{"id":31864,"date":"2013-09-13T06:32:21","date_gmt":"2013-09-13T11:32:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=31864"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:37:53","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:37:53","slug":"dercole-dreams-heart-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/dercole-dreams-heart-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"D\u2019Ercole | Dreams of the Heart<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

\"DercoleDreams of the Heart<\/em> is the third release from melodic rock act D\u2019Ercole, and it certainly is a solid one. Never one to be caught resting on his laurels, Phil Vincent continues to produce solid music \u2013 this time in conjunction with guitarist Damian D\u2019Ercole, bassist William Arnold, and drummer Tane DeAngelis (plus the occasional lead guitar assist from Vince O\u2019Regan). D\u2019Ercole\u2019s music shows flashes of 80\u2019s rock influence, but has a more modern sound \u2013 but like in all of Vincent\u2019s projects, melody reigns supreme.<\/p>\n

Damian D\u2019Ercole handles the rhythm guitar, laying down some big riffs and catchy hooks \u2013 carrying much of the musical weight on his capable shoulders. Phil Vincent contributes vocals, keyboards, and a bit of rhythm guitar and drums. He also handled the production and engineering, as well as co-writing all the songs with D\u2019Ercole and bassist William Arnold. Arnold\u2019s bass is a good one, and his musical sense is excellent. He teams well with drummer Tane DeAngelis and the two make a very capable and enthusiastic rhythm section whether dishing out slow and mellow lines or manic double-bass driven riffs. Influences of the greats are occasionally obvious \u2013 Winger, Foreigner, Dokken, and maybe a hint of Bon Jovi \u2013 but the band\u2019s music in never derivative, and they take the old school sounds and modernize them neatly. A mix of hard rock, ballads and melodic metal peppered with some keys make for an enjoyable and musically diverse release.<\/p>\n

Light keys leading into a simple but effective guitar riff open the up-tempo rocker \u201cOnly Child.\u201d This track features some nicely done vocal harmonies and feels a bit like Dokken meets The Beatles \u2013 only with a truly blistering guitar solo. Big bass and pounding drums drive the very modern (almost pop-metal) \u201cGivin\u2019 It All To You.\u201d The complex bottom end contrasts nicely with the simple and effective guitar hooks and keys creating a unique sound. \u201cDreams Of The Heart\u201d is a melodic metal masterpiece that has the band firing on all cylinders. Solid guitars, great drums, driving bass, and strong vocals make this one truly memorable. \u201cI\u2019ll Be There For You\u201d is another AOR radio-friendly mid-tempo rocker with strong lyrics and good performances from all \u2013 and the outro is pure metal. \u201cShe Ain\u2019t No Good\u201d is a hard rock monster \u2013 intense guitars and effective double bass drumming rule the track.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou Keep Me Waiting\u201d has a great rolling rhythm line produced by light keys and a fluid bass, and features an amazing blues based guitar solo. Gritty hard rock returns with the very 80s style \u201cToo Little Too Late\u201d \u2013 some amazing shredding here. \u201cLies\u201d has a little Euro-metal tone thanks to gritty passages mixed with a soaring chorus and slick, lively guitars. \u201cA Million Miles\u201d starts with a brooding, dark tone generated by a slow rhythm line and subdued vocals and keyboards, but then it explodes at the end thanks to the shredding skills of D\u2019Ercole and O\u2019Regan. Heavy keyboards and multi-layered vocals give “Hurt Me For The Last Time” a European feel, while \u201cWearin’ Me Down\u201d is a guitar-driven hard rock dream.<\/p>\n

D\u2019Ercole\u2019s Dreams Of The Heart<\/em> has something for everyone, whether you fancy modern melodic metal or \u201880s\/\u201990s hard rock. Well written songs and spirited delivery are the hallmarks of D\u2019Ercole\u2019s music, and this release certainly lives up to them. The band handles the mix of styles well \u2013 but no matter the style or influence, the underlying sense of melody is always strong. In this case familiarity breeds success, and the melding of old school hard rock with modern touches simply works. There are truly only positives here, so this release is highly recommended.<\/p>\n

Genre: Melodic Hard Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nDamian D\u2019Ercole (rhythm guitar)
\nPhil Vincent (vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, drums)
\nWilliam Arnold (bass)
\nTane DeAngelis (drums)
\nVince O\u2019Regan (lead guitar)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tOnly Child
\n2.\tGivin’ It All To You
\n3.\tDreams of the Heart
\n4.\tI’ll Be There for You
\n5.\tShe Ain’t No Good
\n6.\tYou Keep Me Waiting
\n7.\tToo Little Too Late
\n8.\tLies
\n9.\tA Million Miles
\n10.\tHurt Me for the Last Time
\n11.\tWearin’ Me Down<\/p>\n

Label: Phil Vincent Music<\/p>\n

Website: http:\/\/www.philvincentbands.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.5 \/ 10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis – Senior Columnist — Dreams of the Heart is the third release from melodic rock act D\u2019Ercole, and it certainly is a solid one. Never one to be caught resting on his […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":31865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[2317,8024,2847,952,8025],"class_list":{"0":"post-31864","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2013","8":"tag-cd-review","9":"tag-damian-dercole","10":"tag-melodic-hard-rock","11":"tag-phil-vincent","12":"tag-phil-vincent-music"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31864","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=31864"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31864\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}