Pulse
Pulse

May 2002
Released: 2002, Frontiers
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewer: Rick

After 20 years of playing in other peoples' bands and on other peoples' projects, Vince O’Regan decided it was time to work on a project of his own. It was during his stint as touring guitarist for Bob Catley (Magnum) that Vince brought some of the material that he had been working on to the label. Vince had co-written the material with vocalist Simon Abbots. The rest of the Pulse lineup is rounded out by Al Barrow (bass), Alan Dawkins (keyboards) and Lynch Radinsky (drums).



Pulse is one of the more melodic bands that I have reviewed lately. They're a pretty cool change of pace. The Cd opens with “Talk About Love.” This song really sets the pace for what this Cd will contain. Lots of great melodies, excellent vocals and great guitar work. Not the heaviest track in the world but good nonetheless. The heavy bottom end is turned up for “Crazy.” Abbots shines on this track, since his voice is powerful and emotional. “Heartbeat” is an excellent track with an upbeat chorus and an emotional verse that play well against each other. Other standout tracks are “Just For a Moment,” “Don’t Want to Lose You” and the acoustic CD closer “Without You.”



If you want head thumping metal, then Pulse might not be quite right for you. They tend to stray more to the melodic end of the spectrum and even out of it on many occasion. But what they lack in heaviness they more than make up for in execution. The song writing on this disc is top notch and the musicians are excellent with Abbots' vocal performance being a particular revelation. Though I am not too enamoured of the band name the music is not to be missed.