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1 hour ago, Geoff said:

Jeez you guys are kind to this band. Both songs, imho, are okay at absolute - really stretching it - best. I feel like we all agreed that Wig Wam were once excellent but ended up sucking by the time they finished up.

Sadly, for me, this band takes up where Wig Wam left off, at the end, when they kind of sucked. Sorry dudes, cannot share any enthusiasm for this one.  

I'm with you...just never got into these guys and this doesn't do much for me.  Mostly I think I just don't care for vocals.

Maybe a few too many categories but bands you've listed seem reasonable to me.

It just goes to show how diverse "rock" is.

1 hour ago, simo said:

Taking back my comment, listened to bits of ''Harder To Breathe'' on my phone back in October and didn't like it but after a proper listen I must say I like it. Heavy, melodic and with a bit of pop appeal, officially looking forward to the new album! The other two songs are good as well, seems like the band has progressed quite nicely

Yeah...sounds different than the debut stuff to me.  I've went back today going through their back catalog and really not finding much at all I like.  And the singer sounds way worse to me on the debut.

I don't know if maybe there's more production or more tuning going on...but vocals sound cleaner and songs have more going on with hooks and melodies imo.

Still not sure if I'll be buying this as I'm not generally a big sleaze listener.  But it's on the maybe list and hope there is another song or two before release.

Think I've settled on my personal top 10 for 2017.  What a year...Most releases I've bought in a year in quite some time.  I'm usually pretty selective as I know what I like and it usually only results in me buying a handful of albums in a year.  Not this year though.

1.  Midnite City - S/T - Liked every song, hits my taste perfectly and haven't been able to get enough of this album since it released.

2.  H..e.a.t - Into The Great Unknown - Like the album plenty, one or two songs that I don't care much for though that pushed it to #2

3.  Crazy Lixx - Ruff Justice - My new favorite album from this band that for me edges out New Religion.  

4.  Eclipse - Monumentum - Solid album but gets a tiny bit samey in spots.  For me, a little more variety could've pushed it up on the list.

5.  Tokyo Motor Fist - S/T - Great debut that also hit my tastes perfectly.  One or two songs not doing much for me and thin production knocked it down a little but some great songs on this.  

6.  Harem Scarem - United - I haven't been a fan of these guys and don't own any other releases.  However, something about this one grabbed me.  Fantastic melodic rock album top to bottom.

7.  One Desire - S/T - This album wasn't instantaneous for me but grew on me more than any other album this year.  It's one I find that I keep coming back to.

8.  Wildness - S/T - Great debut, good mix of songs and another that seems to be a grower for me.  I have to say the #5 through #8 are almost interchangeable for me.  

9.  Degreed - S/T -  Another consistent album from these guys.  Shakedown might be my favorite tune this year.  I really don't like the piano ballad though and the second half falls off a little bit for me knocking this down.

10.Romeo Riot - Sing It Loud - Solid melodic rock, good variety.  It's down on the list as I don't think it really blows me away but it's definitely a solid album and enjoy listening to it.  I dare say it might be my favorite Kivel release.

Two that just missed for me were Warrant's Louder Harder Faster and Art Nation's Liberation.  I enjoyed both those albums at times this year but haven't had much desire to go back to them since filing them away.

Will be interesting to see others lists to see stuff I've missed that I might like.  A couple that have shown up on other lists I've given some time to are Confess, Pink Cream 69 and Code Red but those just haven't clicked with me enough to buy them.  I've been real close with Confess and PC69 as there are a couple tunes on each I like but they haven't won me over for some reason.

On 10/14/2017 at 4:55 AM, Mr.AOR said:

I like it... and the singer Hannes Kett reminds me of a young Ted Poley (looks wise)

Sound-wise the singer reminds me a bit of the singer from Bad City.  Maybe it's just because I listened to that album earlier this week lol.  Let's hope he can stay out of jail though 

Never really been into these guys but admittedly haven't paid too much attention to them either.

I'm kind of liking these new songs though after giving them a listen.  I'll have to let them sink in a bit.

I've went back and listened to some of their earlier stuff and nothing has really grabbed me.  These new songs sound better to me....mostly just the vocals and production.  I was even wondering if it's the same singer.  Maybe I just haven't followed these guys enough or something.

I'm on the fence...Kind of not sure if I like it or not lol but I find myself being drawn back to it for some reason.  I think I like People Like Us the best so far, followed by Harder To Breathe and then Carnival Days.  I think that Carnival Days song is one I can't decide if I like or not.  I don't care for the beginning but it gets better in the chorus.  It's a unique sounding song though. 

I'll probably wait to hear another song or two before deciding.

Update posted today on FB on this....Sounding good!

We gave everyone a sneak earful in Oct from the upcoming STEEL CITY release. We announced in Dec that they would be doing shows in the new year. The album is set to come out Feb 19th, and we couldn’t be more excited about this new album.

