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Escape Music
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 23.05.2023 | Released: 19.05.2023
Keyboardist Gregg Fox has a very long musical history, beginning with playing piano at the age of five. Over the course of four decades he has been a well respected and sought after studio and touring musician. The list of his collaborations is a "who's who" across many genres: Asia, Bad Company, Jefferson Starship, Blues Traveler, Queensryche, Alice Cooper, Toto, Yes, Iron Maiden, Vanilla Fudge, Ozzy Osbourne, BB King, and many, many more.
Some ten and more years ago, Fox launched his Renaissance Rock Orchestra (RRO) helped along by the many musicians he's worked with over the years. Largely, a solo project, featuring his keyboard skills, Fox released several album. But, RRO has also morphed into stage show with tenures in Las Vegas (his current home town) and touring. Billed as "The World's Greatest Rock Show," Fox and friends play classic rock hits such as Bohemian Rhapsody, Dream On, and Van Halen's Jump. Now Fox returns to the studio for his latest RRO album, Ice Age Cometh.
Once more, Ice Age Cometh is a collaborative effort. The number participants is notable if only for the many extremely gifted musicians. You can find the complete list of participants in this PDF. Fox, of course, composes, produces, and plays keyboards. While his influences are, perhaps, equally as long as the list of players, Fox's arrangements turn upon classic melodic hard rock.
If there are core elements, I would gather these: harmonic vocal arrangements, tandem and strong keyboard and guitar work (including solos), and simple AOR accessibility. You might expect Fox's keyboard work be at the fore. Well, yeah. But Fox has spent a lifetime working with others, and his song composition displays this. Fox is a team player, and every body get a chance to sign.
Mentioning a selection of songs, the first observation to make, based on the last paragraph, is the great consistency, yet subtle diversity, across this recording. AOR melodic rock comes with The Author Of Mystery, Here We Are Again, or In My Loving Arms. Then there's the title cut, a slow building rock anthem. With Secrets In The Sand you can here obvious Middle Eastern nuances. J.S. Rock is exactly what you would think: Johann Sebastian Bach morphed into melodic metal rock. As someone once said, After all, what is heavy metal but classical music with electricity. Finally, there's the closing tune, Long Live Rock And Roll, essentially an arena hymn to rock music which turns upon a grand choral vocal arrangement.
Most things considered, with Ice Age Cometh, Greg Fox and his Renaissance Rock Orchestra offers listeners expertly crafted and highly entertaining platter of AOR melodic hard rock driven by Fox's sound song composition, versatile keyboard work, and complimented by a host of talent musical friends. Easily recommended.
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With Ice Age Cometh, Greg Fox and his Renaissance Rock Orchestra offers listeners expertly crafted and highly entertaining platter of AOR melodic hard rock driven by Fox's sound song composition, versatile keyboard work, and complimented by a host of talent musical friends. Easily recommended.
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