Album Review 2006

Fraze Gang - Fraze Gang

Genre: Classic Rock/Rock

Review By: Tony

Album Specs:

1. Blow Me Away             8. I Stand Alone

2. Savior                        9. You Had It All

3. Broken Hero              10. Stargazer

4. Sugar Daddy              11. Roll With The Punches

5. Rainbow Eyes            12. Hot Rod

6. Paradise

7. High Life

 


Track By Track Breakdown:

1. Blow Me Away - It's very clear from the opening count off that this song is pure 80's rock goodness. Right off the bat I was hooked because it truly is one of those nitty gritty 80's rockers. In your face guitars, heart pounding drums and vocals with an attitude. It's sad these types of songs are so hard to find these days, a true treasure.

 

2. Savior - Holy Cow! Seriously this song is all about brilliance. A true power ballad in every sense, from the soft guitar licks to the mesmerizing vocal arrangements. This is a song that had it been released in the 80's would have screamed up the charts. Extremely catchy lyrics with almost a pouty attitude thrown in. A bit of a warning, after one listen you'll probably want to go back and listen to this song over and over. Don't worry, it's completely normal as I listened to this song a good 5 or 6 times in a row. I'm completely hooked!

 

3. Broken Hero - This song reminded me a lot of White Lion and their material. The reason I say that is simply that there's a lot of vocal areas reminded me of Mike Tramp. Not to mention the lyrical flow sounded very familiar yet new. I loved the use of acoustic guitars in the background as they mixed perfectly with the rocked up guitars throughout the song.

 

4. Sugar Daddy - I didn't care for this song that much as it's more of a rough attitude track. To me there wasn't a lot of catchy material here as the song seemed a bit slow at times. Tons of guitar riff's but I feel this song would be better had it been recorded live and added to the end of the album as a bonus track. Hopefully the guys do a tour and this song is played as I'm sure it would be crowd pleaser in the live atmosphere.

 

5. Rainbow Eyes - This time around Fraze Gang goes for a classic ballad. The use of acoustic guitars was again a great touch. Some of the  best guitar work you'll find on this disc is thrown into this song. There are parts where the guitars seem raw and then go back to more a polished feel. I loved the overall design here, the only area I found to be a bit difficult was the opening as it took a little while to get into the heart of the song. But don't pass this song up you'll be sorry.

 

6. Paradise - A very straight forward rocker that has a fun message. The drums standout more on this song then previous track and that's more then welcome. Some catchy lyrics but not a completely catchy song. The use of the cowbell toward the end of the song was a great addition!

 

7. High Life - The echo effects added to the lead vocals was a nice surprise. Once again some flashy guitar licks move the song into that live/raw feeling in my mind. Another song that played live would be a crowd pleaser but overall I just couldn't get into this song.

 

8. I Stand Alone - Acoustic opening with a cooling water movement added in. A soft ballad like song that has some catchy lyrics and the vocal mix really added to the overall calm feeling. The guitar solo was perfectly done as to not overpower the design of the song. If you listen closely you can hear the mixture of acoustic and rock guitars intertwined.

 

9. You Had It All - I felt this song was building up nicely but once I was hooked in the build up just died off. There's some fun dark guitar parts here but overall I found this song a bit of a filler. I will say that the guitar solo was amazing and straight out of the 80's. I listened to this song a couple times through just to see if I could get hooked but sadly it just didn't happen.

 

10. Stargazer - This song has everything the previous song didn't. The catchy lyrics and punchy drum-line background. Again there's a bit of a raw sound intermixed but that is very similar to classic 80's material and frankly that's what made that material fun and unique. The vocal mix was dead on brilliant by far the best on the disc.

 

11. Roll With The Punches - By the title of the song I was expecting a rocker but to my surprise it was another power ballad. This song was another builder, but this time it delivered. Extremely soothing track with a great acoustic backing.

 

12. Hot Rod - What did I say above about adding a live song to the end of the album? This is a perfect way to end this release, a bit of a swing track but still something different. Not sure if this is a real live recorded song as it sounded too good. But either way there's crowd noise throughout and the song ending left me wanting to hear more.

The Rundown:

Remember Brighton Rock? Well 2 of the original members have formed Fraze Gang but will music lovers dig the classic sound?

 

+'s (Positives):

+ Classic Sound: The overall feel screams classic 80's, I couldn't believe how dead on the guitar riffs were.

 

+ Fun: For the most part I had a ton of fun listening to this disc as it was truly a breath of fresh air compared to what's on radio and in mainstream music today.

 

-'s (Negatives):

- Some Didn't Mesh: A couple of the songs to me just didn't mesh well with others. I'll go into more detail below.

Overall:

I was shocked at how well this disc was put together. The overall feel truly is 80's, from the guitars to the vocals it's all there. Even some of the lyrics reminded me of some of my personal favorite bands. For those who have followed music since the 80's the band Brighton Rock should ring a bell. Two of the original members that being Greg Fraser and Stevie Skreebs have formed Fraze Gang along with drummer Phil Epp. Anyone looking to relive the 80's all over again make sure you check out this material.

 

Some of the songs didn't mesh well and personally I found that to be a bit typical on my part. The reason I say that is I've never heard a full 80's rock album that was a 100% flawless. There were filler tracks and some that frankly didn't need to be on album releases but were put out anyway. So that's what I meant about some songs not meshing well with others.

 

Now for the in your face material on this release. Some of the rockers are insanely amazing I found myself going back and listening to some tracks 3 or 4 times just to take them in because I was in such shock over the craftsmanship. But I have to say it the power ballad "Savior" won me over hands down. My personal favorite track on the album because it truly is flawless you couldn't add anything more to it.

 

If your looking for a lost treasure then this is it. Head on over to their website and purchase your copy. For those thinking this is a modern rock album, what are you thinking? This release is all about recapturing the music, the memories and the times that rock was rock!

Final Rating For "Fraze Gang - Fraze Gang":

    0.85 Points = Transitions / Order
    0.95 Points
= Fun Factor
    0.95 Points
= Instruments / Vocal Sound
    0.85 Points
= Writing / Lyrics
    0.75 Points
= Overall Design / Feel


    Overall Total: 4.35/5

  

 

Favorite Songs: Blow Me Away, Savior, Broken Hero, Rainbow Eyes, I Stand Alone, Stargazer, Roll With The Punches
 

For more on Fraze Gang visit the following websites: www.frazegang.com / www.cdbaby.com/cd/frazegang