Month: July 2023

Jeff Scott Soto – ‘Complicated’ (2022) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic16 Comments

Released on May 6, 2022 by Frontiers Records, ‘Complicated’ is Jeff Scott Soto’s 8th studio album. And like his last solo album, he partnered again with Alessandro Del Vecchio to help write and produce the album. He wasn’t the only one to return as Jeff also had his good buddy Edu Cominato back on drums and Fabrizio Sgattoni on guitar who were both on ‘Wide Awake (In My Dreamland)’. With the same basic line-up, you’d expect the same sound and you’d be right. It is more of the same, which in my opinion is not always a great thing. Although at times it feels like Talisman and sometimes W.E.T., it kind of all sounds the same, but there are some great moments. Let’s find out what’s what on the album.

The album kicks off with “Last to Know” opens and all is good. You get a hard rocking song with a great chorus, memorable moments and Jeff’s awesome vocals. Jeff’s delivery is powerful and the chorus is such a big payoff with great backing vocals. Fabrizio throws in some great guitar riffs and lays down a solo that is fast and exciting. An energetic opener that will get you moving and get you anticipating the rest of the album.

“Disbelieving” comes up next and there are some great melodies and harmonies, but I quickly lose interest as it is too cookie cutter and no real surprises. Left me a little bored and my mind started wondering and I’d forget the song was playing…never a good thing.

Continue reading “Jeff Scott Soto – ‘Complicated’ (2022) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series” →

My Sunday Song – “TV” by Billie Eilish

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic13 Comments

For My Sunday Song #369, we get Morgan’s 9th Choice and this time we have Billie Eilish’s song “TV” from her 2022 E.P. called ‘Guitar Songs’. The E.P. only has two songs and they thought about including them on her 3rd album, but instead she felt they needed to be heard immediately so they released them. The song “TV” was written by her and her brother, Finneas O’Connell who also produced the song.

The song is about depression and it talks about a lot of issues including abandonment which makes her want to curl up on the couch and watch TV. She wants to watch Survivor so she can see other people suffer. There is a strong desire to numb the pain and get away from all that plagues the world. There also seems to be worry about her celebrity and the effect that has on her relationships. There is a lot of loneliness coming from this song. And be the end, she blames all of her issues on herself and watching TV and all the problems flashed on that tiny little screen. Celebrities suing each other, the downfall of Roe v Wade and so many more world events playing out on TV.

The song is an acoustic performance and damn, it is sad and depressing just like the lyrics. There is a darkness to it and a loneliness. It opens with a soft, lonely acoustic guitar and Billie’s haunting vocals. The bass, keyboards and drums come in later (all played by Finneas) and it picks things up, but the drone of the music still has that melancholy feel which never goes away in the song, but during the last lines of the song “Maybe, I’m the problem”, there is a cheering crowd that brightens things up a little, only a little. The crowd sound was sampled from the the crowd noise from her debut performance at Manchester.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “TV” by Billie Eilish” →

Friday New Releases – July 14, 2023

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic15 Comments

Welcome to New Release Friday! We have another batch of releases for you this week. Close to 40, but not quite. A ton of variety so hopefully there is something for everyone. I might stream the Brian May Deluxe set of Star Fleet Sessions with Eddie Van Halen on it, but that might be it. However, no buying this week which is good as the wallet needs a break. What are you interested in hearting this week? Let me know and what we may have missed. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

  • download-16  Brian May – Star Fleet Sessions (Deluxe Edition) – (Duck Productions / Universal International)
  • 61aNcqw77lL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real – Sticks and Stones – (6 Ace Records / Thirty Tigers)
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – July 14, 2023” →

Jon Bongiovi – ‘The Power Station Sessions (1980-1983)’ (2001) – Album Review (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic94 Comments

Before there was a band called Bon Jovi, there was a young man, named Jon Bongiovi, who worked as a janitor at a recording studio called The Power Station which was located in Hell’s Kitchen in New York City. During his time as janitor, he’d be allowed to use the studio when it wasn’t in use. The years were 1980-1983 and this release is a collection of all these unreleased songs from that time period in his life prior to becoming Jon Bon Jovi and fronting one of the biggest bands in the world.

But wait…let’s go back a ways. Jon could play both guitar and piano and at 13 started playing gigs with his very first band called Raze. When he was 16, he met a curly haired dude named David Bryan and they would start a band called Atlantic City Expressway. David would leave that band to go to Med School…but that didn’t work out as he felt music was his path. So that band didn’t go anywhere and while still south of 20, he had another band called Jon Bongiovi and the Wild Ones. Again, nothing. So by 1980, he started yet another band called Rest and they actually got to open for a hero of Jon’s, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Dukes. During the 80’s he spent time at his cousin’s studio and recorded the song “Runaway”…yeah, that song. He shopped it around, but little notice. And we will end that story there as we will talk further about how that song changed things for him later.

