cannot wait to hear this in full .

[Glen]

Been a long time coming but will be worth it.

[AlphaMale]

Full of great songs!

[Geoff]

Okay, so for peace of mind can someone clarify this for me. I finally got the hard copy of this CD and it looks like a new band recording new songs on a new CD. There is no mention of their past, or old band photos. Just photos of 4 old dudes and a collection of thank you credits.

 

So why was I under the impression this CD was basically a collection of unreleased demos remastered for an eventual release? I thought the band was one of the Garrison's of the world. But am I mistaken? Were these songs written and recorded recently, and is this a new band?

 

I guess if that is the case, the biggest question is, why is the production as weak as it is? It's not dreadful, and assuming it was a collection of old demos polished, I thought it was pretty good. But if it is in fact actually a new band with new recordings, why does it sound as it is? AOR Heaven rarely (if ever) release poorly produced albums...

 

Oh, and I need to know. Karpetface and Glen have been very critical of the lead vocals. I actually really like the guy's voice. Are Glen and Karpetface on acid, or do other people not like his voice? I like his 80's rasp plenty. I not only don't dislike his vocals, but I actually like his voice.

[Glen]

As far as I am aware this band has been around for sometime and just never got their songs recorded.

 

I believe that they won the unsigned bands competition to open the final fling Firefest back in October and this was a springboard to record the album.

 

BUT, i might be wrong.

 

Whatever is the case, I wont be buying it.

[PeterS]

I really like his voice. And the album. Any Other Girl one of my favorite songs of the year.

[AlphaMale]

I don't see anything wrong with his voice. I think the disc is excellent.

[melodicrockoz]

I was quite impressed with the songs having seen the band's gig a few months ago, I might be in the minority here but the band are better live than on record.

Glen were you at Firefest for AOK?

[Glen]

I was quite impressed with the songs having seen the band's gig a few months ago, I might be in the minority here but the band are better live than on record.

Glen were you at Firefest for AOK?

No I was only there on the Saturday - mainly for Boulevard & babylon AD

[Geoff]

I have to say, for a current band, as it seems they are... I don't think there is any other band I can think of that has nailed a pure late 80's sound as perfectly as these guys. Like I said, I genuinely believed these were old songs recorded back then for release now. Like a mix of Garrison and Arti Tisi.

 

Congrats to the band on completely nailing the sound of that era. Jeez, if this had had a production job like the best of their peers it would have made my year.

[Glen]

I have to say, for a current band, as it seems they are... I don't think there is any other band I can think of that has nailed a pure late 80's sound as perfectly as these guys. Like I said, I genuinely believed these were old songs recorded back then for release now. Like a mix of Garrison and Arti Tisi.

 

Congrats to the band on completely nailing the sound of that era. Jeez, if this had had a production job like the best of their peers it would have made my year.

 

As I said, these are NOT recent songs - the band has been around for donkeys years, performing live back in the late 80s early 90s

 

If ever there was an eighties super group of totally obscure proportions, then A.O.K fitted that bill perfectly. They were made up of ex members of Sam Thunder, Circus and Strutz, to name a few, and tore it up on Oxford Road – Manchester’s answer to Sunset Strip – playing the Banshee and Rockworld. Whilst their history is well documented in Tony Bell’s excellent book “Life In The Bus Lane”, it doesn’t capture the vitality or energy that oozed from their every pore. Unfairly dubbed the poor man’s FM, they were far more than just a bunch of mere clones or plagiarists. In Noel Fraser they had a vocalist that could keep up with the best, but ultimately it was the songs that were the stars of the A.O.K show. In the late eighties, early nineties they stood shoulder to shoulder with a plethora of unsigned acts, ultimately doomed to a life of obscurity. It was hard to pinpoint their exact failings, but it was ultimately the change in the musical climate that put paid to their dreams of the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle, or as Tony Bell put it in Classic Rock AOR, “Grunge gate-crashed my party. It hid my hairspray, trashed my records, supped my beer, nicked my girl and then dressed her like a bloke!”

[Glen]

PS -

 

"Unfairly dubbed the poor man’s FM"

 

Fairly actually ;-)

[Geoff]

Oh, well there you go! So we're back at square one, and I did have the right impression of this album in my head. Although, is it like the Seven album, and the old songs have all been re-recorded this year? Or are these actually the original recordings "polished" up a bit?

 

As for "poor man's FM." FM may have them on 'Tough it out' and bits of 'Indescreet,' but this massacres the rest of their discography by the 2nd or 3rd song on the album. Outside of 'Tough it out,' this one CD has more great songs on it than FM's entire catalogue.

[Glen]

Was that Seven album re recorded?

