On Oliver Hartmann's second solo album, Home, the voice of At Vance, Empty Tremor and Avantasia serves up an unexpected mish-mash of hard rock, melodic metal and pop music. Think Toto, the band for which Hartmann opened European dates last summer. The singer and guitarist leaves the prog-metal of his previous bands behind — he drops keyboard duties and the Jorn Lande/Russell Allen vocal tendencies, too — and instead focuses on crafting solid songs, regardless of genre. "Coming Home to You" and "Why Do I" are catchy rockers, while "The Sun's Still Rising" is a bit heavier and the melodic "My Everything Is You" comes off quite a bit lighter — almost like a Mr. Big ballad. Backed by a four-piece band, Hartmann strains on "Higher Than Me," and "Millionaire" is a silly attempt at trying to rock loud and fast. Home's centerpiece actually comes near the end with "Crying," an epic scorcher boasting a soulful choir that elevates it to hymn-like status.
The amount of variety on Home (produced, by the way, by the renowned Sascha Paeth) may startle some listeners hoping for Hartmann's return to earlier form. But the singer clearly seems ready to move in new directions.
Track Listing:
1) Coming Home to You
2) The Sun's Still Rising
3) My Everything Is You
4) Somewhere Someday
5) Just For You
6) I Don't Want to Know
7) Higher Than Me
8) Why Do I
9) Millionaire
10) Crying
11) Lay All Your Love On Me
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