Nelson Perfect Storm – After the Rain World Tour 1991
by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer
Former chart-topping melodic rock band Nelson has come roaring back in recent months. In addition to the brand new studio album Lightning Strikes Twice and the demo collection Before the Rain, Nelson has also issued their first live album. The album, titled Perfect Storm: After the Rain World Tour 1991, is like a time capsule, capturing the band at the very height of their popularity.
If you’ve ever seen Nelson in concert, you know how great they are live. Their performance on Perfect Storm is very energetic and true to the spirit of the music. Unfortunately the sound quality isn’t as good as it could/should be. It’s not bad, but as soon as “Fill You Up” starts you can tell this isn’t going to hold up to today’s standards. There’s also the matter of crowd noise. It sounds like 3,000 teenage girls screaming through the entire set. Hey, maybe that’s exactly what it was, but it sounds inauthentic somehow.
Since Nelson only had one album out at the time, Perfect Storm is loaded with songs from After the Rain, including mega-hits “(Can’t Live Without Your) Love and Affection,” “Time Will Tell” and “After the Rain.” There are also the obligatory instrumental tracks from Brett Garsed and Bobby Rock that oddly enough end up being among the album’s better tracks. Another interesting addition was the song “Two Heads Are Better Than One,” which Nelson originally performed under the Power Tool moniker on the Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure soundtrack. It’s good to see that it’s considered an “official” Nelson song. The closer “Everywhere I Go” (expanded to 9+ minutes) is another highlight.
Perfect Storm includes one very interesting bonus track, the studio recording “Keep One Heart,” which was previously exclusive to the Japanese version of After the Rain. It’s a fantastic addition to the album, and really feels like a true “bonus.”
If you’re a serious Nelson fan (and if you love this kind of early ‘90s melodic rock you should be), then Perfect Storm is worth checking out. It’s not perfect, but it’s a good look back at the band’s arena-rocking early days. With any luck we’ll see some video footage from this tour on an official DVD release.
Genre: Melodic Rock
Band:
Gunnar Nelson (v) (g)
Matthew Nelson (v) (b)
Brett Garsed (g) (v)
Joey Catchcart (g) (v)
Paul Mirkovich (k) (v)
Bobby Rock (d)
Track Listing:
1. On With the Show!
2. Fill You Up
3. More than Ever
4. Only Time Will Tell
5. Uluru
6. Will You Love Me
7. (Can’t Live Without Your) Love and Affection
8. Two Heads Are Better Than One
9. Bits and Pieces
10. After the Rain
11. The Legend
12. Thank You and Goodnight
13. Interlude
14. Everywhere I Go
15. Keep One Heart
Label: Frontiers
Website: www.myspace.com/officialnelson
Hardrock Haven rating: 7/10