I didn't know the Swedish singer and keyboardist 'Thomas Lassar' who was part of the band 'Crystal Blue' in the late 90s and was also a member of 'Last Autumn's Dream' for the release of 'II' in 2005. Since then, he has been a session musician for various formations and, given the pandemic which deprived all artists of concerts for two long years, he took the opportunity to write an album to finally release his own material. Better late than never, because it offers us 10 melodic gems in an AOR that takes us back to the best of the 80s: first, 'When My Ship Comes In' rolls out the red carpet for us with a first melody reminiscent of the best of ASIA' and a certain 'Heat Of The Moment' then parade hits one behind the other with for example 'Whatever I Do' or 'In Control' and their heady chorus, the two well-paced mid-tempo 'The Only One' and 'Turn Me Back' or even 'Take Me Higher' which 'Toto' would not have denied. And, as in any good AOR album, 'Thomas Lassar' gratifies us with magnificent ballads, one in each half of the album, first of all 'Back What I Started' with felted percussions à la 'Phil Collins' and radiant choirs, the album ending with a new melodic jewel with the eponymous title of the album. In short, 'Thomas Lassar' is releasing a very fine AOR album which should make melodic rock fans happy with bands like 'ASIA', 'Foreigner' or even 'Toto' and be a serious contender for the podium of the best 2023 albums in this style of music... | |