[Stefan]

Was that Seven album re recorded?

 

Yep. Or at least part of it.

[Glen]

 

Was that Seven album re recorded?

 

Yep. Or at least part of it.

Thats interesting - I wonder if they might play live?

[AlphaMale]

more from the bands website:

 

GETTING THE BAND BACK TOGETHER

A chance meeting between me and the boys at a Firefest after show lead to the discussion of the band reforming, “We’ve got something on the go,” slurred Tony Bell, “But we’re lazy, we need a kick up the arse”. That kick came in the shape of Barrie Jackson, an unknown vocalist who carried a style that was tailor made for AOR. Hailing from the Dales of Yorkshire – more like New York-shire, judging by the sound of that voice – Jackson, alongside original members Tony Bell, Steve Kenny and Rob Naylor, was the final piece of the jigsaw. A slew of promising demos quickly followed, with Classic Rock AOR declaring, “Jackson has given the band an edge that sets them even further apart from the competition.” Setting up camp in Shabby Road studios, the journey towards their debut album began in earnest. With the basics intact, and with original Drummer, Andy Chemmey, along for the ride, they moved to Mad Hat studios (Magnum) and under the guidance of Sheena Sear and Mark Stuart, they put the finishing touches to “The Kings Of Nowhere”. A true statement of intent, the boys have built on their initial promise by delivering a quintessential UK AOR album. Like their early days, it’s all about the songs and this album has them in spades. From the stirring anthemic strains of future classic “Any Other Girl” through to the swirling keyboards of “Lost Boy”, whilst stopping off at the epic “Real Life” and the Van Halen esque “If Her Tears Could Talk”, this rollercoaster of AOR covers all the bases.

THE FUTURE

They are the people’s band – winning a fan voted appearance at this year’s final Firefest proved that – and they deserve your utmost attention. In a world of AOR that heaps praise on the bland and the boring, it makes a refreshing change to see a home-grown outfit deliver on the hyperbole by actually being good. It’s a little over twenty years since they called it a day, but these kings of nowhere are here to stay this time. They’ve loved and lost along the way but that’s just put some grit under their fingernails, enabling them to provide an album that is both honest and real. This is British songwriting at its absolute best.

ROB EVANS – CLASSIC ROCK AOR & POWERPLAY MAGAZINES

[AlphaMale]

Check out an old video of the band when they were known as AOK:

 

http://vimeo.com/8659092

[AlphaMale]

Another:

 

[KarpetRydOFunk]

So is "Angels or Kings" a backronym of AOK? Because they should go back to AOK. Angels or Kings is an odd name, and it's evident when half the blokes here keep calling them "Angels AND Kings."

 

Anyway, I've been listening to this album a lot. I'm trying to force myself to tolerate the vocals, because the songs are so good.

[AlphaMale]

So is "Angels or Kings" a backronym of AOK? Because they should go back to AOK. Angels or Kings is an odd name, and it's evident when half the blokes here keep calling them "Angels AND Kings."

 

Anyway, I've been listening to this album a lot. I'm trying to force myself to tolerate the vocals, because the songs are so good.

 

I'm surprised but it's getting rave reviews pretty much across the board on most music websites.

 

Yes.... they were originally just known as A.O.K., which stood for Angels Or Kings,

[KarpetRydOFunk]

 

 

So is "Angels or Kings" a backronym of AOK? Because they should go back to AOK. Angels or Kings is an odd name, and it's evident when half the blokes here keep calling them "Angels AND Kings."

 

Anyway, I've been listening to this album a lot. I'm trying to force myself to tolerate the vocals, because the songs are so good.

I'm surprised but it's getting rave reviews pretty much across the board on most music websites.

 

Yes.... they were originally just known as A.O.K., which stood for Angels Or Kings,

So it always stood for "Angels or Kings?"

 

I'll have to watch those vids when I'm home, 'cause I'm interested in what they sounded like with their original singer.

[AlphaMale]

I think

 

 

 

So is "Angels or Kings" a backronym of AOK? Because they should go back to AOK. Angels or Kings is an odd name, and it's evident when half the blokes here keep calling them "Angels AND Kings."

Anyway, I've been listening to this album a lot. I'm trying to force myself to tolerate the vocals, because the songs are so good.

I'm surprised but it's getting rave reviews pretty much across the board on most music websites.

Yes.... they were originally just known as A.O.K., which stood for Angels Or Kings,

So it always stood for "Angels or Kings?"

I'll have to watch those vids when I'm home, 'cause I'm interested in what they sounded like with their original singer.

 

 

From the clips, he sounds like a better singer IMO.

[Glen]

Wouldnt be hard ;-)