When old heros from the 70s return some 30-40 years after their prime there’s always a fear that they won’t live up to the expectations. There have been many examples of re-unions and returns that have fallen flat on their faces. However, having seen my old 70s heros, in this case Canadian melodic hard rockers Teaze, playing live in Sweden I was confident this wouldn’t be a face-faller. When the title track kicks off the album it’s instead a 100% face-hitter! These guys don’t mess around! This is Teaze sounding like they just picked up where ”One Night Stands” left off (Yeah, I know ”Body Shots” was their last studio release, but it was a more poppy release). ”Man Of Vision” starts out in a soft vein but soon builds up and rocks out in an epic way! Brian Danter sure has kept his voice perfectly intact! Not a sign of weakness or lack of power! The production is powerful and crisp. ”Turning The Night Away” is another semi-heavy dynamic AOR:ish rocker with a powerful 80s sounding chorus. ”Gotta Rock” does what it advertises! This can become a true live anthem with its up-tempo hard rockin’ vibe. Some cool bluesy guitar licks from original guitar player Mark Bradac and Charlie Lambrick, who has been with the band since the reunion. Original drummer Mike Kozak has been replaced by Jim Bonventre who is a groovy powerhouse, which he really proves with his bass drum shuffle groove in ”Gotta Rock” (which wasn’t on the original demo version), “Let Me Go” kicks into a phat cool mid-tempo groove, while “We Are One” takes it down a few notches, starting out as a ballad but continues in a melodic mid-tempo number. Next up is quite a surprising cover, I must say! It takes a lot of balls to dig into the old Rainbow classic “Man On The Silver Mountain”! I'm happy to say they do get away with it. They have put their own mark (no pun intended) on it, and it blends in well with the rest of the album, plus Danter’s voice gives it a Teaze-touch. Also, there's a cool sneaky riff at the end. Next up is “Wonder”, a solid melodic rocker which sounds like Teaze but also not, which is kinda interesting. “Can’t Stop Loving You”, penned by Danter and Lambrick is an out-and-out classic AOR number with a chorus that sticks like glue. “City Of Roses” ends the album with a crushing wall of guitars. A crunchy, chugging rocker! The CD features a bonus track; a re-recording of the piano ballad “Sweet Misery” from “On The Loose”. A nice touch. This is truly a stellar album, a glorious return if you will, from a band I didn’t expect to ever see live and didn’t expect to return with a new studio album. This album should definitely appeal both to the old fans, but also to the current melodic rock crowd. Teaze rocks!
Janne Stark
Year: 2026
Label: Escape Music
