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Non-Prog CD Reviews

Roses and Revolutions Roses and Revolutions Review by Gary Hill Based on the title and the cover you might think this is some new rough-edged hard rock band. That’s very far from the case. This is a duo that has an emphasis on mellow pop rock with a healthy dosage of country (particularly coming from the vocals). This is quite a strong release, but there isn’t a lot of variety here. The thing is, when it is this tasty and tasteful, that doesn’t really matter much. This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2014 Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Take Me with You An acoustic guitar arrangement with an upfront percussion element starts this off. The vocals bring a definite country element to the table. The song grows out gradually from there. It’s great stuff.

These Walls Acoustic guitar based, this is a pretty pop ballad. The vocals are delicate and yet powerful. Bits of melodic guitar soloing add charm to the piece.

Down If anything this is even mellower. It’s very much tied to modern pop music. That said, there is a lot of meat on the bones here. The vocals really sell it.

Boomerang This is a good cut, but perhaps not enough of a change from the last couple. It’s the vocals that make it work. They are that strong.

When a Heart Gives Out I like this one a lot. It’s not a big change, but the violin and the vocals work to make this mellow cut really deliver.

Moving On More energized pop music, this is another effective cut. It suffers a bit from the sameness, though. The melodic guitar solo is nice.

These Walls (feat. Elvio Fernandes) The earlier tune gets reworked in an effective treatment here. .

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