TOUR DE FORCE - World On Fire [remastered] (2011)

Tour De Force (the American band) were pretty unlucky not to strike the good oil at a time in their career when they should've been big.
These guys had it all really: a vocalist who could sing his ass off, a sonic axe wielder in Palladino, and the man who puts the icing on the cake in keyboardist Alex Salz.

By the time "World On Fire" (1995) came out, Tour De Force had split.
All these tracks were recorded around 1989-1990 on pre-production demos form, but never released officially. Most of these songs become legendary in the AOR underground, and tapes were being passed around worldwide.
However, a fan in the position to resurrect the broken dreams and put the puzzle back in its place, acquired the rights to these recordings and released the whole bunch as "World On Fire" in Japan, in limited quantities (the album was issued later in Europe).

Now it's time for a re-release with a proper remastering, and I must admit the restoring job is superb.
This is an exceptional AOR / melodic hard rock album with mind blowing songs bordering the classic status.
TDF's sound is a blood rushing, pulse pounding, mind spinning sugar sensation that spans the fine tuning of Scandi AOR sound heavy weights such as Skagarack, Bad Habit or Da Vinci, blended with UK masters Shy and FM and some american commercial Melodic Rock style.
This is streamlined, classy MR / AOR that spins one hook after another in dizzying succession.

17 songs comprise the entirety of "World On Fire", including the much beloved lead-off "Tonight", penned by Michael Bolton and originally exclusive to the 1995 Japanese version. The song is golden, beautifully constructed with feather touches. A Bolton creation but made all their own. The elusiveness has lent quite a bit of fuel to its already blinding fire.
"Back To You" swirls the keyboards like water running through a colorful painting, bright and dazzling as the song hops along, blissful and self satisfied with a cheerful pleasantness.
The title track, "World On Fire" resonates with its sympathetic lyrics that etch out the need to break from the human race's 9 to 5 conformity. A lush, multi-faceted song that glimpses Giuffria in its sights and flaunts a flashy chorus among a rather typical rock structure.

"Coming Home" has the big ballad corner covered as it is a beautiful song that flutters on gossamer soft synthesizers, rich rounded vocals and a heartbreakingly gorgeous lyric.
"Hold On" is thoroughly Scandi made. The unarguable conviction, the daring verses and sugar instant sweet chorus makes for a song that is agonizingly wonderful.
"If It's Over" is another amazing lovely that finds a fiery heart to compliment its hushed quieter moments. Another fantastic chorus splits this open like a melodic dream.
"Sweet Adeline" leave you breathless. A potent track that one is, being an AOR masterwork that makes bedfellows of a dominant rhythm riff, a honey stinging chorus, and a cascading guitar solo that is bliss in electric beauty.

From now, the following tracks are from a second recording session, much more into the american style.
"Stranger in the Night" it's an in-your-face full frontal assault hard rocker with massive guitars. A very catchy track.
"Cruise Control" is an asphalt smoking urgent melodic rock that is caught between '80s Hagar-Van Halen and Foreigner's 'Rev It On The Red Line'. Thumping swagger, the push-pull give and take from the guitars make way for the surprising dynamite of its bouncing chorus. Eagerness and urgency pulse through like an engine humming.
"Shot Down" is a different beast than the candy coated AOR from the first tracks, although their link to that world shows through in peeks here and there in the flowing chorus. The rest of the song is aggressive, a tough guitar sound and a rocking demeanor. The guitar solo is six string '80s flashback full of fever and guitar hero glory.

"Rough Boy" is soft-ish, frolicky AOR that pours on the chorus like thick sweet syrup and the verses sensitive spun webs of spider silk. This one sounds very british, in the vein of FM or Shy.
Acoustic haunts the opening of "Runaway", a track about a teenager youngster that forsakes house and home for sake of survival. Cool tune.
"Wing And A Prayer" is a grandiose power melodic rock in the realm of Fifth Angel. Piercing guitars that shriek and swoop like falcons on the wing and an epic chorus gallops into epic anthem territory. Lightened a bit by a keyboard assault, this is a great song that shows another face to the band, but pulls it off with grace and ease.
"Lady Midnight" is a midtempo track that evokes forgotten lust as memories bubble and stir. The chorus is sharp and on point, the vocals heated and pleading.


"World On Fire" is a must have for any AOR / Melodic / Hard Rock fan.
If you don't have it, you need it, and if you do have a copy of the first release, you must check the revitalized sound of this reissue, as the remastering really had made a difference here.
A Must Have.


01 - Tonight
02 - Back To You
03 - World On Fire
04 - Coming Home
05 - Hold On
06 - If It's Over
07 - Sweet Adeline
08 - Strangers In The Night
09 - Cruise Control
10 - Shot Down
11 - Rough Boy
12 - Runaway
13 - One More Time
14 - Wing And A Prayer
15 - Lady Midnight
16 - Got To Know
17 - Forgotten Heroes


Chali Cayte - vocals
Christian Palladino - guitars
Alex Salz - keyboards
Bill Froelich - bass
Bill 'Blaster' Pauly - drums







www.nehrecords.com/SHOP/TourWorld.htm
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