{"id":48249,"date":"2015-02-14T15:31:43","date_gmt":"2015-02-14T20:31:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=48249"},"modified":"2015-02-14T15:32:16","modified_gmt":"2015-02-14T20:32:16","slug":"aor-return-to-l-a-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2015\/aor-return-to-l-a-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"AOR | Return To L.A.<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska<\/span>
\n– Senior Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"ReturnIn the current decade, there hardly has been a year without an album released by Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Slama\u2019s AOR. In 2012, fans of the star-studded project under this moniker were treated with two recorded albums seeing the light of day. However, 2015 proves to be just as successful with its follow-up to 2014\u2019s L.A. Connection<\/em>, which is due out in March. Entitled Return To L.A.<\/em>, it\u2019s the 14th release in AOR\u2019s overall catalog (spanning from 2000\u2019s L.A. Concession<\/em>). And, as always, it utilizes, both, the all-star band formula and the Melodic Rock genre to the utmost. Apart from Slama and Tommy Denander, the Melodic Rock notabilities engaged in the process of making the album were the likes of Jesse Damon (Silent Rage), Tommy Funderburk (King Of Hearts, Airplay), Erika (Yngwie Malmsteen) or Sarah & M\u00e9lissa Fontaine (Chasing Violets). Also, the artists who already have contributed to the project in the past make the eponymous return on the new album, from Paul Sabu (Only Child, Kidd Glove) to Rick Riso and Bob Harris (Axe, Steve Vai). Sabu, Slama and Denander also were involved in the production process.<\/p>\n

Similarly to his past endeavors and with this album, Slama spares no effort to turn back the hands of time, bringing whatever was the best in mid-\u201880s Melodic Hard Rock. And, as usual, he does so with a little help from his friends \u2013 one of many on board being Sabu, who re-appears three times throughout the entire album, starting with the first track, \u201cVictim Of My Own Desire.\u201d The song is a classy AOR piece, much in vein of early \u201890s material released by the likes of Mark\/Marcie Free or James Christian on their respective solo albums \u2013 with Sabu\u2019s raspy, breathy voice giving a feistier edge to it. It\u2019s the very same voice that drives the sixth track \u201cSign Of Fire,\u201d embroidered with huge \u201880s-tinted keyboards, which also closes the album on a very high note with the melodic mid-tempo track, \u201cThe Wisdom Of Eve.\u201d <\/p>\n

The next to be called to the blackboard is a singer whose participation on the album was causing quite a stir in Melodic Rock circles. The discography of the American hard rockers Silent Rage might not have been particularly rich, but its late-\u201880s albums Shattered Hearts<\/em> and, especially, Don\u2019t Touch Me There<\/em> are considered cult classics among its fan-base. It\u2019s no wonder many looked forward to Damon\u2019s participation on AOR\u2019s Return To L.A.<\/em> On this release, the voice of Silent Rage is featured in two of the 10 song. His vocal performance in \u201cAngels Never Sleep\u201d and \u201cThe Breaking Point\u201d might not have been as feisty as his juvenescent Hard Rock anthems, such as \u201cRebel With A Cause\u201d or \u201cDon\u2019t Touch Me There,\u201d but nevertheless is a quality one. And, with the fantastic vocal harmonies of the former of the two as well as the guitar-laden melody of the latter, both tracks can be distinguished as the highlights of the entire album anyway.<\/p>\n

However, apart from very convincing performances from Sabu and Damon, there\u2019s more to AOR\u2019s new album. \u201cTrail To Your Heart\u201d is a slice of keyboard-driven Pomp Rock, featuring Tommy Funderburk on vocals, embroidered with particularly infectious chorus against the charming background melody. Rick Riso is easy to recognize in \u201cDangerous To Know,\u201d a dynamic, Foreigner-esque mid-tempo song. Graced with dreamy, delicate vocals of the Swedish singer Erika Norberg, the fifth song \u201cBurning Rainbows\u201d gravitates toward more ballad-esque territory, as does \u201cLove Remains The Same,\u201d with vocals shared between the French sister duo Sarah and M\u00e9lissa Fontaine. However, while the former may seem a bit too popish for a Rock listener\u2019s taste, the latter stands out because of the tremendous vocal harmonies between the two singers. And last to mention, but certainly not the least among the guest singers, is Bob Harris, who offers his characteristic, soaring vocals to be heard in keyboard-laden \u201c99 Percent Chance Of Loving You.\u201d <\/p>\n

Would it have been a truism to say that with Return To L.A., Slama returns in fine form? Perhaps, yes, but let\u2019s stick to this clich\u00e9d wordplay anyway and admit there\u2019s hardly a possibility for a Melodic Rock fan to be disappointed by AOR\u2019s 14th album. Having avoided the dreaded repetitiveness by bringing some new faces to the table, the list of guest singers is impressive, and, as usual, Slama bravely continues his journey through the sounds of tinkling keyboards, \u201880s-infused guitar shredding and catchy choruses. Let\u2019s only hope that there are many stops along the way as he travels, each of them as good as this. <\/p>\n

Genre: Melodic Rock, AOR<\/p>\n

Band:
\nFr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Slama: Guitars & keyboards
\nTommy Denander: All instruments
\nPaul Sabu: Lead and backing vocals (track 1, 6, 10)
\nTommy Funderburk: Lead & backing vocals (track 2)
\nJesse Damon: Lead & backing vocals (track 4, 7)
\nRick Riso: Lead & backing vocals (track 3)
\nBob Harris: Lead & backing vocals (track 8)
\nErika Norberg: Lead & backing vocals (track 5)
\nSarah Fontaine: Lead & backing vocals (track 9)
\nM\u00e9lissa Fontaine: Lead & backing vocals (track 9)
\nColin Rodgers: Guitars, bass
\nPat Thern: Drums<\/p>\n

Track List:
\n1.\tVictim Of My Own Desire
\n2.\tThe Trail To Your Heart
\n3.\tDangerous To Know
\n4.\tAngels Never Sleep
\n5.\tBurning Rainbows
\n6.\tThe Sign Of Fire
\n7.\tThe Breaking Point
\n8.\t99 Percent Chance Of Loving You
\n9.\tLove Remains The Same
\n10.\tThe Wisdom Of Eve<\/p>\n

Website: http:\/\/www.slama101.fr\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 9\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska – Senior Columnist — In the current decade, there hardly has been a year without an album released by Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Slama\u2019s AOR. In 2012, fans of the star-studded project under this moniker […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":48251,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12394],"tags":[8939,9557,2901,8847,10775,3594],"class_list":{"0":"post-48249","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2015","8":"tag-aor","9":"tag-frederic-slama","10":"tag-melodic-rock","11":"tag-paul-sabu","12":"tag-return-to-l-a","13":"tag-tommy-denander"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48249","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=48249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48249\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48251"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}