Adrian Gale - Under the
Hood (Kivel)
2001
1. "Stealin' Hearts"
(4:23)
2. "Reap What You Sow" [acoustic] " (4:21)
3. "Save Our Love" [acoustic] " (3:54)
4. "Feel the Fire" [acoustic] " (2:45)
5. "Feel the Fire" [live] " (5:21)
6. "Mission Man" [live] " (5:12)
7. "Giving It Up" [live] " (4:31)
The lone 'new' track on this EP, "Kicking Heats" is fantastic. This song is hard rocking, party number and a b-side track from the "Feel the Fire" sessions. The acoustic tracks are a fun listen. The live tracks are very raw recordings. I've heard bootlegs that sound better. These tracks are an intersting listen once, but that's about it. An EP for die-hards only. (Thanks Joe.)
Adrian Gale - Re:Program (Z-Music) 2002
1. "Still Burning"
(4:07)
2. "Closer" (5:23)
3. "Heartbreak Guaranteed" (4:37)
4. "If" (5:40)
5. "Over, Said n Done" (4:06)
6. "Runaway" (3:27)
7. "Heatgames" (5:00)
8. "41394" (:35)
9. "Part of Me" (4:00)
10. "Heather Please" (3:52)
11. "No More Chances" (3:55)
I love this CD. It's almost like the return of the Guardian that I knew and loved in the early 90's before grunge destroyed good time rock n' roll and metal. I don't think that the chemistry is the same, and certainly Tony Palacios unique guitar style is absent here, but overall this is just a good melodic metal platter. Jamie Rowe's vocals fit this style of music so well. It still makes me sick thinking of those awful Guardian discs Jamie did after "Swing Swang Swung." But enough of that, this is an Adrian Gale review. The music here is melodic and simplistic, but this in not a bad thing. Sometimes being over complex just makes me lose interest. Here, Adrian Gale just rock, writing sing along anthems and good time rock 'n roll. Unlike Jamie's former band, this band is not a 'Christian band'. The lyrics, while clean, are not evangelistic in any way. "Still Burning" for instance takes shots at MTV for dumping their metal programming. "Closer" is just an anthem celebrating the coming of the weekend. The production on this disc isn't bad either, although a little more "umph" in the guitars would have made the album even stronger. Regardless of that minor complaint, this is one of the best melodic metal CDs to come out in a while. Let's just hope they stay that way and don't give into the trends in radio and music. Yet another band whose back catalogue I will have to add to my want list.
Adrian Gale - Crunch (Kivel Records) 2004
1. "Breaking Stride" [instrumental] (1:08)
2. "Crunch" (4:06)
3. "Faith" (4:21)
4. "Without A Moment's Notice" (4:57)
5. "Tougher Than It Looks" (3:58)
6. "When In Rome" (4:00)
7. "Long Gone" (3:42)
8. "The Thin Line" (3:58)
9. "Question" (4:44)
10. "Freedom" (3:00)
11. "This Time" (3:50)
12. "Last Call" (3:44)
Putting Jamie Rowe in a band like Adrian Gale will immediately always bring thoughts of Guardian to me. That is exactly what I hear on "Crunch", that same bombastic hard rock that Guardian cranked out on "Fire & Love". Adrian Gale offer up some of the best melodic hard rock you'll ever get your hands on. These guys are on par with bands like Pretty Maids and TNT. Jamie's raspy voice really adds something to catchy songs like "The Thin Line" and "Faith." I was also quite taken back by the Def Leppard-esque "Without a Moment's Notice".