LIVING THE DREAM

This must be one of the strongest Uriah Heep in theier entire catologue. Produced by Jay Ruston, this album sounds really fresh but extremely heavy. And heavy it is; this is almost heavy metal, but with good taste.

The songrwiting is strong with progressive rock-overtones in the longer songs. Mick Box has a lot of solos and really stong riffs (he is 71!!! years old, and sounds really hungry and versatile). Phil Lanzon plays lots of organ. Het experimented with lots of keyboard-sounds in the past 30 years, but his organ-sound is really great and off course fits the sound of Uriah Heep.

Bernie Shaw sounds more raw than before. One of the greatest hardrock/heavy metal singer I can think off. And the backing vocals give the chorusses of the songs real catchiness....

The bassplaying of Davey Rimmer is less heavy than Trevor Bolder, but is okay. Russell Gilbrook is very different drummer than Lee Kerslake. They both play loud and have great chops. Russell plays more double bass, wich give the sound more a heavy-metal-flavour.

The first song "Grazed by Heaven" is also the single of the album and has a great tempo and some heavy organ and wahwah guitarsolos. Uriah Heep Always had the most heavy songs as openers to their albums, and I guess this one will make it into their liveset.

Almost any songs on this album is a killer, so I won't get into all of them. The prog-epic Rocks in the Road is worth mentioning because of its various tempo-changes and themes.

A lot of reviews say that Uriah Heep haven't released anything good between the 70's and "Wake the Sleeper", but this album combines the best of "Sea of Light", "Sonic Origami", the newer albums and the seventies.

I Always thought "Sea of Light" was their heaviest album, until "Wake the Sleeper", and now this album. This is a must-have album for all Uriah Heep and progressive hardrock/heavy metal fans world wide. At least every rock-enthousiast should listen this album, because of the great hooks, solos, huge chorusses and organsound.

Hell Yeah!

There is a very old English folk tradition called Morris Dancing, and proponents of this melodeon-based genre say it's not enough to churn out the notes - your music needs something special called "lift". Probably very few people would connect Uriah Heep with Morris Dancing, but "lift" is exactly the term I would use to describe the music in this album. Whether or not you happen to like the songs, the almost overpowering energy of the delivery is undeniable.

And the extraordinary thing is that in 2019 this band will celebrate its 50th anniversary. The surviving original member Mick Box is no less than 71. I remember seeing him perform at an outdoor pop festival in 1972 - that is 46 years ago. Unbelievable. Maybe it is his birthplace of Walthamstow in East London - scene of a much-loved song on this site - "Along the Forest Road there's hundreds of cars - luxury cars...".

And the music is great, I love these songs where the band seem to be trying to out-do themselves in heaviness while always keeping a melody underneath. Bernie Shaw (aged 62) is one of the best operatic rock vocalists ever.

I am shocked that just one week ago I uploaded a review for Phideaux's brilliant new 'Infernal' and said that if a better album came along in 2018 I would be very pleasantly surprised. I am in two minds now.

Verdict: talk about the 'endless river'...

Who'd have thought that rock 'n' roll would stay so strong in an individual's psyche and creativity as it has in many of today's "Rock 'n' roll Grandpas," but it has. The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Daevid Allen, and these guys, the current incarnation of URIAH HEEP, have certainly demonstrated the staying power of rock. The Heep have here delivered an album with polish, grit, and power that not many of the younger up-and-comers can challenge much less top. This is masterful rock 'n' roll by masters of the genre, just enough refreshing and creative subtleties and flourishes to impress with little fluff or slough. Hearing live, living, moving keyboards beneath the music throughout songs is such a refreshing reminder of how it used to be, how music could be. Tight compositions with no wasted moments or riffs. This is a lean, mean, rock music machine. I never thought I'd be rating 70-year old musicians with five star ratings but here we are. This is a near flawless album! Welcome to the Prog Renaissance. Praise be the old masters! While this type of music is no longer my cup of tea, I cannot deny the value of this album to those who like well-polished rock'n'roll. Highly recommended to proggers everywhere to check it out for yourself.

Review # 93. Uriah Heep is a legendary band, that need no introductions or recommendations. They have been around since forever, and they wrote their name with gold in the history of Rock (or Hard Rock if you like) music. I have been listening to them since my teenage years, and I have in my collection no less than 17 albums; studio and live ones.

This year they have returned with their 25th (or 26th? I lost count) studio album, named as Living the Dream. I still can't believe how good this album is! I was expecting a very mediocre album, like their previous ones, but this time I must admit that they did a really good job!

I don't think that there is anybody who believes that after a 50-years-old career, they will release another The Magician's Birthday or Demons and Wizards, correct? But you know what? Living the Dream is a high-quality album, that can be compared directly with some of their old releases. The sound is modern Hard-Rock, with many guitar riffs and solos, lots of classic-sounding keyboards and very good compositions. Bernie Shaw's voice is in very good condition, without having to add 'for his age''... Mike Box recorded some very nice and 'catchy' guitar riffs, that are accompanied by the keyboards of Phil Lanzon and the result is very good, to say the least. The album includes some classic Hard Rock songs, some ballads and even a couple of "proggy" tunes..

In a nutshell, Living the Dream is a very 'decent' album that totally worth its money. I bought it, and I never regret it. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed! Favorite Tracks (so far): Living the Dream, Knocking at my Door, It's all Been Said, Dreams of Yesteryear. 4 stars from me.