AXEL RUDI PELL - Live On Fire [2 CD set] (2013)

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After his early days in Steeler, German guitar player AXEL RUDI PELL formed his own band at the end of the '80s which through the years has garnered an impressive fan base.
2012 turned out to be Axel’s most successful year with his latest studio album ‘Circle Of The Oath’ scoring high in the European charts. Besides that there was also a big tour with shows on different European festivals and even a three night sold-out gig in his native Bochum.
To celebrate this success and his 30 years in the music business, Axel Rudi Pell is releasing "Live On Fire" (recorded only few months ago on Oct. 18th, 2012) that will be available in all kind of formats, from a double CD set to DVD and even on vinyl.

Axel Rudi Pell's band is a steady outfit that has remained unchanged for the last 15 years and you can definitely hear that experience on stage and on this live album.
Pell already has a live disc released with this line-up (2002's Knights Live), so, Is this new instalment necessary?
Well, yes, in many aspects; that previous live album passed almost unnoticed for the big audiences (at that time the Hard Rock genre was not as popular as now), we have the most recent compositions, and the band never sounded tight and oiled live as in present time.
But for me (and I believe there must be many, many other listeners out there) "Live On Fire" essentially is like an enjoyable trip back to my youth when 'real live' albums were released (Whitesnake's Live in the Heart of the City, Black Sabbath's Live Evil, etc.)

This means "Live On Fire" was pressed onto CD with absolutely no overdubs, something you don't come across too often. With this ‘one-take’ approach ARP captured the energy and the emotions of that particular night, which is awesome.
And Axel Rudi Pell alive particularly recalls one of the greatest hard rock bands ever; Rainbow in the Ronnie James Dio era.
That re-created very late seventies live atmosphere is probably the biggest achievement from Axel’s band. Johnny Gioeli’s vocal performance is also very Dio-like although he sounds more like Doogie White to me, the Rainbow singer from the nineties. Obviously as a homage, in his banter between the songs Johnny ‘copies’ some of Dio’s phrases quite literally giving you the impression that he’s Ronnie’s little brother.

The atmospheric feel of "The Guillotine Suite" followed by the energetic "Ghost In Black" (both from 2012's Circle Of The Oath) get this live performance rolling with Pell's characteristic guitar sound and Mike Terrana's faster paced drums. Sharp heavy guitar riffs, crafty soloing and the support of Ferdy Doernberg's enchanting keys in the back.
"Strong As A Rock" sounds live as its title indeed promises with a monster guitar work, grand bass play by Volker Krawczak and smashing drums by Terrana, joint together it is a festivity of '70s & '80s comeback.
Also worth to listen is the medley "The Masquerade Ball / Casbah / Dreaming Dead / Whole Lotta Love / Dreaming Dead" with a magical retro feel. Power & huge choruses in "Masquerade Ball", then the melodic "Casbah" singing together with the audience, and finally a bombastic cover of Zeppelin's classic "Whole Lotta Love".
This is an old-school live recording, then solos can't be missed; Terrana's drums fear the most, and his potent solo goes off with his always likeable display of power and technique, while the keyboard solo includes a cool band jam in the mix.
The prior fan favourites aren't forgotten like "Fool Fool", and other medley includes a partial cover of Deep Purple's bluesy rocker "Mistreated", rightful done by the band.

With "Live On Fire" you can't go wrong especially when you're a fan of the Hard Rock pioneers from the late seventies / earlier eighties.
Axel Rudi Pell's band delivers a honest, entertaining live show through their own catalogue with a slight emphasis on their latest work, but above all takes you back to the times of abundant soloing for all, stretched medleys and a little bit of improvising, all in the emotion of an uncut, untouched full live show.
Something of which I can't get enough when it's done with this top notch musicianship and feeling.
Recommended.


