This is one of THEE BEST music compilations I have heard in years! - Tony Harnell along with Mark reale (TNT & Riot) have produced one of the most creative and inspirational CD s I ve heard in years. This has everything any true Riot/TNT fan would love to hear and more. I can only wish for many more to come. I definitely recommend this to anyone who appreciates great vocals, killer guitar riffs and well written lyrics! GREAT group of musicians getting together to make history!!! Love it!
More top quality melodic hard rock - Westworld is a melodic hard rock project featuring TNT vocalist Tony Harnell, Riot guitarist Mark Reale, and Danger Danger bassist Bruno Ravel. Given the players involved, you can pretty much guess the kind of music Westworld has to offer.Much like the band s debut, Skin is first-class melodic hard rock album. Tony Harnell s very distinctive voice dominates the album, which is a good thing since he continues to improve with each album. Skin edges a bit more towards metal than its predecessor, but remains a very melodic album. The album s surprise is the inclusion of a cover version of the Alanis Morissette hit Uninvited, which oddly enough seems perfect for Tony Harnell s vocal style.TNT, Riot, and Danger Danger fans should eat this one up. It s one of the best modern AOR/melodic hard rock albums out there. Westworld s self-titled album and Cyberdreams are just as good, as is Tony Harnell s latest project Starbreaker.
Better Than The First and the First was AWESOME!! - Just when you think the guys could in no way out do what they accomplished on the first one, they do and in a BIG way... this album is such a relief to my ears compared to everything else out there today... I haven t taken it out of my CD player in weeks!!!...
Westworld rocks - Westworld is a great band for anyone who likes true rock and roll. Singer Tony Harnel still has a voice of an angel as they cover Alanis Morissette s hit Uninvited and Mark Wood s Talent with the Electric violin is amazing. Other great songs are Ice Queen, Uneasy, and BlackShadow Symphony! With band members from TNT, RIOT, Danger Danger, and Rainbow you know this band has a lot to offer.
Westworld - Skin - Westworld s previous CD ended up in my top 3 of last year. Their debut was a real masterpiece full of old-fashioned Melodic Rock. Obviously the album did well, because one year later the guys already release their second effort. The result has turned out to be a little more modern this time and on some moments initially a little less accessible. This doesn t mean that Skin isn t as good as the debut, it just takes some more time to get into the album. The opening title track is business as usual. The vocal parts, backed up by beautiful oriental melody lines immediately stick. The following Ice Queen starts with Tony Harnell s distorted vocals, again supported by oriental guitar plucking. As the song continues, it gets heavier and turns into a modern sounding (if you can call Led Zeppelin influences modern, that is) midtempo rocker. Just like Skin Uneasy is a more standard piece of Melodic Rock. But it may be clear that which is considered standard for Westworld, can easily be called fantastic by us normal mortals. Uneasy is comfortably not only one of the best tracks of the album, but also of the year 2000. The first ballad of the album, Limbo, is a lovely and subdued song. Even more than on the other songs, it s been carried by Harnell s vocals, while of the other instruments the violin plays the biggest part on most of the song. Towards the end the song gets heavier, and we re being treated on some great guitar playing of Mark Reale. The album continues with a classic sounding heavy midtempo rocker by the name of Black Shadow Symphony. Not the best song on the album, but the class Tony Harnell again displays here is just stunning! What a great voice this man has... More modern sounding - and still better, yes it happens - is Tomorrow s Yesterday. Particularly the chorus is fingerlicking good, although the guitar solo on which Mark Reale goes completely over the top is something you don t want to miss either. Out There has this modern feel once more. Tony s vox are more in the background on this one and it s actually one of those songs that isn t as easy accessible as we were used to on the debut. Still a great song if you give it the chance to let it get to you. Heart Is A Heavy Load starts off as an acoustic driven ballad that gets more uptempo towards the end. With all due respect for the other Westworld musicians it again becomes absolutely clear how important Harnell is for this band. Just listen to this rather light song and you ll know what I mean. Get A Life is heavy - and modern sounding - again. Again those modest vocals during the verses while in the choruses Tony s shouting it out: Why Don t You Get A Life??? The absolute masterpiece on Skin is a version of Alanis Morisette s Uninvited, a song that was played a lot on national radio in Holland. If you already loved her version, then listen to this one. I assume that after this review it s perfectly clear that I worship Tony Harnell s vocals as almost no other and this song only makes it stronger. I hope Westworld will continue making CD s like these for a long time. They certainly add a lot to the melodic scene. Again, a release that ll make my top 10 this year...