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Scorcher by Arizona's Fire Alley is a throwback to the days of
AOR / melodic hard rock when bands had the freedom to take the
time to craft their own songs and not have to rely on "song
doctors" to help those bands that could not stand on their own
material.
On the lead track City Girl, Fire Alley sounds like a cross
between Salty Dog and Legs Diamond. A bizarre comparison
you might say, but that is what I hear! The song has all
the qualities of rock radio friendly single. Got To Tell
Me is rather similar to Raquel's Dark City and vocalist James
Welch even sounds a bit like Ron English. The Legs Diamond
comparative is further drawn on the tracks
One More Time (Lover's Last Stand) and She's A Deceiver which
both also have traces of midwest legends Shooting Star thrown in
for good measure.
Typical Rock 'N' Roll has Rock N Roll Machine era Triumph
written all over it. Welch cites influences such as Paul
Rodgers, Otis Redding and Steve Perry and on this blues-soaked,
harmonica-laced track the Rodgers influences shines bright.
This is not one of those phony L.A. blues songs that polluted
1988 to 1992.
Pay The Price and
Victim Of The Night are also obvious rock radio singles as
is Over Me, which also has elements of Triumph to it as well.
Welch takes the spotlight on
I Can't Get Enough which could easily be a Bon Jovi ballad.
Closing track One Big Party has all the signs of the set closer
written all over it. The song has a bit of .38 Special's
Rockin' Through The Night running through its veins.
Guitarist Jack "Jaxxon" Schwarz brings years of experience as a
musician and respected guitar technician (having worked for
Fender Musical Instruments hosting guitar clinics). While
he cites Hendrix, Beck and Clapton as influences, his style
definitely blends blues with melodic American hard rock of the
late 70's and early 80's. The back end of Mark Blythe
(bass) and Michael Scott (Vyper, Prizoner) are solid players and
keep things very tight throughout the album.
There was a time when releases like this flooded the market (and
most were darn good!) but with the winds of change across the
music industry, they are now rare. Scorcher is to me like
a the summer soundtrack of 1982 (a great year!). Fire
Alley will take you back to a time when songs actually told an
interesting story with a keen sense of melody and superb vocals.
Within 2 listens, most of the songs will be readily
recognizable. I imagine Fire Alley would be killer to see
in live setting where a bit of improvisation would make these
songs even hotter. Please visit the Fire Alley web site to
purchase a copy of Scorcher.
Track Listing:
City Girl
Got To Tell Me
She's A Deceiver
Tears And Promises
Typical Rock 'N' Roll
Pay The Price
Over Me
Victim Of The Night
I Can't Get Enough
One More Time (Lover's Last Stand)
Was It Love?
One Big Party
Homepage:
http://www.firealley.com |
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