Tag Archives: Tony Moore

Album Review: Tony Moore – Awake

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photo courtesy of Tony Moore

Album Review of Tony Moore: Awake

Tony Moore‘s Awake is an old-school, timeless, progressive-influenced classic rock album. Remember how great those records are beginning to end? If you’re a fan of that kind of guitar rock music, this is a new collection to add to your best-of list. Something about the vibe of album-opener “Awake” instantly reminded me of Pink Floyd upon first listen, and the whole Awake record has a concept-album vibe very much reminiscent of that era, though Tony’s underlying style is crisper, cleaner, and a bit more modern.

image courtesy of Tony Moore

The album was inspired by the events of the first year of the pandemic – the lockdowns, the uncertainty, the surreal reality. I won’t go into detail because Tony explains it well on his website, including the idea’s germination out of the song “Awake,” at this link. Metal Talk digs even deeper in its interview with Tony at this link. In my review, I’ll just focus on the music itself – an epic guitar-rock masterpiece – and you can return to these links to read more afterwards, perhaps while you listen to the album on Spotify, Bandcamp, or elsewhere.

Album opener and title track “Awake” is stylistically cool and fun to listen to as it unleashes a rhythmic guitar riff-filled, instrumental-only opening only gives way to lyrics at the 4:51 mark. This song sets the tone for the entire album, which is fantastic as a beginning-to-end listen but also features several songs that are standalone treats. And I wouldn’t often say such things about a nine-and-a-half minute song (to be fair, 9:26), but this is one of those treats. The axework throughout is inspired, recalling for me a recent quote I read in this Louder interview/article from Iron Maiden’s Steve Harris about Tony’s guitar playing on Awake: “The music is kind of proggy, which I love, and if Tony could play guitar back then the way he does now he’d probably still be in the band.” High praise, indeed.

photo courtesy of Tony Moore

Another of those kickass standalone tracks is the record’s third song, “Love We Need You Here,” which is partially reprised in the penultimate song slot, as “Love We Need You Here Pt. II,” helping to thematically and sonically tie the album together. This is a softer song, mellow and swaying, with a strumming guitar style that features some western music style flourishes while primarily being a straightforward slow, strumming rocker supported by a curtain of background synth that almost sounds orchestral. The vocals, meanwhile, are just slightly gravelly, emphasizing their heartfelt nature, ideally suited to the song’s payoff lyric, occurring both early and at the end of the song, “Love, we need you here. We need your guiding hand to help us understand. Love, remove the fear and bring us all back home. Don’t leave us lost and alone.” If you’re listening closely, it’ll give you chills.

And it’s followed by a kickass, straight-ahead rocker, “Just One Night.” There’s a little Pink Floyd feeling to this track, but it also sports a lot of the pure pop-rock styled pop music sensibility Tony has featured in some of the catchy, less guitar-driven Tony Moore singles I’ve enjoyed over the last decade or so, since I first became aware of his music. If there’s a potential fast-paced breakout hit on this record, this is my best-bet. Roll the windows down, and crank this one up when you’re zooming down the highway; it’s well-suited for that. I bet it really amps up the audience when played live, too.

photo courtesy of Tony Moore

The next track, “Hopium,” is another especially long number. There’s probably not a lot of hope for this one as a single, but it’s one of the album’s more memorable songs and a personal favorite. It’s followed by stylistically-similar “Dear Life,” almost flowing together in such a way that a full-album listener barely notices the transition a new song. However, it’s a more radio-friendly length, and it’s topically more broadly-applicable, making it a likelier option for external commercial use. I’m thinking movie soundtracks, though perhaps sans the really nifty guitar solo two-thirds of the way through. Soundtracks, during the movie itself, are likely to exclude the slight stylistic and tempo variance that make it a more interesting standalone song; hopefully the soundtrack album will still include the full track as recorded, though.

