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Artist: N.O.W. |
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It can't be every day that someone is given a choice on their 18th birthday, a car or a bass guitar, and they choose the strings over the wheels! It was probably the best choice Brazilian bassist and founder member of N.O.W., Alec Mendonca ever made, and if this album 'Force Of Nature' is anything to go by in most parts, then he'll never regret that decision for one moment. Teaming up with vocalist Philip Bardowell has been a masterstroke, because the man can't do anything wrong on these songs, as he gives them his all from the beginning. On 'Can't Make It (How Can I?), he pushed himself to the limit without hitting a dud note, especially as there's plenty of guitar and keyboard action to content with. The ultra-melodic 'Listen To Your Heart' has its keyboards popping in and out very Van Halen like and would fit onto any AOR compilation CD with ease; though Bardowell sounds a wee bit forced on 'Lonely Soul', and it wouldn't! An attack of punchy ivories take over 'Once That Feeling Comes Again', so much so that it spoils the guitar solo where really it should have been taken down a peg or two to get the real effect that the solo should have had. I wonder what Caio de Carvalho made of it all if he noticed? 'You' begins in a very dramatic way, the lone piano backed by some very grand orchestration that stops you in your tracks to see where it is heading. The outcome is what can be described as an operatic rock song that could really have been left along to stay as an atmospheric ballad that by now the album is crying out for. The same can be said of 'Idol's Grace', as again things start off promising but fall into the same guitar driven thumper as before. It's a pity because it all began so well, suited the vocals nicely. By the time 'Peace Of Mind' and 'The Long Hard Way' come along, there's a sense of deja vu, though on the latter, Bardowell sounds at his most comfortable, which lifts the song out of the sameness that is surrounding the album. At last there's a stand out track that throws the spanner in the works in 'Midnight Call', where drummer Erik Leal comes up with the strangest of beats along with some Spanish guitar work. To say it saves the album from becoming one of the same old scene contenders could be a bit harsh, yet it was definitely needed somewhere on the album. 'Force Of Nature' isn't really breaking into any new boundaries by any means, but from start to finish, it's a very accomplished melodic rock album, though some songs could have been left well alone to take the road it started on. Maybes then it may just have been a bit more interesting instead of a should have been one. Shame. Review
by: Bob |
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| Tracklisting:
1.
Can't Make It (How Can I?) |
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