Year : 2023 (Japan Edition)
Style : Hard Rock , Rock
Country : United Kingdom
Audio : 320 kbps + scans
Size : 148 mb
Bio:
Uriah Heep are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 and are regarded as one of the seminal hard rock acts of the early 1970s.Uriah Heep's progressive/art rock/heavy metal fusion's distinctive features have always included a massive keyboard sound, strong vocal harmonies and (in the early years) David Byron's quasi-operatic vocals.Twelve of the band's albums have made it to the UK Albums Chart (Return to Fantasy reached No. 7 in 1975)while of the fifteen Billboard 200 Uriah Heep albums Demons and Wizards was the most successful (#23, 1972).In the late 1970s the band had massive success in Germany, where the "Lady in Black" single was a big hit.Along with Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, Uriah Heep had become one of the top bands in the early 1970s - one of "The Big 4" of hard rock.Uriah Heep's audience declined by the 1980s, to the point where they became essentially a cult band in the United Kingdom and United States. The band maintains a significant following and performs at arena-sized venues in the Balkans, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia and Scandinavia. They have sold over 40 million albums worldwide with over 4 million sales in the U.S.
Album:
Along with Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Nazareth, Uriah Heep is one of the most successful and longest-serving hard rock bands from Great Britain.With "Chaos & Colour" the follow-up album to "Living the Dream" 2018 will be released in 2023.The first audible track of the album "Save Me Tonight" shows that Uriah Heep are far from being old iron, but still deliver decent rock.Uriah Heep light it up with a furious return after the restrictions of the pandemic with an essential new album full of power and joy.Having finally seen Uriah Heap live for first time as special guests of Saxon in January 2022, it was a suitably jaw dropping moment that I will always remember. I was mesmerised and blown away by the sheer enjoyment the band were having on stage. Therefore, the opportunity to review this album was most welcome, as my Heep collection is surprisingly small compared to other bands of the same era (Deep Purple and Black Sabbath specifically).‘Save Me Tonight’ kicks off the album and is a suitably full on opening number. This does not sound like a band going through the motions, but more like a band throwing down a challenge to all comers. A catchy tune and lyric fully justifies it’s use as the debut single. Expect the airwaves to be lit up as this blasts from your radio or listening device and shame on any radio stations that don’t play it!‘Silver Sunlight’ keeps the pace going, Bernie Shaws vocals are tremendous (as they are throughout the album) and the whole song screams ‘second single’! The challenge to other bands is still there, but this a band sounding triumphant and there is no point in resisting, just let the sound wash over you.‘Hail the Sunrise’ has plenty of keyboards from Phil Lanzon swirling throughout a song about stone circles and the solstice. This is classic Heep and if your stereo is not turned up by now then you know what to do – turn it up to 11! Mick Box delivers a great guitar solo and this song should be fantastic live.‘Age Of Changes’ kicks off with vocal harmonies and canters along at a fair pace that would put many other bands to shame. Keyboards and guitar breaks are superb. Drumming from Russell Gilbrook and bass from from Dave Rimmer underpin the song. Whilst I am repeating myself this should also be fantastic live and its certainly one of my favourites on the album but I should warn you now, this is an album chock full of great music!Mick Box gives us a great guitar riff as ‘Hurricane’ opens up. This is pure rocker of a song. Sometimes less is more, and this song is fits that perfectly.‘One Nation, One Sun’ is described as ‘ a journey of soaring balladic contemplation’. I have little to add to that except considering it is over 7 minutes long, it holds the attention in the most delightful way.‘Golden Light’ picks up the pace again with those keyboards from Phil Lanzon pumping out the riffs alongside Mick Boxes guitar. This is one of those majestic Uriah Heep songs and guess what – I bet it sounds fantastic live!‘You’ll Never Be Alone’ clocks in at just under 8 minutes, the song ebbs and flows whilst it tells its story. An album highlight, this is another classic Uriah Heep piece, really kicking into gear at about the 4 minute mark when heads should shake and fists punch the air before dropping back again to round out the song.‘Fly Like An Eagle’ gives us guitar, synths, drums and bass driving a mystic tale of meditation powered by Bernie Shaws vocal. Synth and guitar breaks intertwine and the song almost ends too quickly. It is just under 4 minutes long and so perhaps live we will hear a longer version or maybe I am just getting greedy!‘Freedom to Be Free’ is however, over 8 minutes long, and fills that time with great vocals and fantastic instrumental breaks from the band. In places the song really motors along (but elsewhere drops away to almost silence) and quite honestly, yes, it will be a fantastic live set piece to highlight the individual members of the band.‘Closer to Your Dreams’ is the final track on the album, and its a full on rocker in the mold of ‘Easy Living’. Keyboards pump along and the song – like the entire album – is full of optimism. There’s a great guitar solo and you can visualise the band throughly enjoying themselves as they hammered this one out in the studio.Having been around for over 50 years, it is unsurprising that Uriah Heep are able to produce a new album, but perhaps what will be exciting for existing fans is that they are able to to produce dramatic new material like this. The album is full of familiar sounding songs, yet they capture a sense of urgency and freshness that still keeps the band relevant for a potential new audience. The band capture that pure enjoyment of making music perfectly. It is an excellent album that rewards repeating playing, ideally at a decent volume! Staggeringly, on top of all that, the entire album could be played in the live environment, theres no filler anywhere to be heard!So don’t delay, get on and order or buy your copy now, although leave one for me!It is only January, yet 2023 has opened with 3 tremendous albums – ‘Chaos and Colour’ from Uriah Heep, Iggy Pops ‘Every Loser’ and King Krakens debut ‘MCLXXX’.Each one is a potential contender for album of the year, yet each is musically diverse from the other. It is truly fantastic to be able to soak up all this new music and of course it is brilliant that bands are still actually producing new music rather than resting on their laurels.With albums from Metallica and Rival Sons (among others) due this year, 2023 could be another golden year, comparing with the early 70s and early 80s when the album ruled.
Line Up:
Bernie Shaw - lead vocals
Mick Box - guitars, vocals
Phil Lanzon - keyboards, vocals
Dave Rimmer - bass guitar, vocals
Russel Gilbrook - drums, percussion
Production:
Produced by Jay Ruston
Engineered by Pieter Rietkerk
Recorded at Chapel Studios UK
Mixed by Jay Ruston at TRS West, Sherman Oaks, California
Additional Engineering by John Douglass
Mastered by Paul Logus
Tracklist:
01. Save Me Tonight
02. Silver Sunlight
03. Hail The Sunrise
04. Age Of Changes (CD Bonus Track)
05. Hurricane
06. One Nation, One Sun
07. Golden Light
08. You'll Never Be Alone
09. Fly Like An Eagle
10. Freedom To Be Free
11. Closer To Your Dreams (CD Bonus Track)
12. Save Me Tonight (Demo) (Japan Bonus Track)
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