| CD REVIEW Place Vendome |
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Band : Place Vendome Yeah, finally a follow-up to Place Vendome’s self-titled October 2005 debut outing! As you know, this is really a studio project initiated by Frontiers Records president Serafino Perugino, as a means to get former Helloween frontman Michael Kiske back into the medium of Melodic Rock…and for more details, just read up the review I did for that album, posted 10/10/2005!!! Shortly after the release, it seemed like there was some bad blood between the singer and producer, when rumours arose that Kiske had made a statement that the material he had originally sang on was pure AOR, and that Ward had later added more substantial guitars. Whether the statement was actually made, or just malicious rumour spreading, remains to be seen, but fact is that during 2008 several songwriters were approached to write material for the project’s sophomore album. Leverage’s Torsti Spoof supplied 4 songs [the album’s title track (which was mysteriously cut short to only 3 seconds during the download of the album from the label’s website’s protected press section…so I have no idea what it sounds like, really…except that it starts with a piano bein’ played) plus “Believer”, “Changes”, and “Dancer”). Ronny Millianowicz (of Saint Daemon; also songwritter for Primal Fear) deliberately wrote the beautiful ballad “Completely Breathless”, the very Toto remeniscent “A Scene In Replay” (just listen to the high-end vocal backing harmonies!), and “Surrender Your Soul”. RobertSall (of Work Of Art and W.E.T) eventually, offered “Follow Me” and “Valerie (The Truth Is In Your Heart)”. Another contribution comes from Magnus Karlsson, who wrote “My Guardian Angel” (a song for which a promo video clip was made, included on the retail version of the album…and marking Kiske’s visual return on the scene). I’ve had no specification as to whom wrote the remaining songs “Set Me Free”, and the album closing “I’d Die For You” (a semi-ballad with a more explosive/ bombastic mid-section…and great harmony backing vocals to finish everything off!). Instrumentally, you get the same people as on the first album with Pink Cream’s Dennis Ward (bass), Uwe Reitenauer (guitar) and Kosta Zafiriou (drums) getting great keyboard backings from Vandenplas’s Gunther Werno. Getting back to the album opening track’s problems…and more specifically to that piano, which happens to be a rather busy instrument on the album overall (only the “heavier” “Follow Me”, and the more keyboard-driven “Valerie” and “Changes” – in the case of the second even some orchestrated passages – do nót have any piano play in ‘em)! I haven’t had time to check and compare with the debut album, but it from what I remember it seems to me that this time around there’s indeed much more piano in the music, you know! Which is góód…because it gives the music a quality which lifts it above what the project offered us the first time around! Check it out for yourselves by listening to the four songs (which incidently includes that album title song, as well as “My Guardian Angel”, plus “Follow Me” and “Believer”) posted at the label’s website frontiers.it (you click on the “Multimedia” button on the right side (in the middle) of the page, then click the “Audio” button on the left. The rest you’ll find yourself, I hope! 90/100 Tony. |