Vertigo
2

September 2006
Released: 2006, Frontiers Records/Zink Music
Rating: 2.5/5
Reviewer: Anders Sandvall

Frontiers Records seems to be very happy to release acts in the shape of projects, so here comes another project starring the duo Joseph Williams and Fabrizio V.Zee Grossi. Besides doing the Vertigo project, Mr. Williams has recorded the voice for Simba in the movie The Lion King, and he was also in Toto, where he recorded two albums and toured with them. Mr.Grossi may not need any further introduction; he’s a well-known producer and has worked with Glenn Hughes, House of Lords, Danny Vaughn, etc. He and Magnus Karlsson are the core of Starbreaker.



To help them out on this album they have Virgil Donati (Soul Sirkus, Ring Of Fire) on drums and Alex Masi on guitar. On this second album the guys return to the same melodic rock/hardrock they introduced us to on the previous album. Everything evolves around Mr. Williams’ magical voice together with Mr. Masi’s great guitar play. Vertigo plays in the same music category as Toto, but Vertigo is a little heavier and rough. Besides that, they have a lot in common music-wise.



Unfortunately, the songs do not last all the way; every now and then the album feels weak, unfocused, and pretty standard. The album has its moments, but sadly it doesn’t last all the way and not even Mr. Williams’ voice can save the album. There are a few songs that are totally OK, those are “In The Blink Of An Eye”, “I Wanna Live Forever”, “All For You”, “Picking Up The Pieces”, and “Together”. The oddest song must be the ballad “Save It All For Me”, which could have been featured on a motion picture soundtrack or something like that (maybe not so strange with thought of Mr. Williams’ father is John Williams, creator of music to movies like Star Wars and Indiana Jones).



Mr. Grossi has produced the album, and to my surprise he hasn’t done as great a job here as he used to do. The rhythm section is put way too low in the mix and he should put the guitars higher up. At the end of the day this is an OK album but nothing more; buy it if you’re into Toto or Joseph Williams’ voice.





http://www.zinkmusic.com