After nearly 20 years, one of
AOR's biggest names have thrown another disc into the market:
Survivor. Hyped to the heavens, this has been a very awaited disc for melodic fans. Fond memories of "Eye of the Tiger" and "Is This Love" likely linger, but is the world ready for another once commercially viable
AOR band to return? Well I think so, even if the delivered disc doesn't quite live up to the hype.
"Reach" does have some problems. As noticeable right from the beginning, it is quite the mellow disc. It is so loaded with ballads that its likely to just float away on a cushy cloud. The listener gets a bit antsy with all the midtempo material overflowing all through the album with not enough rockers to keep a consistent feel. The production is also lacking a bit - it seems that the majority of songs could use a more polished sheen.
This is still a fine album for fans of the band, and it is great to hear Jimi's voice with the
Survivor name again. He is still as smooth as butter and has an excellent command of emotion. Frankie Sullivan's guitar leans more on the sweet and soothing side than rocking but that's more of a victim of the song selections. "Reach" is loaded with ballads, to the point they become all too similar before the album closes. It leaves a real lull in the middle, where it should have popped instead.
Reach gets the disc running in classy
Survivor style. A big, bursting chorus is set off well with a flurry of keys and lots of guitar and plushy backing vocals.
Fire Makes Steel has been bouncing around for awhile, hailing from the early 90s sessions that never made it past demo stage. Fire has a deeply darker hue than Reach but still kicks with that
Survivor sound.
Nevertheless has Frankie on vocals. He is certainly no Jimi Jamison and it makes you wonder why they even bothered doing the singer switch. It would be like
Journey having their other members sing other than their lead...on wait, they have done that too. What a mistake that was, will they ever learn? The song is a weak, throwaway piece anyway that is all one big chorus, yet nothing memorable enough to linger. Pleasant, but no one buys cds for subpar filler like this.
Seconds Away sweeps in with Jimi's beautiful, angelic voice to save the day. This is a lovely, laidback track that has the perfect amount of piano and acoustic to accompany the vocals, which are the obvious attraction. A good bit different than what is expected of a
Survivor ballad, but the mood suits the music. This song is guided with an expert hand that comes from experience.
One More Chance serves up another round of soft music. This one however lacks the emotional flair of
Seconds Away and thus comes off being flat and too similar to the previous song.
Gimmie the Word lifts the mood out of the cuddly music for awhile. Great vocal here from Jimi and it comes across as just a really nicely laid out midtempo piece that flirts with the rockier side. Some cool fitting licks here finish it off. It could have used more pep but we take what we can get.
Gimmie actually isn't that big of a rocker, but seems larger than it should since it is sandwiched between so many tracks that have comatose type pacing.
The Rhythm of Your Heart is wandering and so very slow, but Sullivan's guitars are so tender and gentle paired with Jimi's voice that you find yourself lost in its magic. There is nothing particularly outstanding about the piece, its how the band puts it together that makes it worthwhile.
I Don't is darker and moodier than anything else here. That alone makes it stand out like a stranger in the rain. The chorus slides by without a lot of fanfare, as it keeps things at a controlled pacing. You can feel that it should be building, like something waiting to burst free from its chains, but the band keeps it restrained.
Half of My Heart is yet another ballad. By this time most should be balladed to death and then some. A lot of acoustic can be found here plus a prevalent poppy side. Nothing too notable and it cripples the disc by bogging it down where it should have continued building on the strength of
I Don't. Maybe it would have garnered more attention if it had not been the umpteenth sluggish piece of the disc.
Talkin' Bout Love is the second and final track without Jamison. Frankie is back behind the mic and the difference this time is the song is actually good. This one pops out as a midtempo rocker with lots of keys, embellishments and a killer chorus. As well as they pull it off, I can only think of how much of a larger impact it would have had on the overall album if Jimi had been singing instead. Frankie does an OK job but not anything you will feel compelled to write home about.
Don't Give Up is another well done midtempo piece that gets the ball rolling again before it all comes down with the over emotive
Home. They overdid themselves there, and what could have been a powerful ballad, falls into the trap of tedium.
"Reach" is no "Vital Signs" but if you have been anxiously awaiting a
Survivor album since "Too Hot to Sleep" then this fits the bill just fine. There's enough of the classic Jimi-era sound intact to whet the appetite of the established fans. The disc does lack the kind of polish and pizzazz that one would anticipate from a band name of this caliber. Then again it manages to blow the last big name
AOR band -
Journey's highly anticipated release - right out of the water. Those wanting an
AOR disc with more punch should gaze elsewhere, for this is more of a gentle stroll in the park than a total walk down memory lane. It offers up some nice tunes that have
Survivor written all over them, but as a whole experience, is lacking due to the snail's pacing and a couple of questionable song selections.
Written by
Alanna Tuesday, May 2, 2006
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