Always a safe bet, if quality over quantity is concerned, the Danish darlings
Pretty Maids made a substantial comeback for this 2006 effort. The Maids release albums that are vastly different in style from one another yet manage to share a common thread that is undeniably their own. "Wake Up to the Real World" is no different, but pops the melody back up to the forefront, which had been lost in the shuffle for the previous few discs. "Planet Panic" was sludgy, modern and you had to really dig into the tracks to unearth their melodies to any kind of satisfaction. The album was flat, and uninspired. But here, they have returned to form and present a varied platter of songs. A cornocopia if you will, of tracks that vary from prog/rock/doom to zippy metal and to high class
AOR. They cover all the bases, leave no one out in the cold, and even slip a cover track in. If you had a complaint, they have addressed it somewhere on this disc, and made up for it the best they can. "Wake Up" brings back the Maids to quality heavy rock music and experiments a little here and there, just because they feel like it.
Sleeping beauty is urged to
"Wake Up to the Real World" and the song certainly brings it on, with an instant hitter for a chorus, and some richly melodic moments slipped between the sheets. Nothing chugging about this song, though the darker guitars humming their electric omens in the background keep the song in a very "now" state while letting the
AOR inspirations shine through like bright sunshine breaking between the clouds.
"All In the Name of Love" has needling guitars and a quickly clipping pace. It zips on down the thundering tracks with a few swerves in the way, and is wrapped around a very infectious modern guitar riff. This is a meat and potatoes piece that slams into metal and keeps the heavier side of rock...rolling.
"I Am the End" is a different kind of musical animal altogether. Thick, deep and harsh, lots of thumping bass, and rich growling guitar riffs. The electronic keys have this strangely futuristic feel, reminiscent of forgotten prog masters
Conception and their unique "Flow". Atkins gives a great vocal performance with some very solid from-the-chest belted sections and lighter airy bits. The vicious darker tones mix it up a little. An offbeat side for
Pretty Maids but you can hear bits of this direction in their past work throughout the 90s, just perhaps not as vicious and delightfully daring as this one turned out to be. A little Sabbath laced in there perhaps?
"As Guilty As You" is all about the crime of passion, an emotional twister in a mostly acoustic presentation. The bridge punches it up into a guitar sizzling chorus, notes as crisp and drops of water hitting pavement on a blister hot day. Note the synthesizers that pump out some very
Deep Purple sounding organ bits. Storming the gates and lavishing the screams come pounding out the gate,
"Why Die For a Lie". The vocal characteristic right above growl, into this snarling absolute conviction of Atkins injects emotion directly into the flesh of the track. Love the echo effect on the vocals for the dramatic ending.
Thick funky bass kickstarts "
Such a Rush", and continues to be a strong contender in the song, relishing prominence. This song is a play on light and dark. The bridge pulls it up into a thick rock soup, then bang, full frontal axe assault thunderstorming riffs while the chorus dances in sweet
AOR-esque melody. Lighter near-ballad verses and a delirious guitar solo that wars clean with the sludge plays up all the contrasts. And the whole thing is absolutely
Pretty Maids. "Where True Beauty Lies" is a lovely ballad that settles into this ethereal, relaxing pace. The Queen-like passage near the middle is the surprising cream filling in the sugar twinkie pastry of the song.
"Brave Young Breed" has the modern riffs down pat, sludgy chugging stuff with Atkins snarling over the top and some nice from-the-gut vocals. The chorus breaks open as a power metal kind of feel with the "fight til the end" lyrics and thrashy bits.
"Terminal Violence" cranks it to eleven, smashing out the kind of reckless, world weary heavy rock that was popular on the "Scream" album. The chorus is silvered to gold, the riffs blaze, and Atkins' voice has the perfect tone of snarl and easy dominance. He sings it, you believe it. Injustice is put at your fingertips.
"Perfect Strangers", sound familiar? As it should, this is a cover of the classic 80s
Deep Purple track. Ronnie can agonize with all the pomp of Gillan. The guitars are cloned from Blackmore, and they stay pretty much on course for this one. There is a little flourish here or there but only diehard fans of the song will likely notice the slight nudging of the boundaries. An honorable tribute, interesting to hear, but brings nothing new to the table.
"Another Shot Of Your Love" is what we've all been waiting for. The big question is this: Why can't they do more melodic massive numbers that dazzle your senses, sweep you off your feet and leaving you breathless and begging for more... like this one?
AOR heaven, beautifully
Pretty Maids, with a chorus to die for, melodies to fall in love with. This is PM like you remember them and handily eclipses anything they did on the previous two albums "Carpe
Diem" and "Planet Panic" - put together. Kudos for such a great song that feeds the craving in us all.
"Wake Up to the Real World" has more charmers than detractors, fueled right from the start by the rocking opener, and brought to its final destination by the dangerously addictive
AOR closer. "I Am the End" which is dark and goth, sharing little in common with other songs from the album, manages to feel fresh and right at home. It settles in with a natural ease, and teases the senses by being so daringly offbeat. "As Guilty As You" and "Such a Rush" change things up so often it has a dizzying effect, but ensures that no moment leaves you slipping into boredom. The two downers would oddly be the cover, which is too close to the original to leave any kind of real lasting impression, and "Brave Young Breed", that shows that being solid is not quite enough when you lack that extra something that makes the song "click". A very nice album that put
Pretty Maids back into the forefront, even if we wouldn't hear from them again until another four years later.
Written by
Alanna Wednesday, April 21, 2010
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