Search - Frederiksen, Denander :: Baptism By Fire

I love Tommy Denander records!

Michael | Australia | 10/01/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well, here we go again. Tommy Denander has created another excellent album of melodic rock songs with an edge. His awesome and clear production style is intact along with all the great guitar playing we have come to expect. The vocals by Frederikson are also very smooth and powerful giving the whole album that melodic touch reminiscent of his work on Toto's "Isolation" album. All the songs have sing-along potential which is always important in any melodic rock release! Fans of Toto's early work will be in melodic rock heaven while new fans will love the technical guitar work on show and the tight production used by Denander. Highly recommended to fans of this genre and definitely one of the best albums this year."

Keepin' the AOR flame alive

Jazzcat | Genoa, Italy Italy | 03/19/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a very strong album produced by two very talented artists. Fergie Frederiksen best known to public for his presence on the Isolation album by Toto and Tommy Denander from Radioactive. The music on Baptism by fire is an inspired AOR in the Journey vein, not very distinctive to be honest, but with strong melodic hooks, and this in the genre, is exactly what is required. Originality in the genre is very difficult to achieve after decades of splendid jobs by a lot of very talented bands (Journey, Toto and many more), so I think that if an album has strong songs and interesting melodies, if it has fine, coherent and interesting arrangements and if it has talented musicians involved, I think it has the numbers to be big. This is the case. Fergie Fredriksen sings here in a very convincing way, with a strong melodic voice that is perfect for these songs. Denander is a talented guitarist, writer and arranger and here he gives prove of his streghts. In terms of guitar playing he's not very flashy but he plays short, very well builded solos. The album is full of very famous guests that helps the guys here and there. The only complaint for me is that here and there you can hear reminiscences of other melodies you knew through other albums by other bands, as I told you, originality is not the key word here (for instance, the opener sounds very similar to "The final countdown" by Europe here and there). But some songs are extremely well crafted and their melodies stuck in your mind and aren't comin' out very easily. I'm talking about "Right heart, wrong time" (wonderful!!), "Crossing over" (very similar to a beautiful song in a Steve Perry album, can't remember the title right now), "Baptism by fire", "Never try to love again", "Can't get enough". The album as a whole sounds very coeherent from the beginning to the end and it still manages to maintain the interest high. All in all a very beautiful release that keeps the AOR flame alive! Very happy to own it!"

Outstanding album!

Cherie | USA | 10/13/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A terrific album! Fergie and Denander have great talent and I very much enjoy their work, love it. The vocals are outstanding, of course, it's Fergie! The instrumentalists are great. What else can I say. When it's Fergie/Denander the work is guaranteed to be great!"