Outloud’s history dates back originally to Athens, Greece in 2004, when a young Tony Kash first starts taking guitar lessons from Bob Katsionis of Firewind. Chandler Mogel (from the US, and then in Talon) is contacted and immediately flown in from New York to record vocals at Bob’s studio. And in an amazing three days, the three of them have recorded a bunch of songs that surprises even their expectations! Jason Mercury, Tony’s best friend, is given the position of bass player, while Bob calls his then band mate (and now Tainted Nation and Tank skin-beater) Mark Cross, to get behind the kit. Then in September 2008 the band could be found ensconced in Basement Studios recording their debut album. Mixed and mastered by none other than Tommy Hansen (Pretty Maids, TNT), the album is described by the press as, “a mixture of Riot’s “Fire Down Under”, Skid Row’s debut, and TNT’s “Tell No Tales”. Entitled “We’ll Rock You To Hell And Back Again” it was released (through Frontiers) in August 2009, and justifiably, rave reviews worldwide followed with the album then ending up on many Top Ten Lists.
Having released their AOR Heaven debut in 2011 and a follow up EP “More Catastrophe” in 2012 (with combined sales of over 8,000 units), the band has returned after a short break (necessary to allow Katsionis to not only tour extensively with Firewind but also replace drummer Cross and guitarist Kash) and is now prepared to take to the world stage again with its third release for AOR Heaven, entitled “Let’s Get Serious”. Recorded post demo sessions in 2013, and once again produced by Katsionis and mixed and mastered by Hansen, “Let’s Get Serious” sees the band moving on from and yet still building on the excellent work that had gone before.
So, what of the album? Without doubt it is from the school of melodic rock that really floats my boat right now. Opening track, “Death Rock!” hits you with a blast of double kick drum, thundering along in a way that seems almost cliched metal for the new Millenia – but, hang on a minute, what you actually get is all of the melody and harmony that will truly appeal to those amongst you like your rock with a harmonious sensibility. Chandler Mogel’s vocals soar throughout and the dual guitars from Katsionis and Scordilis really take this album away from the sugary sweet 80s style AOR and provide a truly modern approach (whilst retaining the elements that first hooked us AOR fans). Riffs galore and some cool guitar solos abound and just as you think that this is all about the RAWK …. along comes “It Really Doesn’t Matter” – all acoustic guitar and keyboards to add a touch of “sparkle” (and let’s not forget the, once again, awesome harmony vocals).
My first reaction to “Let’s Get Serious” was, “could an instrumental work on this kind of album?” – not just that but it’s the title track too! The answer hit me immediately after one play – yes! Sure it acts as a showcase for the instrumental talents underpinning the album but here is a “song”, perfectly structured so that you don’t notice the lack of vocals (perhaps this might be one solo spot in the live shows where the bar MUST remain empty?).
Penultimate track, “Toy Soldiers” (not a cover of the Martika song) once again thunders along with an almost Maiden-like gallop (but always remaining melodic!). Just for added hard rock punch, Adrenaline Mob’s Mike Orlando features on guitar.
Album closer “Enola Gay” is a cover, however. Again my first reaction was that OMD were never an obvious band for a rock band (AOR/Metal/whatever) to cover – in fact my abiding memory of the song is a friend at school playing this song on the school’s huge pipe organ. Does it work in the rock stylee? You bet, proving that Outloud have really got something special about them. Each track sounds like this is a band having a lot of fun doing what they do and “Enola Gay” certainly proves it.
Band Line Up:
Chandler Mogel – Vocals
Bob Katsionis – Guitar, Keys
Sverd – Bass
Kostas Milonas – Drums
Jim Scordilis – Guitar
Track Listing:
1. Death Rock!
2. I Was So Blind
3. One More Time
4. Bury The Knife
5. Like A Dream
6. It Really Doesn’t Matter
7. A While To Go
8. All In Vain
9. Another Kind of Angel
10. Let’s Get Serious
11. Toy Soldiers
12. Enola Gay (OMD Cover)
“Let’s Get Serious” is available now on AOR Heaven
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