Released by: Escape Music
Release Date: February 21st, 2013
Genre: Melodic Hard Rock
Links: http://www.overland-shadowman.com/overland_home.htm
Tracklist:
Radio Radio
If Looks Could kill
Stranded
Rags To Riches
Liberate My Heart
Down Comes The Night
If Your Heart’s Not In It
Rock Me
So This Is Love
Wild
The End Of The Road
I’ve got a pretty good track record here with My Global Mind about finding top notch AOR music. Despite enjoying some particularly heavy music, AOR hard rock is probably one of the styles I find more of a passion for than anything else. With my love of bands like Pretty Maids, TNT, Harem Scarem, Journey, and of course my guys in Paragon, it’s pretty obvious that if it’s got catchy hooks, excellent vocals, and amazing songs I’m bound to love it a lot. Enter Steve Overland, the voice of legendary English AOR band FM. I came into that band late in the game, but was instantly blown away by their incredible music. When the magnificent Denys asked me to review Steve’s new Overland album Epic I jumped at the chance.
Just as I expected, Epic lives up to its name. Everything a fan of his has come to expect is here: stunning vocals, super catchy songs, and tight, polished musicianship. With songs like “Down Comes the Night,” “So This Is Love,” “Stranded,” and “Wild” it’s guaranteed to please even the grumpiest of AOR fans. Though there is no new ground here and sometimes seems formulaic, it’s still an excellent album and such an enjoyable listen. New fans to his music should expect something akin to the Brian Howe era of Bad Company though leaning more towards a traditional AOR sound as opposed to a straight rock sound.
If you’re already a fan of Steve Overland and his various projects, then this is definitely an album you’ll want to add to your collection. If you’re new to his music and/or AOR music in general this is a good start, though I’d probably suggest grabbing some FM albums as well. You simply can’t go wrong in that endeavor. As for Epic, it’s a great album, but again if you’re looking for something different from what he has done in the past, not going to find that here. Nothing wrong with that of course; when you have a sound as great as Overland there is no need to improve upon it.
Written by Chris Martin
Ratings Chris 7/10
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