AlphaMale Posted January 28, 2018 Report Share Posted January 28, 2018 Pioneer Japanese act LOUDNESS will release their new album, "Rise To Glory", world-wide on January 26, 2018. Yes, thankfully they have decided to release the new CD at the same time in Japan, Europe and America (the last North American release was On The Prowl in 1991). "Rise To Glory" is packed with biting riffs, melody and positive vibes, mixing classic Loudness with a modern sound. It’s a refreshed and vital Loudness we meet on this album. Some of the songs are a bit progressive, not least noticeable on the instrumental track “Kama Sutra”. As much as I love the straightforward classic metal / hard rock of much of Loudness’ back catalogue, it is great to hear new influences in the new music from this skilled band. "Rise To Glory" somewhat reminds me of classic Loudness mixed with the more spaced out hard rock version of the band we heard on some of their records in the 90s, when they had several different short-lived line-ups (including shouter Michael Vescera) with guitarist Akira Takasaki the only constant member. I have always felt that Takasaki has a unique guitar sound & tone and "Rise To Glory" sure showcases it. Combine that guitar punch with the stellar vocals of Minoru Niihara and you have a killer wall of sound coming at you. Here are some standout tracks: the anthemic “Why and For Whom”, the kickin' “I’m Still Alive” and also “Go For Broke”, which is reminiscent of that '80s metal we all love so well. “Rain” is my favourite track on the album. It’s a wonderful midtempo blending a semi-ballad feel with heaviness. Simply splendid. “Go For Broke” is a great rocker of a song, and “I’m Still Alive” is a fantastic and energetic hard n' heavy track. Loudness is indeed still alive. You have an exclusive Europe / US bonus titles "Let's All Rock", a sharp hard rocker recalling the band's more 'Americanized' sound from the late '80s. There will be an expanded edition as well with the extra CD Samsara Flight - Re-Recorded Classics, already featured some time ago in its Japanese release. In "Rise To Glory" there’s still plenty of Loudness’ trademark classic metal in the mix, but the band now lives in a broader, deeper, mature musical world with all sorts of influences. I love it. Loudness is not trying to reinvent the wheel with their new music, which is fine by me, they are just adding another layer to their legacy of great rock n’ roll. Strongly Recommended 01. 8118 02. Soul on Fire 03. I'm Still Alive 04. Go for Broke 05. Until I See the Light 06. The Voice 07. Massive Tornado 08. Kama Sutra 09. Rise to Glory 10. Why and for Whom 11. No Limits 12. Rain 13. Let's All Rock (bonus track) Akira Takasaki - Guitars Minoru Niihara - Vocals Masayoshi Yamashita - Bass Masayuki "Ampan" Suzuki - Drums PRE ORDER:www.amazon.co.uk/Rise-Glory-Loudness/dp/B0773HC7H9 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
My Little Pony KarpetRydOFunk Posted January 28, 2018 My Little Pony Report Share Posted January 28, 2018 Why is this the first I'm hearing of this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted January 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 Rain is killer. Been on repeat for me. Great song! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invisible_man Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 On 1/28/2018 at 2:31 PM, KarpetRydOFunk said: Why is this the first I'm hearing of this? maybe they're not loud enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavyharmonies Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 Gotta rove Roudness! Seriously though, I could never get into them, even though they were prolific in the 80s and early 90s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 1 minute ago, heavyharmonies said: Gotta rove Roudness! Seriously though, I could never get into them, even though they were prolific in the 80s and early 90s. You should really give Soldier Of Fortune with Mike Vescera a chance. It's an amazing disc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavyharmonies Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 I owned some Loudness discs back in the day; they just never stuck with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 Always loved the soulful playing of Takasaki. He freaking whails on the guitar! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazysam Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 They had a string of good albums from the mid 80's til early 90's, but I lost interest when they changed their style. I'll give this one a listen though as it reminds me of their earlier sound, especially Takasaki's playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dead Planet Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 They are okay but like Dan I never got into them...not really sure why.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 hours ago, Crazysam said: They had a string of good albums from the mid 80's til early 90's, but I lost interest when they changed their style. I'll give this one a listen though as it reminds me of their earlier sound, especially Takasaki's playing. Check out the solo on Rain. Starts around 3:50. A minute plus of Akira at his best. Very reminiscent of their earlier sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazysam Posted February 2, 2018 Report Share Posted February 2, 2018 On 1/30/2018 at 1:26 PM, AlphaMale said: Check out the solo on Rain. Starts around 3:50. A minute plus of Akira at his best. Very reminiscent of their earlier sound. I gave this a listen on Spotify yesterday. I agree that solo during Rain is awesome and Takasaki shreds on several tracks. Not as good as their earlier albums but is the closest they've come to sounding like that era in a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted February 3, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2018 On 2/1/2018 at 9:53 PM, Crazysam said: I gave this a listen on Spotify yesterday. I agree that solo during Rain is awesome and Takasaki shreds on several tracks. Not as good as their earlier albums but is the closest they've come to sounding like that era in a long time. Just gave it a full spin and I'm digging most of it. Agree with you that this is as close as they have come to their classic material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlphaMale Posted February 11, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2018 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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