This album was released by Tony Bongiovi who is Jon’s father’s first cousin…what does that make him to Jon? I have no freaking idea…maybe second cousin. Tony, I believe, owned the studio and was the producer of these songs we have before us. The album has been released several times and is not an official Bon Jovi or Jon Bon Jovi release so I am sure Jon wasn’t overly thrilled with it seeing the light of day. The first release was in 1998 and was only 10 songs. The second release was 1999 and suddenly was up to 14 tracks. My version, however, was released September 18, 2001 and was the third iteration of the songs and this time around there are a whopping 20 tracks. That is a lot of music. And when you hear it, you will hear a very young Jon with songs that were a sign of the times and a Jon whose voice hadn’t really found…well…his voice or style. The songs aren’t great…but that doesn’t mean this isn’t a fun and interesting listen to see how it all began.

“Who Said it Would Last Forever” kicks things off with an opening piano, an infectious groove, some nice guitar work and energized vocals by Mr. Bongiovi. A high energy rocker that shows a singer with a lot of promise as the chorus is catchy and you can see something there that was ready to explode.

Continue reading “Jon Bongiovi – ‘The Power Station Sessions (1980-1983)’ (2001) – Album Review (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)” →

Whitesnake – ‘Still…Good to Be Bad’ Super Deluxe Edition (15th Anniversary) – Box Set

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic20 Comments

David Coverdale has really outdone himself with these Super Deluxe Editions Box Sets.  First was the ‘1987’ album, then an UnZipped Box Set, then ‘Slide It In’ and the 1989 album ‘Slip of the Tongue’. Heck, He even did the 25th Anniversary Edition of ‘Restless Heart’ which for some reason I have yet to review. I need to get on that. Now, to the surprise of everyone, he has done a 15th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition for ‘Good to Be Bad’ now called ‘Still…Good to Be Bad’. It doesn’t seem the album has been out long enough to deserve such a treatment and that might explain why it isn’t chock full of goodness the other ones gave us. More on that soon enough. The album was the band’s 10th studio album and the first one in over a decade which is way too long to go without a Whitesnake album. But they came back with a bang.

This special edition consists of 4 CDs, 1 DVD, 1 Book, 1 Tour Program replica and 1 Album Cover Poster.  And it has over 58 tracks amongst all the CDs.  Well…not really. It has 15 tracks done four different ways (minus 2 tracks done 3 ways). So, this is why I say this is for the diehard fans as it is very repetitive…this is for the diehard fans as it is very repetitive! Yes, I said this twice to prove a point and yes, I did this joke on pretty much every box set review for Whitesnake because its true. Here is everything you get.

Continue reading “Whitesnake – ‘Still…Good to Be Bad’ Super Deluxe Edition (15th Anniversary) – Box Set” →

Jeff Scott Soto – ‘The Duets Collection, Vol. 1’ (2021) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic21 Comments

During the Covid Pandemic, Jeff had time on his hands since he wasn’t touring the world. However, that doesn’t mean he sat around twiddling his thumbs. Nope. Instead he decided to revisit some old songs. Now, he wasn’t thinking of doing another album like ‘Revisions’ and thank goodness for that. Instead, he re-recorded a bunch of his classic songs throughout his career and the twist was he invited a bunch of his fellow musical friends that could sing and do the songs as duets. And the line-up he has is second to none. They are some of the most exciting new melodic rock singers in the field and some that are legends in their own right.

He used a bunch of his bandmates and friends also to handle the music. Most of these names you will recognize if you’ve been following along on this series. He had Jorge Salan (guitars), Howie Simon (guitars), Leo Mancini (guitars), Tony Dickinson (bass) and Edu Cominato (drums). And let me tell you, they really brought these songs to life and made them sound fresh and more modern in some cases. These guys are playing songs by Yngwie Malmsteen, Axel Rudi Pell and Marcel Jacobs so they have to step up their game and let me tell you they do just that. The combination of this band, Jeff’s powerhouse vocals and these incredible guest singers actually surprised me with an album that at first I went…”really?”… but by the end I was like…”Hell Yeah!!”. The album came out on October 8, 2021 and continued his run with Frontier Records and what a run it has been. Enough chit chat, let’s get to the music.

