Artist: Milan Polak 
   Title: Straight
   Label: Lion Music

Following on from his two hugely successful instrumental guitar albums, Austrian guitar virtuoso has taken the bull by the horns with his new album ‘Straight’.  He's added both his own blues style vocals to the mix as well as a top class band that includes ex-Malmsteen and Ark members Randy Coven on bass and John Macaluso on drums, plus on bass we have Fabio Trentini and together these four men have put together this wonderful no nonsense rock album.

Things get underway with ‘Difference’ and instantly you wonder why Polak has never released an album like this before now, because he certainly has the voice for rock and has the song writing calibre to equal anything out there in the hard rock genre today.

He shows his penchant for something a little more punky with the rousing rocker ‘Psychobitch’, which is good time rock n' roll at its finest.  However, it's with his fine guitar playing that Polak has made his mark in the past and with this release he shows he can still deliver the goods, as well as good bluesy vocals, on the excellent ‘Crosses’ and the semi acoustic ‘Hero’.  If this album is all about Polak making his mark vocally, then he's done it in bunches on this one.

It's back to the rockier stuff with the no holds barred ‘Favorite Vice’ and the soulful rocking tones of ‘Some Kind Of Jesus’, before the tempo is brought right down again with another outstanding vocal track, this time ‘All I Want’.

The album keeps on impressing as Polak continues to shine vocally and lyrically, and the guitar playing is second to none, especially on the likes of ‘Superstar Mania’ and the exceptional title track ‘Straight’ which rocks big style.

‘Happy Now’ is another acoustic bluesy number which suits Polak’s vocals rather than the more all out rockers, although they are still outstanding songs either way. Things get a little funky with ‘I Don’t Care’ and ‘Free After All’, before the album closer ‘The Glowing Of A Cigarette’ which shows just what a talent guitarist Polak is with this Satriani style track which rounds off a wonderful first attempt at a vocal album and here's hoping it won't be his last.

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