Produced by scene favorite, Johnny Lima. Steel City “Fortress” is a 10 song album of a dynamic guitars and vocals by the duo of Bryan Cole and Mike Floros. We will let them give it to you in their own words on what you can expect from Fortress

Mike Floros: We took every measure possible to make sure folks will have a hard rocking, melodic experience. It's from the heart so we truly hope you love the Steel City debut, Fortress.

Bryan Cole: I’m very proud of what we’ve done with Steel City. Fortress really shows a much heavier side of me vocally, while still retaining my melodic style. Expect to hear the big harmonies and catchy songs, with a more aggressive vocal style from me. I love this record. We’re excited about the album and to have the Kivel Records’ machine behind it. Cant wait for everyone to hear it.

So what else can we offer? Say? Promise? How about we give you the album art for FORTRESS. Created by none other than the great and talented Nello Dell'Omo ! We are very proud to have him help bring us another great visual creation.

He has created some stunning artwork in the scene for so many great artists and labels. We are honored to be a part of his portfolio with the various Kivel releases he has done for us. From Jace Pawlak, Livesay, Love N Revenge to Tango Down and Romeo Riot. We now add STEEL CITY to that list.

We give you Steel City “Fortress”

Coming in February on Kivel Records

Hear Steel City "Turnabout" Here > https://soundcloud.com/kivel-records/steel-city-promo

Anyone out there have the Japan version of the album with the bonus track Eyes Of Fire?

I've heard a short sample and the song sounds great....would love to hear the whole song in a lossless format if at all possible if anybody would be willing to share it.

1 hour ago, Stefan said:

I wanted this one as well but by the looks of it the band don't want to sell the CD outside the States.

Total cost $58.13 ($43.14 shipping) to Finland!

Good grief.

Yikes.  That has to be a mistake on their part or something.  I'd message them on FB or something to ask.

I never paid attention to these guys until recently stumbling across them.  I'm digging most of their stuff for something a little bit different than what I'm normally listening to....nothing fancy or groundbreaking but solid modern melodic rock.

Saw a post on FB saying that album #2 could be out by the end of 2018.  Seems pretty quick but I know I heard in an interview with Rob Wylde awhile ago saying he had a bucket of songs ready to work with so maybe it'll be possible.

Rob Wylde Next year is gonna be a very busy one promoting this album with shows EVERYWHERE! But album 2 will be released late 2018.

I'd still be surprised if the album makes it out that soon but at least good to hear they're thinking about it

Been checking this out today as I hadn't paid any attention to this yet.

Don't think it's terrible.  Music sounds decent to me but vocals aren't really doing it for me....Accented and just sound off in spots.

Pass for me.

18 hours ago, Grey said:

I've been trying to find this on CD or in any lossless format since it was relased. No luck here either.

They've recently added a CD to their web store.  It has their No Home But The Road EP plus their Blue Collar Revolver songs on it.  My copy should show up soon.  

https://lansdownemusic.com/

16 hours ago, The Rocker said:

Id say Palace meets Cruzh.

Way more balls on this than either of those IMO though which is why I'd say some Eclipse is mixed in.

Album continues to grow on me...really liking it.  Just saw they released a Japan version of course with a new song as a bonus track.  Would like to hear that track so might have to track this down.

Like that Cry tune a lot....might be my favorite song on the album.

Has to be my early front runner for #1 album of 2018. 

Think I've settled on my personal top 10 for this year.  What a year...Most releases I've bought in a year in quite some time.

1.  Midnite City - S/T - Liked every song, hits my taste perfectly and haven't been able to get enough of this album since it released.

2.  H..e.a.t - Into The Great Unknown - Like the album plenty, one or two songs that I don't care much for though that pushed it to #2

3.  Crazy Lixx - Ruff Justice - My new favorite album from this band that for me edges out New Religion.  

4.  Eclipse - Monumentum - Solid album but gets a tiny bit samey in spots.  For me, a little more variety could've pushed it up on the list.

5.  Tokyo Motor Fist - S/T - Great debut that also hit my tastes perfectly.  One or two songs not doing much for me and thin production knocked it down a little but some great songs on this.  

6.  Harem Scarem - United - I haven't been a fan of these guys and don't own any other releases.  However, something about this one grabbed me.  Fantastic melodic rock album top to bottom.

7.  One Desire - S/T - This album wasn't instantaneous for me but grew on me more than any other album this year.  It's one I find that I keep coming back to.

8.  Wildness - S/T - Great debut, good mix of songs and another that seems to be a grower for me.  

9.  Degreed - S/T -  Another consistent album from these guys.  Shakedown might be my favorite tune this year.  I really don't like the piano ballad though and the second half falls off a little bit for me knocking this down.

