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The cover artwork is a bit dark and might mislead you, coz this is not a prog metal album, this is hard rock! And when you look at the line-up then you know what to expect - British hard rock! Shadowman is FM singer Steve Overland, Heartland guitarist Steve Morris, the Thunder boys Chris Childs (bass) and Harry James (drums) and keyboarder Steve Millington.
They kick off with the fast heavy rocker Road To Nowhere and show right from the start that their domain is hard rock with great hooks. The up-tempo rock is a good opener which gets a vintage 70's touch due to the keyboard play. Somehow the track reminds me of Damn Yankees... and Survivor. A blend of them... No Mans Land is a fast rocker with a bluesy touch and a dash of Deep Purple. The keyboard is quite Lord-ish. The following Bad For You is a bit slower and would have fit on any Bad English album, but don't expect Shadowman to be clones! It's just that in hard rock there are more often similarities then e.g. in prog rock. And the songs are just fun to listen to, and so I don't care, if there are similarities. If I would listen to the album and not reviewing it, I might not even thing about other bands! So, enjoy the music for what it is, good hard rock with a dash of blues and great hooks.
At Colour Of Your Love guitarist Steve Morris shows his skills in a short solo part, but most of the time he and his pal Steve Millington deliver the melodic playground for Steve Overland. A slight Spanish touch gets Fire And Ice when they open up with some Spanish classic guitar part, but then it becomes a cool straight hard rock tune. A 70's heavy rocker is Keeper Of My Heart, and even if the Hammond is adding the 70's flair it ain't backdated! The balladesque I've Been Wrong Before reminds me a bit of Gary Moore... A touching power ballad. At Blues City Overland reminds me even more of Gary Hughes, but as Gary Hughes is an excellent singer, I don't care. Very cool track! A country touch has Outlaws, at least in the beginning. The mid-paced rocker which sticks out due to the country touch and also the guitar work. Especially at the end they move towards country rock. The last track is a happy rocker Little Miss Midnight. A good time rocker for a cruise in summer.
Everybody who loves bands like Bad English, FM, Thunder, Whitesnake and Gary Hughes should check out these guys!
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