“Not Normal” is a very proggy song that thematically moves the album forward both lyrically and with its heavy rhythmic beat. Morseo even than the rest of the disc, which leans by varying degrees this way, you could almost drop “Not Normal” right into The Wall and it wouldn’t seem at all out of place.

The keyboardwork of “Remember Me” is another element that helps tie the record together, providing a mid-album vibe similar to the early and late appearances of “Love We Need You Here.” The moods you’ll get from this track are introspectiveness and melancholy. It’s followed by a song that thrives on subtly frenetic energy, “Crazy in the Shed.”

photo courtesy of Tony Moore

I’m not personally a big fan of speaking-over-music tracks, but “Dark Winter,” next, does move the mood and concept forward ominously, as does the next track, a more traditional prog rocker, though a heavy-beat-driven, booming, plodding, soft-power-driven one, “What’s the Point.”

“The One Percent Solution” is a cool song that can effectively drive somewhat different messages, whether a rather specific thrust when viewed through the lens of this concept album versus a potentially broader theme as a standalone number. The song itself progresses very coolly, softly building up to power, though maintaining a very modest tempo throughout.

photo courtesy of Tony Moore

“We Are One” follows, with its rhythmic bounce and marching tempo, combined with tempo changes and stop-starts, guitar flourishes, and emotive vocals, whether soaring or rhythmically emphasizing the beat. This is a track that’ll have you bouncing in your seat.

“Asleep” pleads for action, soaringly, proggily, as one would expect near the end of a concept collection like this one. And just about every guitar-rock fan will enjoy the very cool, rising and falling, soaring guitar solo that drives the last two-plus minutes of this song.

After the short reprise of “Love We Need You Here” – specifically, “Part II” – the crunchy, guitar-driven “It’s Not Over” serves as a rather hopeful album closer. One reason it’s important to listen to the very end of Awake is because, regardless of how you feel after the rollercoaster musical journey that brought you to this point, “It’s Not Over” will restore your hope and determination. And there’s some pretty kickass guitar in the song, too, particularly in the back half.

Awake is a masterwork of the concept album format. It’s a beginning-to-end listen that ebbs and flows. It’s clear why the related concert performances have proven so popular, and I’m hopeful that Tony will continue to tour Awake as an event concert, at least from time to time, throughout the rest of his career, in and around any other work he produces. It’s an experience, a music journey, a conceptually tight collection worthy of prog-rock, straight-up rock, and arts-in-general music fans.

Watch for upcoming tour dates on the “Tour” page of Tony Moore’s website. And be sure to keep up with his goings-on via social media, like his Instagram page or his Facebook page.

The Road Back #9: Ilona

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The Road Back to Music Journalism #9 (Bonus): Ilona’s Music Industry Showcase

Invitation to a Music Industry Showcase

Summer 2015

Ilona

Ilona, Tony Moore, and KT Parker at Rockwood Music Hall; photo by Geoff Wilbur

The Backstory

I had discovered Ilona’s music early on during my return to new music discovery. In fact, her CD Thunderstorm was the second CD I purchased from overseas. I had also tweeted quite a bit about Ilona’s music as far back as January 2014, and she often replied with thanks. But we really didn’t start communicating until after I ordered the CDs and they failed to arrive. Sound familiar? (It would if you read Road Back #6.) Yes, twice I ordered CDs from the UK from different bands, and both times they failed to arrive the first time. In any case, thus began our communication, as the method I chose to reach out and ask about the CDs was managed by Ilona herself, not her management. Many months later, when Ilona came to the U.S., I tried to connect her with one of my industry contacts. Though it fell through in the end, I was able to be free from work on the day of her showcase, and she invited me to attend.

