Let me say first that Metal Mind seem to have, er . . . mastered the art of remastering. Sacrifice some volume and resist compression. Let the dynamics speak for themselves. This winning approach is especially true in these two limited edition reissues of legendary Canadian
AOR band,
Boulevard (aka BLVD).
You can get the biog on Wikipedia, so, with the shortest of preambles, let's talk about the music here.
Boulevard were a two album band, whose flame burned fiercely, if briefly, in the late eighties.
In 1986, with no touring behind them, the just formed band were mentored by MCA A&R man, John Alexander and subsequently recorded their debut, with Pierre (Baz) Bassinet, who'd worked with Sass Jordan, at the production helm. Mike Fraser, Bob Rock and Humberto Gattica also had a hand in proceedings, so the quality was virtually guaranteed.
The debut is clearly a product of its time, but holds up well because of the strong songwriting and is a classy example of Canadian Eighties'
AOR, strongly influenced by the prevalent pop inclinations of the North American Rock Charts at that time.
You'll hear echoes of the Outfield, Glass Tiger and the Johns, Waite and Parr resounding through these grooves. At a stretch, you might also hear Icehouse, thanks to the short but welcome bursts of tenor sax.
Opener and hit single,
'Dream On' is an absolute
AOR gem, full of purpose, urgency and drive. As is
'In The Twilight', an awesome pomp rock cut with a spiralling, vertiginous chorus, with vocalist Forbes unintentionally doing a great Kevin Cronin impersonation
There are a couple of makeweights, with
'Never Give Up's faux soul overtones and over inflated pomp keyboards threatening the album's credibility, but they never get near to pulling the album under.
Then again, there are a couple of apparently unassuming songs, shrinking violets that blossom vigorously only after repeated plays, like the deceptively simple
'You And I', and '
Missing Persons' - clearly created in the image of Trevor Rabin's solo work and just as impressive.
To build on the acclaim that met the debut, MCA brought in Strangeways' producer, John Punter for the follow up recording, and you can tell.
'Into The Street' is a punchier, more focused and yes, more grown up body of work.
There were echoes still of the band's peer group, but that was only natural, the burgeoning
AOR / melodic rock sound of the eighties had limited parameters. If you wanted success you had to fit in the box.
What Punter did was to push the band into every corner, into every nook and cranny of that box, filling out the band's sound, stretching them, challenging them to produce their best. And they did.
Guitarist, Randy Gould, and sax man, Mark Holden came up with another high calibre bunch of songs, streamlined, hooky, full of carefully contoured choruses and smoothly sophisticated arrangements.
There may be just a little too much polish for some, but this was 1989, corporate rock was at its peak and for the labels, a glossy product was considered de rigeur.
Standout track,
'Light of Day' has Mr Mister's urbanity of tone,
'Crazy Life' is reminiscent of John Waite, circa 'Missing You' / 'In Dreams' and it's crystal clear by
'Rainy Day In London' and
'Where Are You Now' now that David Forbes' high toned and soothingly theatrical vocals rival Terry Brock's as the perfect
AOR model.
By the time the album got released - in 1990 - the innovative sound emanating from the US's Pacific North West was gaining momentum.
'Into The Street' died a death. A year later,
Boulevard had disbanded.
But what a legacy.
Ratings:Debut : 7/10
ITS : 8.5/10
Written by
Brian Monday, October 18, 2010
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