From Norway comes Lucid Dreams (not to be confused with the Italian band Lucid Dream), a six-piece act that probably would have made waves with this kind of music had they been around in the mid-to-late '80s. Classic heavy metal riffing, tasty solos, sweeping keyboard soundscapes, and ultra-catchy melodies make for the platform that these guys dive off of, and it's an enjoyable ride the whole way. "Cassie's Escape" combines the best of classic metal, power metal, and prog metal, with chugging riffs, powerful vocals, and galloping rhythms taking the charge, while "For Your Love" and "Daisy Dukes" are just so damn catchy yet rocking at the same time, that you can easily imagine these songs blasting over the airwaves or making their mark on MTV alongside bands like TNT, White Lion, Winger, and Dokken back in that era. "Take Me Away" has a sort of sleazy quality that wouldn't have sounded out of place on a late '80s Ratt or Alice Cooper album, but is complemented nicely by some soaring keyboards. To throw another wrinkle into things, the band blasts into some crushing Dream Theater & Symphony X inspired progressive metal on the rousing "Wanton Conquest", and cross over into almost Styx styled pop/prog territory with the endearing "Light in the Sky".
It's always a pleasure when you open up a promo that comes with little fanfare and you wind up getting bowled over by just how spectacular the music is. Lucid Dreams have done a great job here of combining many styles, and putting a fresh spin on all of them. Memorable, catchy, and rocking...this one will continue to get plenty of play here for the immediate future, and I'll be keeping a close eye on this band from this point on. A fun, fun album.
Track Listing
1) Introduction
2) Cassie's Escape
3) For Your Love
4) Daisy Dukes
5) Closing the Deal
6) Lucid Dream
7) Stormy
8) Take Me Away
9) Paranoia
10) Wanton Conquest
11) Light in the Sky
12) When I Die
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