{"id":28746,"date":"2013-04-07T07:16:30","date_gmt":"2013-04-07T12:16:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=28746"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:35:11","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:35:11","slug":"john-lawton-diana-express-the-power-of-mind-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/john-lawton-diana-express-the-power-of-mind-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"John Lawton & Diana Express | The Power Of Mind<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis<\/span>
\n– Senior Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"JohnVeteran vocalist John Lawton (Uriah Heep, Lucifer\u2019s Friend) has joined forces with the respected Bulgarian rock band Diana Express to release a high concept classic rock opera album entitled The Power Of Mind<\/em>. Written by musician Milen Vrabevski, The Power Of Mind<\/em> presents a positive philosophy that states that the ability to change and create happiness and love comes from within. Sometimes abstract and esoteric, The Power Of Mind<\/em> is an interesting journey through man\u2019s collective psyche backed by excellent musical performances.<\/p>\n

Rather than the hard core blues rock one would expect from the Uriah Heep front man, John Lawton gives an intense and emotional but low key performance and varies tone and power to suit the music. Listeners will hear influences of the old rockers from Queen to Elton John to Billy Joel throughout the album \u2013 a treat for old school 70s or early 80s rock fans. The music moves from atmospheric to rockabilly to solid blues rock, and each track blends nicely into the others giving the release a sense of balance. The arrangements are simple and direct, with little post-recording trickery to break the contemplative mood, and just the right mix of energy levels to keep most listeners interested.<\/p>\n

For the most part, the complex music on The Power Of Mind<\/em> is built around the vocals. Strong performances and well-done harmonies fill most of the tracks but the band behind Lawton is superb, particularly Maxim Goranov on guitar, and the various piano players. The Pleven Philharmonic Orchestra adds a great deal of depth to the recording making it a true rock opera.<\/p>\n

\u201cIntro\u201d opens with great blues guitar and orchestra backing a quick spoken word passage. \u201cMind Power\u201d starts with piano & orchestra before the guitar and vocals kick in. The metaphysical lyrics set up the album\u2019s theme about strength of will and thought, and the guitar work is incredible. \u201cTwo Hearts\u201d is a soft rock track, one that seems suited for a stage production, but despite being wonderfully performed it is a bit drawn out and seems to run longer than it should. \u201cLove\u2019s Light Shining\u201d is a strong piano \/ vocal piece, and also features a nice drum line and amusing backing vocals at the end. \u201cMax Rock\u201d is a bluesy 60\u2019s style guitar rocker with a great bass line and keyboard solo, while \u201cFairytale\u201d is a piano-driven Elton John style song. Lawton proves that \u201cRock And Roll Is My Thing\u201d with a toe-tapping up-tempo performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Search\u201d is a beautifully done acoustic guitar and piano tune at the onset, but it morphs into a solid, but slightly drawn out, vocal rock number by the end. \u201cSpringtime\u201d is a lazy acoustic number with a sweet piano break, almost a folk song. Blues rock with a good deal of brass shows up on the bouncy \u201cIn Rhythm With You\u201d \u2013 a truly enjoyable and fun track. The more energetic guitar rock (with a great acapella interlude) continues on \u201cNow I Know,\u201d while \u201cNew Rhythm\u201d is a darker sounding, more intense rocker with a Billy Joel \/ Elton John feel to it. The Pleven Philharmonic opens \u201cLove In The World,\u201d a track that features some of the best guitar work on the album. \u201cFinale\u201d ties everything up into a neat little package, reprising highlights from the balance of the album.<\/p>\n

Overall, The Power Of Mind<\/em> is a nicely done album. Fans of Lawton\u2019s older work may be slightly disappointed by the lack of high energy tracks, and those expecting gritty rock will be surprised by the smooth and low key approach he takes. While most of the songs are well done, there are moments when they seem to drag a bit. The band\u2019s positive messages and raw talent make these minor issues forgivable. If you\u2019re into the whole rock opera \/ concept album deal, John Lawton and Diana Express will not disappoint.<\/p>\n

Genre: Classic Rock Opera<\/p>\n

Band:
\nJohn Lawton (vocals)
\nMaxim Goranov (guitar, backing vocals)
\nNikolay Kardzhilov (bass)
\nValeri Konov (keyboards, backing vocals)
\nTsvetan Banov (drums, backing vocals)
\nGuest Musicians:
\nRossi Diakovska (piano \u2013 tracks 2, 4, 8, 13, 14)
\nMilen Vrabevski (piano \u2013 tracks 2, 3, 4, 6 & acoustic guitar \u2013 tracks 8 – 12)
\nAcho Zaberski (piano \u2013 track 14)
\nKarolina Gorcheva (vocals \u2013 track 8)
\nPleven Philharmonic Orchestra (tracks 1 – 4, 8, 9, 13, 14)
\nGerasim (piano \u2013 track 9)
\nM. Yosifov (trumpet \u2013 track 10)
\nV. Stoyanov (trombone \u2013 track 10)
\nD. Lyolev (saxophone \u2013 track 10)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tIntro
\n2.\tMind Power
\n3.\tTwo Hearts
\n4.\tLove\u2019s Light Shining
\n5.\tMax Rock
\n6.\tFairytale
\n7.\tRock And Roll Is My Thing
\n8.\tThe Search
\n9.\tSpringtime
\n10.\tIn Rhythm With You
\n11.\tNow I Know
\n12.\tNew Rhythm
\n13.\tLove In The World
\n14.\tFinale<\/p>\n

Label: Intelligent Music<\/p>\n

Website: www.johnlawtonmusic.com<\/a> & www.dianaexpress.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 7\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis – Senior Columnist — Veteran vocalist John Lawton (Uriah Heep, Lucifer\u2019s Friend) has joined forces with the respected Bulgarian rock band Diana Express to release a high concept classic rock opera album […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[336,334],"class_list":{"0":"post-28746","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-arcrvws2013","7":"tag-cd","8":"tag-review"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28746"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28746\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}