Artist: Kajiyama, Akira & Turner, Joe Lynn
Label: AOR Heaven Records
Release: 2006
Rating: 3/5
Here’s the thing: anyone with five minutes to spare… Well, well… anyway, the wondrous multi-instrumentalist Akira Kajiyama and Joe Lynn Turner, a seasoned old fox (ex – Deep Purple, ex Rainbow, ex- Y.J. Malmsteen’s Rising Force, to name just the main ones) are old friends. In March 2005, when Turner was in Japan promoting his then-current studio album “The Usual Suspects”, the chance came up for Turner to return a favor to Kajiyama (Kajiyama had played on Turner’s studio albums and been part of Turner’s backing band, most recently on the “Slam” tour). And that’s how this joint studio album of theirs finally came to be.
Akira Kajiyama obviously had enough material written and needed a proper voice for it. No need to guess anymore that the material follows strictly, and I mean really strictly, the guidelines laid down long ago by Deep Purple and later carried toward new dimensions by bands like Whitesnake and especially Rainbow. Kajiyama is a renowned, seasoned and thoroughly road-tested studio musician who simply doesn’t make mistakes, and since his musical spirit is clearly obsessed with Deep Purple, which is hardly strange for a Japanese guy, the material on “Fire Without Flame” is composed in that spirit too. And if you want an adequate voice to bring the famous Rainbow magic back to life, Joe Lynn Turner just can’t be left out. On that front it was really a logical pick.
No need to philosophize for too long. Turner sings brilliantly once again, proving that his voice is still fresh and vital and that he still effortlessly enjoys steering through his well-tested and recognizable “hard rock” vocal approach. In the production his voice sounds incredibly clean this time, which is actually surprising, because with the warmth of the Hammond organs and classic Stratocaster guitar tones, and given how typical the Purple/Rainbow riff lines are, a slightly more pronounced raspy edge, the kind Joe Lynn can summon, would have been far from unwelcome. Kajiyama proves his talent for channeling the guitar genius Ritchie Blackmore. Certainly through his guitar-soloing approach and through the added ornamental guitar interludes (in Carnival Of Souls, for example), which also draw on “barocco” elements. And that last remark brings “Fire Without Flame” close to Malmsteen as well (e.g. the semi-ballad Heart Against Heart). Kajjiyama is as meticulous as only a workaholic from the land of the rising sun can be, absolutely devoted to the legacy of Deep Purple. An incredibly good imitator, that Kajiyama!
“Fire Without Flame” is an album of compact, evenly matched songs. If you swear by Rainbow, you won’t miss a thing by skipping this album, since its resemblance to Rainbow can definitely be distracting. It’s a predictable album that brings nothing new or avant-garde. Recording the songs must have been an absolute blast for Turner. The added “synthesizers” definitely don’t hide their AOR undertones, which was certainly a trademark of late Rainbow and, of course, something Joe Lynn Turner’s solo albums don’t hide either. The album has a lively, warm production of those already-mentioned classic “hard rock” sounds, which will definitely more than satisfy all fans of classic Deep Purple and Rainbow tunes. Deep Purple could pick Kajiyama for their concert tours, should they ever want to sound big (!!!) again, the way they sounded big when today’s Robin Hood in “Spandex”, Ritchie Blackmore, was among them.
Line-up
Joe Lynn Turner – vocals
Akira Kajiyama – all instruments
Production
Akira Kajiyama
Track list
1. One Day Away
2. Fire Without Flame
3. Carnival Of Souls
4. Heart Against Heart
5. End Of The Line
6. Forever Changed
7. Bad Feeling
8. Looking For Trouble
9. Down And Dirty
10. License To Kill
11. Slow Burn
Album length: 53:10
