Trishula - 'Scared To Breathe'

(AOR Heaven)

If you follow the underground melodic rock scene, you’ll be aware of British guitarist Neil Fraser, Trishula is essentially a band to showcase his solo material. From his time with Ged Rylands Rage Of Angels he worked with Welsh vocalist Jason Morgan and Portuguese drummer Joao Calaco, both of whom he has drafted into been part of Trishula.

I do worry that this album even though its on AOR Heaven, a trusted label for us underground melodic rock AOR stalwarts, may still fly under most people’s radars. Which would be a crying shame as this is a solid melodic hard rock album where Frasers wealth of experience shines through in both performance and song quality. It’s far better than many current ‘named’ releases and I really hope true genre fans will give ‘Scared To Breathe’ a chance because they will not be disappointed.

It’s not a perfect album by any means but it’s not far off as ‘Scared To Breathe’ contains some extremely memorable melodic hard rock which makes for a wonderous listening experience for genre fans.

Although Fraser does use as many opportunities as possible to showcase his guitar skills, I do find he concentrates on his song writing as a whole, so his guitar solos and riffs are never overblown or overbearing to the detriment of any song. The emphasis is always on the song imprinting on a listener and engaging them whether its sonically or lyrically.

I’m really impressed with Fraser’s song writing as a whole, it’s not just all about the guitar and lyrically he draws me in with the vast majority of his lyrics been in the vein I tend to appreciate and connect with.

Vocalist Jason Morgan may be unknown to many but this album should definitely put him on peoples maps as his soaring, powerful, melodious vocals are insanely awesome! Fraser picked the perfect vocalist to bring his songs to life!

The album as a whole tends to be straight ahead melodic hard rock with a modern tinge and a splash of old school flair. One of my stand outs though is the full on AOR of ‘A Thousand Pieces’ which is pure genius and borderline perfection, it’s already one of my most played songs the year and might just be one of the best AOR songs of the past decade!

A magnificent debut album and hopefully the first of many to come!

8/10

Essential Track - 'A Thousand Pieces'

Review by Woody