The album opens with a high energy, bombastic guitar rocker called “Livin’ the Life” from the Rock Star soundtrack and what a way to open the album. Jeff had his W.E.T. bandmate, Erik Martensson, dueting with him and this one and if you’ve heard the W.E.T. albums, then you know what a lethal combo these two are together. This is not a song Jeff plays a lot, so what a pleasure to have this one covered and a sign of great things to come. If you were expecting an album full of ballads, you’d be so wrong.

Continue reading “Jeff Scott Soto – ‘The Duets Collection, Vol. 1’ (2021) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)” →

My Sunday Song – “Die For You” by The Weeknd

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic13 Comments

For My Sunday Song #368, we are on Morgan’s 8th Choice and this time around it is The Weeknd’s song “Die For You” off his 2016 album ‘Starboy’. The song was a single and did fairly well, but in 2022 there was a resurgence on the popularity of this song thanks again to the wonderful social media tool, TikTok (that “wonderful” is very sarcastic btw). The song went all the way to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 six years after its original release. And the Weeknd is not stupid and took advantage of that popularity by releasing an new mix of the song with Ariana Grande. The version we will discuss is not that one. The song was written by an army of writers. Yes, because a good song needs 7 writers and they are the Weeknd,  Doc McKinney,  Cirkut, Prince 85, Cashmere Cat, Dylan Wiggins, and Billy Walsh.

The song was actually the last song written for the album and was apparently hard to finish and that might explain why there are so many writers…and yes, that does bother me. The song is apparently about a former girlfriend (rumored to be Bella Hadid) and their breakup. Although their relationship has ended, he still lovers her and would do anything for her, even die for her. It was hard for him to get over her and there was a lot of frustration and pain over the break up. I think it is a great little love letter for her to let her know he still cares and although they aren’t meant to be together, they are connected as he will always care for her.

The song is a ballad and there is a lot of pain and heartbreak in it and The Weeknd really comes across vocally with that emotion. The music is all electronic, the bass, the drums and the keys, but there is a really nice groove to hit and it gets my head bobbing back and forth. The chorus has a big payoff and is really catchy. The music is amped up, a little heavier and it s really a great beat. He sings at such a high register, it almost feels a lot like Michael Jackson and that is saying something. The song sticks with me long after I have listened to it.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “Die For You” by The Weeknd” →

Friday New Releases – July 7, 2023

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic18 Comments

Welcome to July! It’s been waiting for you! Our first big release of the month doesn’t get much bigger than this. The new Taylor Version for the album ‘Speak Now’ is out this week so does it really matter what else is out this week as it will blow the doors off the competition! Of course it matter what else there is or why do these posts. I’m sure my kids will get Taylor, but I’m more interested in Nita Strauss’ new album as well as the latests from Degreed. Outside of that, we will see what kind of time I have. Let me know what you want to here this week or what we may have missed. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a great weekend.

  • 71Phx8z8ttL._SX522_  Taylor Swift – Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) – (Republic Records)
  • 81hfp5WQqdL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Nita Strauss – The Call of the Void – (Sumerian Records)
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – July 7, 2023” →

The Defiants – ‘Drive’ (2023) – Album Review

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic19 Comments

The boys are back with their third album. The boys, of course, are Paul Laine, Bruno Ravel and Rob Marcello or more properly known as The Defiants. The band was brought together back in 2016 thanks to Frontiers Records. I was worried this was going to be a one and done, but thankfully that wasn’t the case.

I spoke with Paul Laine a couple years ago and I knew he was working on this album. And about 6 months later, when I was exchanging emails with him, he was coming up on his deadline to submit the album to Frontiers. He seemed a little stressed, but in a good way. This was around January 2022. I am not sure what happened, but the album didn’t see the light of day for another 18 months. I hope to talk with him again soon and I will make sure to see what was going on. Regardless, as of June 7, 2023, we have the new Defiants album and I couldn’t be happier.

The guys had worked together before in a band called Danger Danger, you remember them from the late 80’s and 90’s. The Defiants were made to recapture that 80’s rock magic and capture it they did. I will try not to be biased as I am a huge Paul Laine fan and I pretty much love everything he does and there is a reason for that…he is one of the best vocalists in the business and his voice gets stronger as he ages. He does not disappoint here either. In fact no one does. This is my album of the Summer and in fact, could wind up as album of the Year. Yes, I said it! And here’s why…

The album opens with a scorcher in “Hey Life” which is a massive anthemic rocker. And listen to that opening guitar riff…does it not sound like “Rise” by Extreme??? Which is wild as both albums came out on the same day. Paul’s vocals soar as he tells life to get out of his way. The drums are pounding, the guitars are a rip-roaring shredfest and the song makes a massive opening statement.

Continue reading “The Defiants – ‘Drive’ (2023) – Album Review” →