voices of rock high and mighty

Released: 28 August 2009 Label: Metal Heaven

Created by renowned German producers / songwriters Chris Lausmann and Michael Voss, the Voices of Rock project brings together a number of melodic rock vocal alumni, all of whom are given the chance to contribute their talents to one track.

Depending on your viewpoint, the assembled vocalists represent either the cream of the melodic rock underground, or a motley crew of also rans, but don’t let the lack of household names put you off as there is some really strong material on offer here.

The album kicks off with Into the Light featuring the vastly under-rated Tony Martin, who did a fine job in Black Sabbath on a number of too often overlooked releases. Bert Heerink and ex Rainbow man Joe Lynn Turner both offer enjoyable tracks with Shame on You and Tonight respectively, before Paul Shortino really cuts loose of the Def Leppard flavoured Rock Me.

Rob Rock struggles to bring any life to the lacklustre ballad Remember Me, but things are soon back on track with rock solid contributions from Mitch Malloy and David Reece. The former Accept man excels on the southern rock meets Danger Danger swagger of Dirty Games. It’s not brain surgery, but if you are a fan of groove-ridden classic rock, this track will hit the spot.

Paul Sabu delivers a great vocal performance on Down the Drain prompting memories of latter day Warrant, before the album closes on a lighter note with Torben Schmidt’s Only 4 Ever, straying into Journey-esque AOR territory.

This album is stadium rock with no irony, no pretence and no apologies. The songwriting and production is pretty much faultless, if formulaic, from beginning to end. The album offers nothing new, but it does its job with class and style throughout, capturing some great performances along the way. Any other judgement will depend entirely on your feelings about the genre.

by Marcus Jervis