FM – Rockville – CD review

FM
Rockville
Membran

Six years on from their reunion, four years on from their comeback album “Metropolis” and some lineup changes down the line, and here come FM with the follow up release, “Rockville”. And this seems them belatedly latching on to the whole dubstep thang, as they look for an elusive new audience. Or, this is their fan funded (via Pledge) follow up release, “Rockville”, which sees them carrying on in the AOR vein they’ve mined since they first got together back in the days of black and white. What do you think?

Well, it’s most definitely the latter. It’s their first studio release with new guitarist Jim Kirkpatrick, but you could slot these songs onto practically any one of their releases without seeing the joins. Which is a good thing. After all, that’s what people come to an FM album for, especially when their fanbase ponied up for it in advance.Steve Overland is still in exceptional voice aftrer all these years, and there are some fantastic songs here as well. You’d be hard pushed to find better AOR tunes than ‘Only Foolin’, ‘Show Me The Way’ and ‘Crosstown Train’, with the latter crossing over into full on rawk.

The whole band are on top form, the production is excellent, and anyone who warmed to them over the years will thoroughly enjoy this. It’s unlikely to bring in anyone new, but that isn’t really the point anymore. It’s quality AOR from that place where time never passes. The people who paid up over on Pledge got a double CD for their cash, and the second CD, “Rockville II”, is available to buy as well.

Buy Rockville at Amazon

Buy Rockville II at Amazon