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Oriz: II
Oriz: II
Melodic Hard Rock
3.0/5.0
Doolittle Group/Liljegren Records
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by Craig Hartranft, 11.07.2011
II is the second album, as would you suspect, from guitarist Alexander Oriz and company, now finding a home with Liljegren Records. The album is a consistent and interesting platter of melodic hard rock tunes, with a more than obvious nod to the early Eighties.
However, the odd thing here is the use of quirky keyboard parts, when you would think, coming from a guitarist, this would be a more guitar oriented album. Oriz certainly shows off his skills with good solos. But many songs, including Forever Free, Put Out the Flame, and This Feeling to name a few, have these pesky keyboards which persistently draw your attention away from the whole. It doesn't help that they often sound like those on an old Nintendo Mario Bros. game.
Otherwise, as mentioned, on the whole the music is interesting and entertaining, and there's a little bit everything. A heavier song like Desert Rider or for catchy hooks, Captured and Forever Free. Then a song like Living, while generally interesting, seems to lumber along. Perhaps the most pleasing song is the instrumental A Glimpse of Light and Denial. First, the keyboard layer isn't weird. Second, Oriz stretches much more on his guitar solos. Third, Mattias Eriksson, whose vocals just did not connect with me, is not singing.
Oriz's II is worth your interest if you enjoy early Eighties melodic hard rock peppered some unusual keyboard intrigue.
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In Short
Oriz's II is worth your interest if you enjoy early Eighties melodic hard rock peppered some unusual keyboard intrigue.
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