CD 1
01. The Guillotine Suite (intro)
02. Ghost In The Black
03. Strong As A Rock
04. Before I Die
05. The Masquerade Ball / Casbah / Dreaming Dead /
Whole Lotta Love / Dreaming Dead
06. Drum Solo
07. Mystica / Mistreated / Mystica

CD2
08. Oceans Of Time
09. Circle Of The Oath
10. Fool Fool
11. Keyboard Solo / Carousel / Jam / Carousel
12. Tear Down The Walls / Nasty Reputation
13. Rock The Nation

Johnny Gioeli - Lead Vocals
Axel Rudi Pell - Guitar
Ferdy Doernberg - Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Volker Krawczak - Bass, Backing Vocals
Mike Terrana - Drums




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AXEL RUDI PELL - Circle Of The Oath (2012)

Digipak Limited Edition + bonus + poster

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Prolific German guitar player Axel Rudi Pell has a tremendous career so far. On the new album "Circle Of The Oath" (his 14th), continues his love for the very traditional, straight ahead hook-laden power influenced hard rock, including the classic strong ballad and the epic arrangements that brings out the air guitarist in most who enjoy this genre.

Axel has a formula that works really well for him, and seems for many music fans too, as the man has sold more than 1,5 million albums to date. He is not afraid to wear his Dio / Rainbow / Blackmore influences on his sleeve, and he does it very well, in fine shape and style.
Johnny Gioeli delivers a powerhouse vocal performance as usual, while the drums courtesy of Mike Terrana are top notch and keep the traditonal metal vibe going through this release.
Axel isn’t a shredder, his style of soloing is more from the Blackmore, Schenker and Moore mould where pieces build from sparse notes bends to faster runs. I never considered Pell an eminent guitarist, but really effective and clever.
The key factor in "Circle Of The Oath" is the quality of the tunes, and if you’re a fan of this classy genre you will find plenty moments of joy here. Some of the tunes do have an amazing musical depth, probably more than ever before.
Another notable difference is in the lyrics, nowhere near as cheesy as they have been on past albums. Gone are the Kings, Queens, crowns and pyramids, now replaced by themes like life, death, loss, war, love.

"Circle Of The Oath" makes you think of '80s DIO; melodic, heavy, punchy hard rock music.
After the serene introduction "The Guillotine Suite", "Ghost In The Black" is one of the fastest tracks of the album, filled with rapid guitar work, powerful keyboards and very solid vocals courtesy of Johnny Gioeli.
Follower "Run With the Wind" is a high energy number tailor-made for live audience involvement, with Gioeli’s strong, bluesy enhanced range befitting the classic mold of Dio, Bonnet and Gillian.
"Before I Die" is a catchy and accessible hard rock track with a classic atmosphere, a staple that Axel Rudi Pell has had over their whole career. One of my favs in this CD.

Another standout cut for me is the title track "Circle Of The Oath", an epic nine-minute song with a nod to Zeppelin via Whitesnake. The opening third of the song has fine acoustic parts with Gioeli gaining the chance to flex a lot of his lower and mid-range with thick harmonies, before the heavier electric parts and the dark keyboard segments hit a home run in the chorus.
Then we have the heavy and lumbering "Bridges to Nowhere", and an attempt at an anthem in "Lived Our Lives Before".
Continuing the band’s tradition of featuring tasty power ballads in their albums, Pell’s clean skills come into focus on the heartfelt "Lived Our Lives Before", a lights in the air tune embellished with sweet keyboards and a good guitar solo.
"Hold On To Your Dreams" is pretty heavy yet melodic, followed by the epic "World Of Confusion" where the pacing mirrors Rainbow and Dio.
This Limited Edition Digipak (which includes a poster of the cover artwork), features as bonus track a hot version of Rainbow's "Temple Of The King", recorded live at the Bang Your Head Festival 2011.


