ISSA: Another World (A.O.R.): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Just when we'd given up hope, Issa delivered a reassuring and hopeful “Lights Of Japan” for the Norwegian diva. The presence of her husband, James Martin, seemed to have a lot to do with it, and the arrival of his brother in the band can only encourage us to believe in confirmation with the new album entitled “Another World”. Although mastering remains in the hands of Alessandro Del Vecchio, the Martin Bros are also in charge of production for an album that pays homage to 80s AOR. A tempting program, then, even if it can easily prove to be a tricky one.

And the fact is, these presentiments seem likely to be confirmed with a pair of tracks that launch this opus on particularly interesting foundations. Very much 80's AOR, the more muscular 'Armed & Dangerous' and the slightly pop 'All These Wild Nights', with their Vixen-like accents, prove catchy, with choruses that embed themselves directly in the neurons, pretty solos and euphoric melodies. It would certainly have been a hit on the FM airwaves of the 1980s. Unfortunately, the rest of the album offers only rare exceptions to what might seem to be a disillusionment on a par with the glimpsed prospects. Only 'The Road To Victory' and 'The Hardest Fight' manage to escape the wreckage, reviving the elements that had led us to believe in the long-awaited passage to the upper division.

For the rest, we fall into dated ballads bordering on the soporific ('Only In The Dark'), ridiculous effects (the supposedly ominous laughter of 'Never Sleep Alone'), synth-pop drums in the worst possible taste ('Another World') and ponderous riffs ('Got A Hold On Me'). Most of the choruses don't catch on, the drums quickly become tiresome, and Issa regularly falls back into her diva-demonstrative ways, to the detriment of the songs' interest. Even if the goodwill is clearly there, and the energy displayed and a few interesting solos make the pill go down a little better, the disappointment is on a par with the hopes raised by “Lights Of Japan”.

Having failed to dose the elements necessary to the credibility of its tribute to 80s AOR, Issa once again misses the step that should have taken it to the next level. Despite the sympathy she may arouse in many fans of the genre, the Norwegian seems definitively condemned to stagnate in the second division, and it could well be that “Another World” is the swan song for this artist who had everything in hand to assert herself. - Official website

ISSA

ANOTHER WORLD

FRONTIERS RECORDS

A.O.R.