{"id":48664,"date":"2015-03-14T06:33:28","date_gmt":"2015-03-14T11:33:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=48664"},"modified":"2015-03-14T06:33:28","modified_gmt":"2015-03-14T11:33:28","slug":"reload-hotter-than-a-bullet-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2015\/reload-hotter-than-a-bullet-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Reload | Hotter Than A Bullet<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

\"ReloadThere\u2019s hardly a subgenre of Rock that\u2019s so easy to digest as Melodic Hard Rock\/AOR \u2013 neat and catchy, relatively plain, with charming melodies and a certain degree of radio-friendliness that doesn\u2019t require a trained ear to appreciate. Although it\u2019s particularly susceptible to dismissal as cheesy and repetitive, somehow it always crawls back into favor of listeners as \u2013 apparently \u2013 we\u2019re never tired of heart pummeling power ballads and hooky, upbeat Rock anthems. The Greek act Reload seems to know it well, having the best of both on their debut album Hotter Than A Bullet<\/em> that\u2019s been released via ROAR! Rock Of Angels Records.<\/p>\n

Preceded with an elaborate instrumental intro, \u201cGive Into The Night\u201d is an apt introduction to Reload as it encapsulates all elements vital to the band\u2019s Melodic Hard Rock sound. And there\u2019s hardly a tint of variety to the rest of the songs on their debut \u2013 each firmly embedded in similar music aesthetics, embroidered with slick twin guitar work and thumping rhythm section against clean mid-range vocals. But this kind of stylistic homogeneity is more of an asset than a reproach anyway, as the Greek quintet follow the \u201call killer, no filler\u201d principle with surprising diligence throughout the entire album.<\/p>\n

The sound of \u201cSuperhero\u201d is lush and melodic, its choruses infectious to the utmost. Guitar-laden \u201cComeback\u201d has the early Bon Jovi-esque vibe to it, especially lyric-wise \u2013 even unintentional perhaps \u2013 followed by polished AOR mid-tempo \u201cLongin\u2019 For Your Love.\u201d A riff that drives \u201cCandle In The Night\u201d is relatively sharp and groovy, somewhat contrasted with thick, melodic vocal harmonies of \u201cAlone.” Next is \u201cHigher\u201d that has a slightly heavier, more feisty vibe to it \u2013 especially the twin guitar assault that culminate in the blistering solo part. <\/p>\n

\u201cPrince Of Steel\u201d is the sole ballad on Hotter Than A Bullet<\/em> \u2013 a smart move, one might have said, considering the band\u2019s potential towards the finest breed of uptempo melodic rockers. But as it turns out first dozen of seconds into the song, Reload are a force to be reckoned with also in the ballad-esque sphere. Deprived of its electrically amplified power, the band sounds even more genuine in its new found delicacy as the slightly folk-ish acoustic guitar blends with mellow, melancholy-laden vocals, both only to soar gradually in the best power ballad tradition. This heartrending, intense piece builds up to the weeping solo only to fade out in the lead singer Kostas Tokas\u2019s piercing, agonizing screams. Next-to-last on the album, \u201cSurvive\u201d is the thundering drum line and pumping bass underneath the layers of gritty guitar sound, preceding a solid dose of guitar-laden feistiness juxtaposed with the powerful choruses in \u201cFight.\u201d<\/p>\n

If we talk about Melodic Hard Rock sound that\u2019s \u201880s-tinted but enhanced by contemporary production, Reload\u2019s Hotter Than A Bullet<\/em> is an album to tick all the right boxes for fans of the genre. For those particularly fond of comparisons, let there be said the closest association is probably the Greek\/American sensation Outloud \u2013 the certain degree of similarity between the two having its source either in shared music inspirations or Bob Katsionis\u2019 influence as a producer. However, fans of post-\u201880s Melodic Rock acts such as H.E.A.T, Crystal Blue or Brother Firetribe should keep the Greeks on their radar too. Highly recommended.<\/p>\n

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

Band:
\nKostas Tokas (lead vocals)
\nTeo Ross (guitars)
\nTasos Lazaridis (guitars)
\nMarianiki Toka (drums, backing vocals)
\nElias Papadopoulos (bass)<\/p>\n

Track List:
\n1.Give Into The Night
\n2. Superhero
\n3. Comeback
\n4. Longin\u2019 For Your Love
\n5. Candle In The Night
\n6. Alone
\n7. Higher
\n8. Prince Of Steel
\n9. Survive
\n10. Fight<\/p>\n

Label: ROAR! Rock Of Angels Records<\/p>\n

Website: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ReloadGr<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 8\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska – Senior Columnist — There\u2019s hardly a subgenre of Rock that\u2019s so easy to digest as Melodic Hard Rock\/AOR \u2013 neat and catchy, relatively plain, with charming melodies and a certain degree […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":48665,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12394],"tags":[8939,2317,10942,2847,10941,10943,10944],"class_list":{"0":"post-48664","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2015","8":"tag-aor","9":"tag-cd-review","10":"tag-hotter-than-a-bullet","11":"tag-melodic-hard-rock","12":"tag-reload","13":"tag-roar","14":"tag-rock-of-angels-records"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48664","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=48664"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48664\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48665"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}