ALBUM REVIEW: Lonely No More – Falling Stars
Elemental rock outfit FALLING STARS have put out their latest album Lonely No More. The Cleveland quartet debuted in 2017 with Stranded In The Future, and the band originally started as a passion project between musicians Christopher Allen (ROSAVELT) and Tim Parnin (SWEET APPLE, SONS OF ELVIS, COBRA VERDE) after years of admiring each other’s endeavours. The music itself takes heavy inspiration from roots-rock and Midwest power-rock, resulting in songs that go in many directions, but ultimately result in a pleasant listening experience.
Things don’t start out too strongly though as the band open with Lonely Planets, a slow alternative rock track that was recorded with a low-quality production, allowing it to have a vintage edge, yet despite how this should make things interesting it just, well, isn’t. Sure, it sounds nice, but honestly, it’s a little dull and doesn’t really do much to grab your attention. Luckily, once you’re past this song, the album picks up noticeably, so it becomes easy to forgive the band for the shaky start.
Where FALLING STARS‘ talents really seem to lie is in the more anthemic, feel-good rock ‘n’ roll tracks that leave you feeling positive and hopeful, like you’re receiving a pat on the back that reassures you in that things will be fine. Floating Away is a great example of this with its upbeat and catchy nature, along with Sky Is Falling that is a fantastic rock ‘n’ roll song. What makes it stand out further is its anthemic nature and the way it brings in theatrical elements that feel heavily reminiscent of 70s and 80s rock, and to top it all off there are also parts that seem to be inspired by punk.
The remainder of the album tends to fall more under the blues rock category of songs that feel calm and offer you some sense of peace, as heard in the likes of Love Is Enough and Tell Me What You Want. But one further highlight worth mentioning would be the final song of the album, a cover of TOM PETTY’s Walls that just overall offers a sense of nostalgia and leaves you feeling good with the blend of sounds between alternative and blues rock.
Lonely No More is a little all over the place, but a pleasant listening experience all around. It is easy to appreciate the styles of rock that FALLING STARS explore as they clearly work nicely for them but in a way that doesn’t feel limited. This could be just the thing you need when you need a moment to escape reality.
Rating: 7/10
Lonely No More is out now via Tee Pee Records.
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