So I just sorta happened upon Jace a few months back. He was running a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to finish up his newest recording, and somehow I found it. While I had just missed out on contributing to the campaign, I did get to listen to the preview tracks, and all three blew me away.
Jace, a man who is mostly known in the melodic rock underground as a songwriter for other artists, has created a real masterpiece with this new release. If you love material that ranges from artists like Eddie Money to classic Journey, then Jace is for you. From catchy melodic rock to soaring piano ballads, Jace has assembled a beautiful collection of unforgettable melodies and catchy choruses that stick with you. What's really nice about what Jace has done here is that many of these songs would fit into many different places. They could fit on a hard rock album, an AOR album, or even a country album all with relatively minor tweaks to the arrangements. I can really hear listening to this why Jace has a history of being a songwriter for other artists. Great versatility.
HIGHLIGHTS:
"Cry" - Track one on the cd is the strongest track on the disc. Brilliantly written. One of the best melodic rock songs I've heard in years.
"What if We Were Wrong" - Track three is just a great song. Brings to mind some of the best parts of what Toto did in the 80's. Great hook, great ballad, great song.
"Little Star" - Track ten on the cd is an incredible ballad, and a beautiful way to close out the listening experience. The soaring melodies, accompanied by piano, will be VERY appealing to fans of Journey's "Faithfully" and the like. I even hear a slight touch of Simon & Garfunkel here, but I'm guessing others won't hear that :). This is my second favorite track on the cd.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
"Jodi's Just Running"
"Renegade Heart"
"The Same Mistake"
LOWLIGHTS:
"Don't Talk to Me" & "We Don't Know Anything" - These songs are well done, they are just far enough outside the genres of rock and pop that they don't work for me. My wife liked them though, so I'm sure many others would too!
OVERALL GRADE:
Four out of Five Stars - Jace has crafted a beautiful record here that should be one of the best melodic rock albums of the year. He has really taken the time to do this well, and in turn has created a package that he should be very, very proud of. I highly recommend this cd to any melodic rock fan!
PREVIEWS CAN BE FOUND HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skc_62DSvkY
PURCHASE INFORMATION FOR THE CD CAN BE FOUND HERE:
http://www.jacemusic.com/