Ilona

Ilona, Tony Moore, and KT Parker at Rockwood Music Hall; photo by Geoff Wilbur

Why This Was a Step on the Road Back

Technically, I had already decided to start the blog by this time and had set October as the launch date for the blog, but if I hadn’t already decided, this cool event almost certainly would have “sealed the deal.” First, I received an incredibly warm welcome from Ilona, her band, and her management, even though I was “merely” a former music journalist who tweeted occasionally. I’ve been treated well on a variety of occasions with just that background, but it’s still the sort of thing that reminds me how many wonderful, nice people there are in the music biz. Second, wow, it was a very cool event. I’ll review Ilona’s outstanding performance below, but yes, this is the sort of thing that reminds me why I was involved in music for so many years, and it absolutely would have been the final push needed for my decision to return if I hadn’t already made that decision a few weeks earlier.

Ilona

Tony Moore, Ilona, and KT Parker at The Cutting Room; photo by Geoff Wilbur

Live review: Ilona at Rockwood Music Hall; Ilona at The Cutting Room (August 6, 2015)

The night – or late afternoon, perhaps – kicked off with Ilona’s Rockwood Music Hall showcase. She performed a short set for a small, invited audience. The songs I recall from the set were two that show off Ilona’s incredible power vocals, energetic mid-tempo pop-rocker “Back to You” and powerful ballad “I Still Fall For You,” plus her latest single at the time, the countrified crooner “Beautiful Country.” During the set, Ilona showcased her vocals, which are every bit as strong live as they are on her recordings, and her stage presence, as she shares her engaging personality with the crowd in such a way that she naturally wins over the audience.

Later that night, Ilona had a relatively early set at The Cutting Room, and she rocked the crowd, giving another solid, skillful performance. Much of the set was similar to the showcase set, but she also trotted out “Wrong Places,” a song she ably uses for crowd participation purposes and for which she shot her most recent music video. For both shows Ilona was flanked by Tony Moore on guitar and keys and KT Parker on bass.

But that’s hardly a review. So let me tell you about Ilona’s vocals. Just wow. Her raspy voice adds edge to everything from soft rock ballads to uptempo pop-rockers. There is a hint of country in her voice at times, particularly on “Beautiful Country,” and even I suggested there was a hint of country-rock in “I Still Fall For You” in one of my tweets, but while she might be a great country duet partner (as Kelly Clarkson and Shakira have been), Ilona’s sweet spot is power pop/rock. I’d expect to hear her on radio stations that played Kelly Clarkson, Pink, and Jessie J. Songs like “Love is Stupid” and “Move (Together as One)” highlight this sort of energy, as does the newest song, almost blues-rocker “Wrong Places.” (By the way, I predict “Wrong Places” will be a live-show favorite for years to come.)

Ilona also swings a little mellower, especially with a couple of her more recent top tracks, which would place her squarely in the style of some more adult soft rock radio playlists, as well. Listen to “Back to You,” particularly the tuneful vocal wail at the 2:30 mark of the song. (In the “Back to You” music video, it’s at the 2:43 mark.) That’s a power rocker’s vocal chops with a balladic pop/rocker’s sensibilities. “I Still Fall For You” is similar. And, of course, “Beautiful Country” is a country-themed slow song.

Fast songs, slow songs, and an instantly-identifiable, exceptionally expressive, raspy, amazingly powerful voice. Ilona impresses more with each listen, and impresses even more if you’re able to see her perform live. She’s a unique, one-of-a-kind talent with a trademark sound. Exactly the sort of artist worth checking out.

My Return to Music Journalism is Complete; What’s Next for the Blog?

Those are the nine steps that brought me back to music journalism. Starting tonight, October 27th, I’ll be kicking off a series of 5 nights in London with coverage of Bob Malone’s concert at the 100 Club. On Thursday, October 29th, I’ll be at the Troubadour to hear Sonya Titus, who you may recognize as the subject of article #4 in the “road back” series. I’m still deciding where to go each of the other three nights, but I do intend to tweet about it. So if you’re in London, come out and catch some great music with me.

After that, I’ll work to get some additional writers involved, and the blog will become its long-term self, a mix of song/album reviews, live reviews, and interviews. After today, you can expect no more than one article each day, so rest assured if you’re an e-mail subscriber, you won’t be inundated. I hope you enjoy, and here’s to a nice, long run!