Label: Frontiers Music Srl.
Release date: June 18, 2021
Production: Michael Palace
Album length: 50.56 min
Genre: AOR/Melodic Rock
Rating: 9.0/10
Kent Hilli. Who? Nothing more and nothing less than a superb Swedish rock vocalist, who only stepped onto the musician’s path after hanging up his football boots for good in 2000 and swapping the ball for a spot as frontman in a local band. At first he sang covers. It wasn’t until 2014 that he first drew attention to his big talent, when he founded Perfect Plan. Last year they put out an excellent second studio album, »Time For A Miracle« (RockLine review), which was another step forward in their artistic maturing. AOR revivalism. Yep.
For his solo studio debut, Kent Hilli, a man with a brilliant, velvety voice, passionate, sensual and, for a Scandinavian, incredibly fiery – in the final contour of its coloring just smoky enough, and in expression incredibly full and dominant – brought in his countryman Michael Palace, an excellent composer, multi-instrumentalist and, on top of that, singer, known for the AOR revival project Palace. Palace also put out a great new album this year, “Rock ‘N’ Roll Radio” (RockLine review). So both musicians are in terrific form. Creatively and expressively alike. Palace’s touch is all over »The Rumble«, since the guy produced Hilli’s album, played every instrument, and did the final pass on the arrangements, which he polished and styled down to the last detail with his keen ear. The melodies are outstanding. The harmonizing of the vocal lines with extra layers of vocals is lavish, crafty and sly as a fox. The listening effect is instantly gripping. The peaks of drama-theater, with the bombast and pomp cranked up, are all masterfully nailed in under-the-skin seductive choruses. Within the by now well-known formula of genre reheating, the eleven songs deliver a pleasing mix of creative variety and loose-limbed performance, which guarantees a dynamic flow and an incredibly fluid album that’s over in a blink. The closing Still In Love is especially ‘poisonous’. Probably the album’s peak. Right at the tail end.
The album reflects Kent’s inspiration from musical idols including Giant, Foreigner, Survivor, Whitesnake and Europe, to name just a few. As for vocalists, Kent counts Lou Gramm, Jimi Jamison, Dann Huff, David Coverdale, Joe Lynn Turner and Joey Tempest among his inspirations. Anyway, anyone who follows Perfect Plan knows full well that Kent Hilli is a vocalist with a vocal charisma all his own. And then some. His voice, thanks to its incredibly dominant omnipresence in the expression itself, deserves to be showcased on exactly this kind of album, »The Rumble«. Same goes for Pride of Lions singer Toby Hitchcock, if that comparison tells you anything.
Kent Hilli wrote all the songs on his debut himself, except for four, which came out of collaborations with the album’s producer Michael Palace (Palace) – one song, Alessandro Del Vecchio (Hardline) and Pete Alpenborg (Arctic Rain) – two songs, and Kent’s sister Tina – one song. The partnership with Palace is truly a dream, especially given how incredibly in sync their musical tastes are. »The Rumble« is a superbly put-together album. A work of incredible dedication and a hunt for perfection. That includes the downright brilliant production, which, alongside the very pleasing contrasting intensification of the building blocks of the sonic picture, also offers just the right amount of organic feel, which suits the velvety warmth of Hilli’s vocal delivery.
»The Rumble« is an excellent achievement. Yet another in the line of those boundlessly faithful AOR revivalists, carried out in the heat of the Scandinavian doctrine of approaching this genre’s musical archaisms, which astonishes with how flawlessly charming it is at reheating an old and thoroughly chewed-over musical recipe, while once again translating it into brilliantly crafted songwriting and production packaging. So an album like this can only ignite. Fans of melodic rock and AOR will be thrilled. Oh, and in the end, it’s also worth noting that »The Rumble« sits somewhere in between. Between the harder sound of Perfect Plan and the softer styling of Palace. All in one, and (still) an excellent AOR revival album.
Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Track list:
1. The Rumble (Never Say Die)
2. Cold
3. All For Love
4. I Can’t Wait
5. Don’t Say It’s Forever
6. Miss Up To No Good
7. Heaven Can Wait
8. Does It Feel Like Love
9. Love Can Last Forever
10. Never Be Mine
11. Still In Love
Line-up:
Kent Hilli – vocals, backing vocals
Michael Palace – all instruments, backing vocals