10.Romeo Riot - Sing It Loud - Solid melodic rock, good variety.  It's down on the list as I don't think it really blows me away but it's definitely a solid album and enjoy listening to it.  I dare say it might be my favorite Kivel release.

Two that just missed for me were Warrant's Louder Harder Faster and Art Nation's Liberation.  I enjoyed both those albums at times this year but haven't had much desire to go back to them since filing them away.

Will be interesting to see others lists to see stuff I've missed that I might like.  A couple that have shown up on other lists I've given some time to are Confess and Code Red but those just haven't clicked with me enough to buy them.  I've been real close with Confess as there are a few tunes I like.

Link below.  Really awesome tune and think my favorite part is getting Erik involved on vocals.

Saw this review and just thought I'd share it here as it's one of the few reviews I've seen on this album and it's pretty well written IMO.  This album doesn't really seem to be getting talked about much on the various sites I follow for some reason and feels like it might be getting a bit overlooked.

I'm liking it a lot.  I mostly get a vibe of it being some combination of Eclipse with some of the riffs, Palace with some of the keys and some H.e.a.t-like choruses/melodies.   

https://etainmentnewsreviews.wordpress.com/aor/aor-reviews-2017/wildness-wildness/

Back in the 90’s, AOR had pretty much ran its course for me. Don’t get me wrong, I still loved the old bands but not many new ones made any impact on me. Sweden had some record companies, like MTM and Empire, that put out loads of AOR/melodic rock bands throughout the 90’s but I had trouble finding anything interesting out of all those releases. It’s not like I succumbed to grunge or nu-metal like so many others, I still loved the classic hard rock, metal and arena rock bands that struggled, but in AOR too much were underwhelming, badly produced and sounded like the same old same old. But something happened in the mid 2000’s. A new generation of musicians appeared, young men and women that had looked through their parents’ record collections and found their albums from the 70’s, 80’s and early 90’s, liked what they heard and saw and picked up instruments and formed bands. New blood. New passion for old music and decided to take those songs and that sound, update it and make it their own – and it worked. And yours truly found his way back to genre again. And then some!

In Scandinavia – and especially Sweden – new bands popped up like mushrooms in the forest and genres, often spat on and laughed at by pretentious know-it-alls, like glam, sleaze, arena rock and AOR was given a second coming and all of a sudden, the last laugh was on them. With those genres not being looked on as a pariah anymore, every old rock band and their mother reunited – and still do – some better than others, some even better than in their hey day. Today, trends in rock are pretty much gone, it’s ok to dig everything from fluffy AOR to black metal at the same time – and the world of music is bettered for it. And that’s what it takes – new blood that loves what they do and doesn’t have a past to catch up with them. Of course, there will always be hangers-on, musicians that only wants to  be a part of a certain bandwagon and lately, there have been a bit of an overkill in those areas as well. But new bands keep forming and the latest band to join the AOR / melodic rock circle is from Sweden – and they are called Wildness.

Wildness started out back in 2014 by drummer/song writer/producer Erik Modin as a solo project but that changed when guitarists Pontus Sköld and Adam Holmström joined. The guys found lead singer Gabriel Lindmark through an ad and the project evolved into a real band where everyone participate in song writing and production. They don’t have a steady bass player yet but they hope to fill that spot before touring begins. The band signed with AOR Heaven, brought in producer Erik Wigelius (Wigelius, Care Of Night) and got to work and after many years of hard work, the result is finally out. Since I feel that the AOR quota is starting to become quite full, I must say I’m a bit jaded in my expectations when it comes to new bands from that genre. I mean, we’re pretty close to an AOR overload where new bands won’t sound that exciting and fresh anymore and personally, I’m not that easily impressed anymore.

They kick off with “War Inside My Head”, a big, fat, heavy AOR-rocker with a chorus so catchy it’s insane. While this is AOR by all means, it’s also pretty ballsy and tough and I’m thinking FM meets Shy on a more hard rock basis. Peeps, this is brilliant stuff and it should be a single because I smell a hit here. “Stranger” follows and it is a more traditional Scandi-AOR track. It’s upbeat and straight forward but also a bit pink n’ fluffy with a smooth melody. The chorus is very distinct and direct, the catchiness is all over the tune and it sticks right off the bat – brilliant! “Shadowland” rocks things up a bit more and the tune comes in a fast pace, kicking and screaming the AOR way – glossy and smooth with all the most brilliant AOR arrangements in the world and another sticky sweet refrain. Awesome! Latest single “Alibi” tags along with a really big keyboard sound, distinct guitars and a huge sound scape all over. To me, the tune comes off like a H.E.A.T. meets Strangeways with a mind-blowing chorus that nail itself to my brain. Catchiness deluxe, amazingly good and a natural choice as a single!

