From the crash and bang of big-riffed opener ‘Hey Life’ and the infectious hooks of ‘Go Big or Go Home’ to the cool almost ‘Springfield-esque’ AOR of ‘Summertime’ and the Bon Jovi flavoured Power Pop of ‘What Are We Waiting For’ you know the Defiants are back but this time bigger and better than before even if that is seemingly impossible!
Indeed ‘Defiants III’ or as the band call it ‘Drive’ is a pretty special record, maybe even the best they have landed yet and yet again the ex D2 members are firing on all cylinders with Paul Laine sounding wonderful as ever.
Even if ‘Miracle’ sounds a little like later period Def Leppard it’s not the worst ballad you’ll have heard just not as inspiring as anything that came before it. Still I’m sure some out there will love it. After all who cares when the ‘Against the Grain’ sets us back on the road again with a Melodic rocker par excellence! Half way through the journey this is feeing just right.
‘So Good’ hits early Jovi territory again, and ‘Love Doesn’t Live Here Anymore’, is slick sumptuous AOR with a mountain-high refrain, it’s wonderful. It’s hard to follow a song like that but ‘Another Time, Another Place’ another AOR tinged mid tempo manages to keep the wonderful ride on the road before ‘The Night To Remember’ gets us back in the fast lane on the freeway with another roaring chorus.
We close a sensational third release with ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now’ a crunching rocker that just hits the spot, it sums up an album that shows both the harder edge the band can seemingly produce at will and a softer, more mature AOR sound that is an equal feast for the ears. With two great albus already in teh bank, this just might be my new favourite Defiants record.
9 / 10
DRIVE tracklisting:
Hey Life
Go Big Or Go Home
19 Summertime
What Are We Waiting For
Miracle
Against The Grain
So Good
Love Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
Another Time, Another Place
The Night To Remember
Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me No
Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/TheDefiantsOfficial
https://www.instagram.com/the__defiants/
