Published on Mar 15, 1999
As much as I’m supposed to keep an open mind about discs I’m
sent to review, sometimes it’s hard not to form an opinion about
something before I listen to it. If the opinion I have isn’t the
most favorable, I may tend to keep pushing that particular disc off
for a while. Oh, it will eventually get reviewed – just not the day
after I receive it in the mail.
In the case of Sweden’s Amaze Me, my early opinion of the disc –
formed before I heard even one note on it – turned out to be very,
very wrong. Their self-titled album is an interesting, refreshing
mixture of melodic pop and hard rock, creating a very enjoyable
disc.
At first, it’s hard to believe that everything you’re hearing –
with the exception of a few background vocals – are all coming from
vocalist Conny Lind and multi-instrumentalist Peter Broman. It is
extremely difficult for any artist to put together a project where
they do all the work themselves – but Lind and Broman pull it off
well on
Amaze Me.
The overall sound of Amaze Me can be likened to a marriage
between Def Leppard, Journey and Poison – a mixture that sounds
more volatile than it really is. Songs like “Help Me Through The
Night,” “You Say You Never Cry” and “Next Train Back” all serve as
erasers on the blackboard of doubt. The layered harmony vocals kick
the songs into overdrive, and Broman’s musical talents help to
propel the songs into new territories.
There are a few missteps on
Amaze Me, just like you’d expect from a group’s first
effort. A few songs, like “It Seems So Hollywood” and “I Dream Long
Distance,” don’t have the same spark that others do, and they fall
flat on the listener’s ears. Also, the album as a whole is a little
difficult to get through – possibly due to the fact that many of
the songs seem to be cut from the same log. Had there been a little
more variety in the overall tone of the album, it may have made it
a little easier to get through in one sitting.
Still, these complaints aren’t major, and
Amaze Me turns out to be a fairly decent effort. Cuts like
“Fairwarning” and “Tough Ain’t Enough” are sure to light your
eardrums on fire – and don’t be surprised if you’re asking yourself
as you listen to this, “Where have I heard this before?” It’s not
that Amaze Me blatantly copied bands some of us grew up listening
to in the ’80s – it’s that they’ve refined the sound for the new
millenium.
Amaze Me might not catch your eye because they’re not a major
name (yet) or because they’re not the subject of a massive
advertising campaign. But it would be a crime to keep ignoring this
one, ’cause there’s a lot of music on this disc that is worth your
investment of time.