Faithealer | Welcome to the Edge of the World
by Nikiforos Skoumas
Staff Writer
After the success of Houston, it seems that AOR duos are once again in the favor of the day and here is another collaboration that is bound to excite just about any seasoned fan of the genre. Keyboardist Ivan Gunn formerly of Pride and Balance of Power teams up with vocalist extraordinaire Jason Marks, who sung for mega-melodic rockers S.I.N. Beyond vocals, Jason proves himself to be quite the multi-instrumentalist handling rhythm guitars, bass and drums. The end result is Faithealer’s Welcome to the Edge of the World, definitely amongst the most technically accomplished AOR/melodic rock albums of 2011.
Those familiar with Marks’ previous works have probably come to expect the lengthiest vocal melodies and biggest choruses in AOR. Indeed the front man’s extraordinary vocal sustain has not diminished one bit since his work with S.I.N.. Moving away from the vocals, the instrumentation actually deviate from the overblown approach of S.I.N. The double bass attack, use of big toms and up-front distorted bass guitar employed by S.I.N. is nowhere to be found on Welcome to the Edge of the World. The protagonist instrument of Faithealer is unexpectedly the vocals and following the lead guitar of guest Chris Green who adds copious amounts of melodic shred on each and every song on the CD.
Above all, what separates Faithealer from the members previous works is the production. This self-produced debut is done in classic AOR fashion choosing subtlety over the bombastic engineering of S.I.N. and Balance of Power. Indeed Faithealer may not demonstrate the musical attack of the previously mentioned bands, yet it does sound intense in its own way. By the time Jason’s vocals kick in, one can not help but pay attention to Faithealer, as it is clearly a very engaging record, certain to please the melodic audience while proving once again that Jason is vocally in a league of his own.
Realistically, choruses like the ones found on “Stronger”, “Tell Me” and “Last Teardrop fall” could not have been delivered by none other than Marks. Technically speaking he has seemingly endless vocal sustain and probably the most intense vibrato one has ever heard from a vocalist of the genre. Combined, the two qualities reduce even the hardest vocal melody into sounding so easy and unforced. And that is really what makes Welcome… a melodic rock masterpiece, the fact that outstanding technique does not inhibit the human touch on the performances. For fans of AOR/melodic rock, Faithealer is an absolute must especially those who have never experienced Jason Mark’s works of the past.
Band:
Jason Marks: Vocals, guitar, bass, drums
Ivan Gunn: keyboards, backing vocals, guitars, bass, drums
Tracklist:
01. The beginning of the end
02. Who will stop the rain
03. Stronger
04. Just give me tonight
05. Lay down and die for you
06. Last tear drop falls
07. Tell me
08. They say
09. Heaven from here
10. Second sight
11. Still alive
12. Welcome to the edge of the world
13. The end of the beginning
14. Last tear drop falls (acoustic bonus )
Band website: http://www.myspace.com/faithealerocks
Hardrock Haven rating: 9.5/10