The voice of one of the most highly praised and misfortune bands of the hair metal era, WHITE LION returns with a retake of some of the most successful songs of their heyday. Mike Tramp after the end of WHITE LION tested himself in different musical styles, grunge/alternative rock, acoustic renditions of old and new songs and today in peace with his fluffy hair days he does a bold move. Re record some old songs with a little twist and most of all with the voice of today.
The musicians are all excellent, nailing the new renditions without much deviation from the originals. What we love the most and really miss , is Mike singing with passion and love these beautiful crafted songs. A bit more low in tuning, he delivers them with respect, love and passion makes them shine once more. This time the production is focused more to the basics and being not so glossy really benefits these songs. "Love don't come easy' is as majestic as it was 30 years ago. "Broken heart" still talks to all the broken hearted, middle aged now ,equally dramatic and painful. "Little fighter" sounds far more contemporary with climate change and its intensity. "Hungry" with its opening monster riff shows us how underestimated this song is, sending a lot of today's melodic rock rivals to the side of the stage to watch and learn how melodic rock anthems are written and performed. "Going home tonight" is a whiskey soaked barnstorming rocker. "Wait" is a bit darker,less bombastic, more down to earth but always emotionally charged heartbreaking rocker with the main riff, sharp as Jack the Rippers razor. Mike Tramp performs more maturely and focuses on the song and less the vocal histrionics. The melodies are still here strong and invincible.
The aging of the song along with the careful approach from Tramp and co give them the extra boost to come and deliver some 80s anthems to a totally different world. If this is a call to his old bandmate and guitar maestro extraordinaire Vito Brata, I don't know. But I'm sure that if he listens to this album he'll smile for what WHITE LION achieved in their heyday and how their legacy continues to shine on. A legacy that was found in Mike Tramp, a firm guardian who preserves it in the best possible way.The closing track "When the children cry" a bit more gloomy, down to earth, piano led and still contemporary after 30 years. Mike Tramp is a singer underateed and deeply emotional and "When the children cry" remind to all of us the power of his voice and the vanity of war. For all the old WHITE LION fans this album is a must, for those who never listened to them, this is a good chance to get an introduction on how they should sound today.
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