“Collide” – one of two songs that have been previously released as singles and re-worked for this album – comes with a more hard rock feel with touches of AOR on top. The riffing reminds me some of Eclipse and it sports a  H.E.A.T.-like main melody. It’s very direct and quite ballsy – the heavier guitars gives the song some well-needed toughness and the very catchy refrain really brings the tune home – how damn fantastic! “Highlands” breaks out from the rest here – the album’s sore thumb, if you will – and comes in a more classic rock suit. I hear a lot of Thin Lizzy here and also Blood From Stone era Dare albeit with some clear arena rock vibes added. It’s the roughest song on the album and my favorite. Hot damn! We go into ballad-land with “Your Last Romance”, a slower-paced melodic rock tune. More a half-ballad, to be honest and even though it’s catchy enough, it doesn’t strike as hard as the rest. “Down In The City” is big, tough and kicking AOR, very distinct with a punch and a refrain that hits hard and fast – very spot-on and memorable. Great!

“Falling Down” is another tune that comes with a bit of Eclipse influence – foremost the fast-paced, chugging, metal influenced guitars and comes off more like melodic hard rock than actual AOR. I love it when AOR gets heavy and rough so this tune hits a home run with me. “The Flame” is a bona fide power ballad with some heaviness added and there are traces of jazzy arrangements and bluesy vibes waved in. The main melody goes right to the head and the chorus is pure super glue. It’s big and bombastic and I find myself thinking of Steelheart here – so very 1991. Gotta love it! “Welcome The Night” reminds me somewhat of Palace, another quite new and great Swedish AOR band, but more melodic hard rock than AOR. It’s guitar-driven but also very melody oriented and catchy as hell – very good. Closing track “Turning The Page” was also previously released and re-worked for the album. It’s very smooth and glossy, like a poppier Treat meets H.E.A.T. – and brilliantly catchy – a killer track with a big hit-potential.

Not easily impressed anymore, huh? Well, I still think I’m not but Wildness impresses the living daylight out of me. While there’s nothing really new under the table here – AOR is a genre where it’s very hard to be original – Wildness still have their identity and more importantly, they have fucking brilliant tunes. When you write songs this good and brings on shitloads of hooks, catchier than catchy refrains, have great musicians and a killer production, who gives a shit if you haven’t reinvented the wheel? As for the production, it’s smooth, silky and clear but it also comes with an edge and some roughness, depth and dynamics, so not much to complain about there. Maybe they could have gone with a heavier sound and the guitars more upfront, but that’s not crucial for the album at all. If you’re not into AOR then this album is not for you but if you are, you’d be a fool not to give it a go. A clear contender for the best AOR/melodic rock album of the year!

9/10

Got this and been through it a few times.

Liking the album well enough.  It's a solid scandi melodic rock album...good melodies, keys and still edgy.  It sort of reminds me of early Eclipse but vocals give it a unique sound.  Vocals are sort of gritty and for me a tiny bit accented in spots. It's really not a big issue though and have a feeling I won't notice it much after more listens.

Standouts for me are probably the songs we've heard...War Inside My Head, Alibi, Collide, Turning the Pages.  

I suspect in some other years the album might grab me way more but there's been so many good releases this year that i think I'm a little spoiled and the bar has been raised a bit.  This will likely crack my top 10 for this year but really nowhere close to Midnite City, H.e.a.t, OD, Eclipse, Crazy Lixx, Harem Scarem, etc.

Still a good debut album though and well worth checking out. 

13 hours ago, Geoff said:

Maybe you just haven't heard it enough. Yeah, I dunno... I can remember it fine. As good as, or better than most albums this year. I seriously find it immensely catchy. I've agreed from the start it's no world beater, but taken as it is, I think it's awesome. 

Agree also.  

I do see the "sameness" comment but it's just not bothering me at all and I'm finding enough in each song to differentiate them.  And even though it may be a bit "samey", I pretty much love every song on it.  There isn't a single other release this year I can honestly say that about and can pick a song or two off H.e.a.t, OD, Eclipse, Crazy Lixx , etc that doesn't do much for me.

Yeah, it's a simple album but just really seems to hit my tastes perfectly.

Anyone have the Blue Collar Revolver CD?  I've been looking to buy it but not finding it in the normal places.

I've got MP3 download of this album recently and digging  it.  Would like to get the CD or maybe WAV files at least.

I don't listen to a lot of this type of modern rock.  Always enjoyed Hinder though and getting a similar vibe from some of these songs.

Think I've seen on Facebook these guys have said they're working on getting prior releases re-issued on physical format.

I've seen order links are up for this album at AOR Heaven now.

Hoping they ship a little early like they did with Midnite City.  I had that album in my hands about a week ahead of the official release date.

New single from Station....More good stuff!

Not bad.  Something to keep an eye on.