You have to understand something about Axel Rudi Pell; he has a sonic formula that works for him and from album to album he doesn’t stray from it.
On "Circle Of The Oath" they keep the ball rolling once more. It's hook laden, traditional hard rock, very much in the Rainbow / Dio vein, cohesive and effective.
The songs are solidly well written and arranged, there's interesting deep musical passages and good lyrics, but the honest truth is that "Circle of the Oath sounds exactly like Pell's previous albums.
It’s truly enjoyable while it’s spinning, powerful and with a superb production.
So, if you love Axel Rudi Pell's formula then by all means pick up a copy of "Circle Of The Oath".


1. The Guillotine Suite (Intro)
2. Ghost In The Black
3. Run With The Wind
4. Before I Die
5. Circle Of The Oath
6. Fortunes Of War
7. Bridges To Nowhere
8. Lived Our Lives Before
9. Hold On To Your Dreams
10. World Of Confusion (The Masquerade Ball Pt. II)
Limited Edition Bonus Track:
11. The Temple Of The King (live at Bang Your Head Fest 2011)


Johnny Gioeli - Lead and Backing Vocals
Axel Rudi Pell - Lead, Rhythm and Acoustic Guitars
Volker Krawczak - Bass
Ferdy Doernberg - Keyboards
Mike Terrana - Drums & percussion




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AXEL RUDI PELL - The Ballads IV (2011)

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As you might have gathered from the name, this is the fourth collection of Axel Rudi Pell's ballads, compiling the softer side of Pell's last releases since 2004, plus 3 new tracks.

Pell has been heavily criticized for these series, not only accused for the supposedly cash-in, but for covering some iconic songs into the ballad format.
The truth is that fans of the beleaguered but ultimately memorable entity known as 'Power Ballad' will rejoice over this collection.
Not only because all songs are perfectly recorded and mostly well arranged, but for the fact that Axel has one of the best singers around: Johnny Gioeli. Former Hardline vocalist is a pleasure to the ears.

The one original and new song on here, "Where The Wild Waters Flow”, is a great example of ARP’s talent. It's the definition of 'Power Ballad', with a killer hookline / melody. Somehow reminds me Slaughter.
The one that might get many bemused is the ballad treatment of the late Ronnie James Dio’s "Holy Diver". Pell decided to re-arrange the song completely, making a piano version out of it, featuring strings, a cello and a clean and melodic guitar solo. Surprisingly, it works well.
What doesn’t work so good is his version of Leonard Cohen’s "Hallelujah", which original 1984 version was featured heavily in Shrek (the movie). Not bad, just I am not completely convinced by the children choir included, but the song is saved by Johnny's emotional and soulful voice.
One song that does come over rather well is their version of Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight”. The band does enough with it to make it an interesting cover.
Other tracks previously appeared are really good power ballads, such as "Northern Lights" (where Gioeli shines), the late '80s "Glory Night", "Touching My Soul" and the dark "The Curse Of The Damned".


With "The Ballads IV" two things are clear; Axel Rudi Pell writes some terrific power ballads, and Johnny Gioeli still is a monster vocalist.
The combination of passionate guitar playing from Pell as well as the soulful vocals of Gioeli prove that these are some of the most memorable power ballads since the '80s heyday.
Almost any of the tracks on "The Ballads IV" would fit in perfectly on one of those 'Monster Ballads' collections that includes classic tunes.
So, if the Power Ballad is your thing, get this album soon as possible.



01 - Where The Wild Waters Flow [New track 2011]
02 - Holy Diver (DIO cover) [New track 2011]
03 - Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen cover) [New track 2011]
04 - Northern Lights
05 - Noblesse Oblige -Opus 5 AdagioContabile-
06 - Love Gun (Kiss cover)
07 - Glory Night
08 - In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins cover)
09 - Touching My Soul
10 - Like A Child Again
11 - No Change To Live
12 - Haunted Castle Serenade -Opus 4 Grazioso E Agresso-
13 - The Curse Of The Damned


Johnny Gioeli - lead and backing vocals
Axel Rudi Pell - lead, rhythm and acoustic Guitars
Ferdy Doernberg - keyboards
Volker Krawczak - bass
Mike Terrana - drums




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