Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Pretty Maids
Label: Frontiers Records
Release: 2012
Rating: 4/5
Thirty years of defying the music business is no walk in the park. Especially when you’re cursed with being overlooked, having never gotten the real, well-deserved recognition for your otherwise excellent body of work. This time we’re talking about Danish classic hard rockers Pretty Maids.
Pretty Maids have been more active in recent years than you’d expect, or even demand, from rock legends. Just a few years ago, the future of this band, so dearly loved among a small, devoted circle of fans, was in question because of singer Ronnie Atkins’ failing health. But to his relief and ours, he managed to drive off every last one of the evil spirits that had him surrounded.
»It Comes Alive« is a magnificent move by the band. It’s a living document, released as a DVD, as a double live album, and you can also get your hands on a copy where the DVD and the double live CD come together in one package. The band picked the Swiss town of Pratteln and its venue Z7 for this historic undertaking, recording the show there with a specially seasoned set list that covered a retrospective cross-section of the Pretty Maids discography.
Twenty-two songs (the double CD includes an extra track, Leathal Heroes from »Jump The Gun«, that the DVD doesn’t have!), focusing on the new record »Pandemonuim« (four songs) – RockLine review HERE – and the first three studio albums (nine in total), with some sweet treats in between, like Clay (»Carpe Diem«, 2000), Scream and Walk Away (»Scream«, 1994), Hell On High Water (»Anything Worth Doing in Worth Overdoing«, 1999), Destination Paradise (»Planet Panic«, 2002), Back To Back (from the best-of compilation of the same name, 1998) and Another Shot Of Your Love (»Wake Up In The Real World«, 2005), is delivered at an outstanding level of performance.
The band kicked off promotion for their latest studio album »Pandemonium« in the fall of 2010 and basically toured nonstop throughout 2011. Pretty Maids only had a bit of trouble finding a new bassist, which was behind Ken Jackson’s unexpected departure from the band. Hal Patino (also ex-King Diamond), who was around only briefly, was replaced in 2011 by Rene Shades, and the guys finally clicked with him. Instrumentally, then, Pretty Maids on »It Comes Alive« are an impenetrable fortress that still fires with live ammo even after three decades of defiance. It’s especially incredible how much room the band fills in the sound with just a single guitar, while keeping all the rock-and-roll swagger and noisy intensity. Keyboardist Morten Sandager deserves a special mention as an important connecting link who nicely fills out the backing and builds a highly vibrant, atmospheric backdrop. Pretty Maids also stand out live as very skilled arrangers of vocal harmonies. The only thing showing some noticeable wear on the album is Ronnie Atkins’ lead vocal, especially on songs where he goes in with a full-throated attack. That’s probably why the band’s decision to open the show right away with Pandemonium, one of the most vocally demanding songs on this live record, is a bit less wise. Atkins does masterfully adapt the melody to the range of his new-era vocal abilities, which is only logical. Otherwise, the singer really shines in the clean, melodic stretches, with all the bravura that’s one of the core trademarks of every Pretty Maids album.
I should also mention that the DVD has some interesting moments, where the band unfurls the Slovenian flag during the show, proving that some of the band’s big supporters from Slovenia were at the gig too (by the way, RockLine and crew covered the event as well – live report HERE), so this concert carries a certain symbolic meaning for all melodic hard rock fans in Slovenia.
Not exactly the best album for newcomers to start exploring the Pretty Maids discography, but still a document the band pretty much had to release. »It Comes Alive« is the band’s third live document overall, after »Screamin’ Live« from 1995 and »Alive At Least« from 2003. This is a release every die-hard Pretty Maids fan will grab without a second thought, and at the same time a document that’s a manifesto of the band’s sheer power and onstage invincibility. With it, the band has boldly stepped into its fourth decade, and it’ll be interesting to taste what the next live document has to offer, which we’ll probably get only after 2020! Happy first 30 years, boys!
Lineup
Ronnie Atkins – vocals
Ken Hammer – guitar
Morten Sandager – keyboards
Rene Shades – bass
Allan Tschicaja – drums
Tracklist
CD1:
01. Pandemonium
02. I.N.V.U.
03. Hell On High Heels
04. Wake Up To The Real World
05. Destination Paradise
06. Another Shot Of Your Love
07. Scream
08. Walk Away
09. It Comes At Night
10. Queen Of Dreams
11. Savage Heart
12. Clay
CD2:
01. Yellow Rain
02. Rock The House
03. Back To Back
04. Rodeo
05. Lovegames
06. Future World
07. Little Drops Of Heaven
08. Please Don’t Leave Me
09. Red Hot And Heavy
10. Lethal Heroes (bonus track)
