Avtor: Aleš Podbrežnik
Izvajalec: Night Ranger
Založba: Frontiers Records
Izid: 2007
One of the most anticipated hard rock albums of the year and Night Ranger’s first studio album in 10 years, has come through with some interesting answers to all the speculation that came before it. “Hole In The Sun” is a new step. A step forward. It’s the heaviest album of Night Ranger’s career. The guitars are cranked to the max, and the keyboards are pushed fully into the background. The band has also delivered a massive update of its sound. This much straight-up rock and roll attitude in one package, out of the blue, was really not something you’d expect from Night Ranger. But the guys, known for their perfection, have once again done a masterful job. They’ve served up an incredibly fresh album, with a few songs carrying especially original “stunts” and witty ideas that only add to the album’s appeal and charm. The choruses remain famously huge and thrillingly melodic, polished to a shine. Did anyone actually doubt that Night Ranger couldn’t pull this off, or that they’d forgotten how it’s done? Fear not. A 10-year hiatus can be a double-edged sword, but luckily this one brought us an excellent album. If we draw a line under all this, we can conclude that any fear is unnecessary as long as the quality is there. The guys really have pushed out an album without a single flaw. They even tuned the guitars a little lower, adding a touch of commercial-sounding flavor while also bringing in more rock aggression and punch. This is definitely an album that demands more attention, and that isn’t hard to tell on a “first listen.” It also takes more time for an objective overall verdict, until the tracks really start kicking around in your head, the way rock demands!
Still, Night Ranger have shown in the past that they’re deeply committed to their own evolution. Of course, with the ways it departs from the band’s usual output, “Hole In The Sun” is bound to be the subject of plenty of in-depth debate among the band’s fans, who may even split into two camps. The defenders of the old and the liberals who welcome novelty in the band’s image.
The very first track, Tell Your Vision, characterizes the whole new album, in line with the remarks in the first paragraph of this review. A massive, modern-sounding riff floods the listener in an instant, and its heaviness grows venomous and intense as it goes. Kelly Keagy is astonishingly cocky and arrogant on vocals, then right before the chorus Jack Blades jumps in with a colorful vocal contrast, and then the band masterfully flips the mood into a melodic chorus with layered vocal harmonies from both lead singers. Mastery, routine, and that touch of naivety and eagerness to prove themselves that Night Ranger, luckily, still have, still childishly playful! On first listen you’ll be shocked. Because of the sharpness of the riff and the modern approach to the production, but after repeated spins you’ll be able to feel the logical link between today’s Night Ranger and their older classic albums like “Man In Motion” and “Dawn Patrol”. But if you’re looking for the closest thing to the Night Ranger tradition, I’d point to the “riff-spiced” Wrap It Up, with its especially big guitar sound, which leads the way on the album.
Drama Queen continues with guitars dominating the sound, and this track also offers a cunning, well-matched combination of modern sound with the Night Ranger tradition, evoking eighties nostalgia in general with those recognizable twin guitar harmonies. Even more cocky riffing comes with the head-kicking, bubbling chorus of You’re Gonna Hear It From Me, which approaches things with a classic rock’n’roll riff from the good old Damn Yankees school and, in the hardness of its sound, ties straight back to the opening riff of Tell Your Vision. You’ll have a hard time finding anything harder-hitting for the rest of this record.
Whatever Happened could easily be picked as a potential hit, with “funky pop rock” levers in the pre-chorus and a heavenly melodic AOR chorus. An excellent contrast. Another successful experiment that fuses modern pop rock trends with Night Ranger’s traditional trademarks. The guys come very close to this approach later on in Rock Star, the dark White Knuckle Ride, and the title track, though the latter doesn’t hide its flirtation with the look and feel of Night Ranger’s albums “Seven” and “Neverland”.
There Is Life makes no secret of its kinship with the classic Sister Christian. It’s not a replica, but the way it’s built strongly recalls that hit of the band’s. The piano is more prominent here, Keagy’s singing in the chorus is sensual and subtle, and the multi-part vocal harmonies once again bring a winning poker hand of aces, the kind that only the well-known Night Ranger tactics can play.
The semi-acoustic ballad Fool In Me is interesting for its acoustic seasoning and its vocal harmonies, something that could have come from the fingers of Tommy Shaw and Jack Blades, but in this case with Keagy on vocals. The album closes with the refined, pure acoustic bluesy ballad Being, a fitting choice for the end of the record, with a balm-like, ear-stroking effect, given how riff-spiced the album really is for the most part.
With “Hole In The Sun”, Night Ranger prove they’re still damn hot and kicking up sparks, swinging their instruments around even after a long break, during which many feared the guys would go soft and get lazy. “Hole In The Sun” is anything but a product of that. It’s an extremely varied album that expertly combines all of Night Ranger’s classic trademarks and keeps the tradition alive with modern sonic currents, which keeps Night Ranger a relevant band in the new millennium, as always. Night Ranger have taken a new creative, evolutionary step forward; they haven’t stood still and nodded off. As said, “Hole In The Sun” surprises with its preserved creative freshness and incredible hard rock energy, plus the straight-ahead attitude that comes with the heaviest sound of the band’s career so far. The experiments are integrated brilliantly into the new look. Night Ranger thus add yet another superb album to their rich collection, and for 2007 this is without a doubt one of the hard rock highlights!
Zasedba
Jack Blades – vocals, bass guitar
Kelly Keagy – vocals, drums
Michael Lardie – keyboards
Jeff Waton – guitar
Brad Gillis – guitar
Produkcija
Night Ranger
Seznam skladb
1. Tell Your Vision
2. Drama Queen
3. You’re Gonna Hear It From Me
4. Whatever Happened
5. There Is Life
6. Rock Star
7. Hole In The Sun
8. Fool In Me
9. White Knuckle Ride
10. Revelation 4am
11. Wrap It Up
12. Being
Trajanje albuma: 53.35
