The Roth Brock Project on paper has to be one of the great Melodic Rock team-ups – the vocals of Terry Brock (Strangeways, Giant and others) and the guitars of John Roth (Winger, Starship, Giant) – it’s the sort of combination that has to work.
Opener YOUNG GUN says it all really – hard hitting melodic rock built on a great riff and a cool melody, its a great way to start but things just grow from there/ Second up WHATS IT TO YA is perhaps even better, with a stuttering swaggering riff – its a great song with a huge chorus, great vocal and wailing guitars to give it a grittier edge than the opener.
For me though its the third track YOUNG AGAIN that really brings out the best – its a fine dose of classy melodic rock – a beautiful song with a great chorus that sticks. And its that more melodic sound that works best here though the mix of rockers like FIGHTER and the opening pair, and the more AOR inclined like THATS WHAT IT TAKES creates a wonderfully balanced album.
The other element of course is the ballads and as you might expect Brock shines on both I DONT KNOW WHY and NEVER GIVIN’ UP bringing real soul and emotion to both.
This album is all class, all the way, let’s hope it’s not just a one-off.
