Reviews roundup – Shane Filan vs. Georgia Sound vs. Resolution 13

Reviews roundup – Shane Filan vs. Georgia Sound vs. Resolution 13

SHANE FILAN
Right Here
East West

Well no-one can say we’re not right out there on the cutting edge in this part of the world.  Because here we are with the second solo album from one time Westlife fella, Shane Filan.  And it’s pretty good.

With all the time spent in the studio, he knows how to surround himself with good musicians, and shorn of the populist requirements of Westlife, he’s taken a sideways step into a looser, rootsier form of pop music.

Make no mistake, this is a pop album, albeit one with some world weary lyrics and an awareness of time passing.  But everything is still rooted in melody, and on songs like ‘Better Off A Fool’ and ‘I Can’t Get Over You’, he shows that there is definitely a life for him, on his own.

Plus, if you’re a Girls Aloud fan, the duet with Nadine Coyle is well worth a download.

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GEORGIA SOUND
Love Can Change
independent

Ooh!  This is just lovely.  Folk / country / pop from over there in the Canadian colonies, courtesy of the duo of Ryan Roy and Shannon Magee.

They’ve certainly got that heartfelt thing down pat, as they play with your emotions on an assortment of splendid songs.  Taking their music away from the live, acoustic environment may have been a risk, but with a full backing band, the songs and harmonies are still to the front and centre.

They’ve managed to overcome underwhelming influences to put together some great songs like ‘You Will Always’, ‘Love Can Change’ and ‘Anything For You’, all of which would have sat comfortably in the early seventies singer / songwriter idiom.  A gentle delight.

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RESOLUTION 13
Colossal
independent

Some Finnish metal now, with Helsinki based Resolution 13 and their immodestly entitled album “Colossal”.

And what they’re doing is Fear Factory influenced industrial metal, but in a relatively non abrasive style.  They’re good at it, mind, so if that’s your thing, you should be checking it out.

They’ve also got some modern metal moves going on, so Trivium fans and their ilk will shake what little hair they have in appreciation to tunes like ‘Brace The Last Moment’ and ‘Broke Down’.  They’re not breaking any rules here, but they’re capable of very good things.  Try ‘Keep Away from My Gun’ if you want a flavour of what they can do.

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