The first thing I had to do with this melodic rock album was to switch on my “neutrality” switch. I wouldn’t normally listen to this. It came to me billed as being for fans of Journey and Foreigner and having a Toni Braxton cover. In fairness I once owned Foreigner’s “Cold as Ice” and am not averse to pop structures – last year’s excellent “Show your Colors” by Amoral comes to mind. So let’s see.
“A Touch of Heaven” is the opening track and the title of the album. It’s not bad at all. The harmonies are good and there’s plenty of melody. It’s something above a Power ballad, but remember that singing is the order of the day here rather than lung-bursting antics. I very much liked the calming pitter-patter of the drums and the keyboards which give the track more flavour. It’s lightweight but the singer can sing and it’s a decent pop-rock track. And yes, it does remind me of Foreigner. This and “Lonely Nights” are the tracks which showcase this band. “Lonely Nights” is a light version of “Eye of the Tiger” with a cheesy, catchy sing-a-long chorus. And that’s where the band’s strength is. Simple choruses, guitar solos, melodic lines, more choruses, that’s where we’re at.
On the next track, “For the Love of It All”, I was half expecting the refrain of “I want to know what love is” to burst out – awful. I guess a mood was being created here “When the lights go down” and all that. It’s funny how some bands do ballads and you just want to slash your wrists, while others, Threshold for example, seem to be able to reach the heights and take you with them. Serpentine left me behind. “Let Love Rain Down” is more rock-orientated and presents a different aspect of the band. As on “Lonely Nights”, the strength lies in the chorus. Piano and symphonic sections divide “In My Blood” which is again a nicely balanced, forward-moving song, the essence of which is the rather slushy “Someone’s got your heart”. It’s about relationships. “Fashion” then features a Power Metal favourite concept “ships in the night”. The lyrics of this album are platitudinous and clichéd.
Although the tracks are not earth-shattering, I had a mental picture of Serpentine playing in sunshine with young couples moving and singing along to their catchy choruses, and having a happy time. Personally at that point I would retire to the bar. The band must have achieved something though to create this impression as they’re from Wales and the album was recorded in Staffordshire. Unfortunately from “Fashion” onwards, the basic simplicity and interesting touches which embraced the earlier tracks were lost, and I just can’t think of anything good to say about them. The band seems to be trying to do too much and it all became a bit of a mess. I got the impression that “Love Suicide” was supposed to blow us away but it hasn’t got the power and as a track, it’s aimless. Surprisingly, the only ray of hope was the cover of “Unbreak my Heart”. Although it’s not to my personal taste, it is a good interpretation and well-delivered, and proof that if a band’s got talent, they can pull off a decent cover track. Serpentine do at least pass that test.
It’s a pity that the album lost its way over the last few tracks. It’s not for metalheads but anyone of a Power Metal orientation may appreciate it. In my view serpentine could do with looking more closely at their strengths and exploiting them better. That’s my view. I’m going back to the bar now.
http://www.myspace.com/planetserpentine
http://www.aorheaven.com
