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New Music Reviews, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Progressive Rock, Progressive Metal, AOR, Alternative Rock, Alternative Metal
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September 2024
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Overland: Epic
Sometimes I wonder who gets to name an artist's album. Is it the artist himself, the label, or maybe the publicist? Steve Overland's third solo album is titled Epic. Talk about great expectations. Yeah, I get his history, the many great bands (FM, Shadowman, et al) with which he has performed, and the simple fact that Overland is both a gifted singer and songwriter. But is Epic indeed epic, that is, grand or monumental?
Overland: I think there's something on the floor.
Perhaps, foregoing any certain answer to the question, the best thing to say is that the album is consistent with Overland's AOR melodic rock roots, both in the music and his vocal style. If you love any of the aforementioned bands, or AOR melodic rock in general, Epic will be right up your alley. A song like the opener Radio Radio is pure AOR smoothness. Others like Down Comes the Night and So This Is Love sound like they've had some Eighties Toto nuances, from the synths, dropped in. Another song, Rock Me, is not what you think. It's not so much a 'rocker' but a tune with heavy groove and sharp guitar. And sharp guitars abound on this album. Curiously, being an AOR album, there's not a single ballad here. As said before, most of Epic is straight melodic rock, and that's the bottom line. Whether it's grand, profound, or monumental, I'll leave to your ears.
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In Short
Vocalist Steve Overland returns, once more, with his familiar vocal style in the context of his musical roots, classic AOR melodic rock. What's not to like?
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