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December 23, 2013
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December 23, 2013
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Downersrevenge's Reviews

Life, Love & Hope [@ Best Buy First] [CD]

Customer Rating

Scholz Brings Back Vintage NEW BOSTON tones back a

on December 23, 2013

Posted by: Downersrevenge

from Milwaukee, WI

Heaven On Earth. This is a brilliant song, and is one of the best on the album. Ever since David was announced as part of the band early last year, I've been very curious to see what he would sound like on an actual album. With Tom's masterful craftsmanship, he sounds amazing! I really how Tom layered David's vocals, because it really made him sound like Brad. I don't only like this song, though because it is Delp-esque, but rather because it is a great song, with a good sound, and a great way to start the album. RANK: 9/10

Didn't Mean to Fall In Love. Only slightly better than the original, in my opinion. The guitars and the vocals feel a little crisper, which I think is just a result of the remastering. I was happy with this track on CA, and would have been fine without it here, but it's alright. I do listen to it to get the full feel of the album, as Tom intended! I can't even give this a fair rank, since it is not new material, but say it falls to the bottom of my retreads, simply because it is not new. RANK: 7/10

Last Day of School. I read an interview with Tom where he said something about not wanting to cover the keyboard with a guitar overlay, and I personally cannot blame him. The keyboard track on this song is phenomenal! However, call me greedy, I would have liked a longer version of the song, and with that. I do also enjoy that this song sounds like it could very well have been a Trans Siberian Orchestra song, whom I have always thought rock. RANK: 8/10

Sail Away. Not gonna lie. After I heard Brad sing the first line, I was in tears. I knew that this would be the last time more than likely that I would hear Brad sing on a new BOSTON tune, and that cut me to the heart! Still, it is an interesting song. I went into the song not expecting much because of how perplexing the samples were, but was pleasantly surprised. I didn't think I'd like the strange part with Kimberley in the beginning, but it actually feels like it goes with the song. I also think it's really unique that this song was inspired by the events of Katrina, and interesting, because the lyrics could really be applied to any natural disaster. Regardless, it is a hauntingly beautiful song. RANK: 9/10

Life, Love & Hope. Undoubtedly my absolute favorite for this album, and possibly even one of my favorite BOSTON songs period. I love everything about this song. It's a masterfully crafted song fueled by meaning, purpose, and is made of purely warm vocals and soaring guitar riffs. When I first heard the guitar solo after the second verse, my love for this song was sealed, and I could tell by the tone it was Gary's work (sure enough, it was recorded in Gary's private studio!). My wife thinks I'm crazy, but I also am in love with this song because I feel that it has a deeper spiritual meaning to it. Wonderful song, and I LOVE Tommy DeCarlo!!! I have come to find that the title track LL&H is one of those songs that makes me smile each and every time I hear it. Like I said before, it is not the next MTAF, but it has several MTAF qualities. RANK: 10/10

If You Were in Love. I didn't think I was going to like the Kim track, honestly, just because I am not a fan of With You of CA. However, I gave this a chance because this was a Scholz written song. I forgot entirely that this was a Kim song when the piano intro played the song in! WOW! I actually did a double take to make sure I hadn't put in a Chopin CD and I was listening to a Nocturne. Kim did a nice job vocally, though, and while she is not my flavor of BOSTON, the song is unmistakably a BOSTON song. This is the final part of my three-way tie for fourth in my favorites. 7/10

Someday. This one and Sail Away were the most surprising track of LL&H, honestly. Tom was right in telling us that this is an uptempo rocker, and I appreciate the song for that. Still, the song took a strange turn when the kid's vocals came in, wherein I literally cocked my head sideways and said, that's weird! Still, it is a good song, and a refreshing modification of flavor. I didn't care for it much at first, but after having spun the album whole several times, it has grown on me. RANK: 8/10

Love Got Away. This is the song I looked forward to most on this album, honestly. I really enjoy and love how Tom's voice sounds on this track. I've heard others say that Tom's voice is featured too much on this album, but I strongly contend that it is the perfect flavor for each song it's in. This one, which is a ballad about loss, I think Tom put himself on vocals because his voice relays a very distressed and praying tone. I also enjoyed the organ cameo, but it could have done with MORE pickslides!!! RANK: 9/10

Someone and You Gave Up On Love. I would have been as happy as the next BOSTON-fan if the album had been titled, Hey Look, Ma, no Retreads! but I am glad that these songs got another shot. I was pleasantly surprised with the different turn that Someone takes, and I think Tommy sounds wonderful on YGUOL. I think the whole this would have sounded better with more Tommy, but I'm not the multiplatinum rockstar here, now, am I? I liked the redo of YGUOL more than that of Someone, so it crowns my rankings of the retreads (of course, I haven't heard Te Quiero Mia yet, so I'm not sure where that will fall). RANKS: SO: 6.5/10; YGUOL: 7/10

The Way you Look Tonight. My favorite thing about this whole album is that it is full of what I perceive as sequels to past BOSTON songs. This to me is a sequel to Let Me Take You Home Tonight. It is beautifully written, and Melissa was right, I do like working with this one on repeat (though I do that with a couple others from this album too!). This is another song that Tommy sounds great on, really like the way he and David harmonize, and I am excited to hear whatever Tom has in store for the future of the band with these two as the leads. This song, HoE and LL&H embody the original BOSTON flavor more than any other song we've had in the past 30 years.

Overall, I give LL&H a letter grade of a B/B+. On the scale of the Debut to CA, I would nestle it between DLB and Third Stage (yes, I honestly like this one better than Third Stage). Like I said under TWYLT, I like this album because of all of the sequels. TWYLT is a sequel to LMTYHT, and Love Got Away is a stark sequel to I Need Your Love (yes, Tom snuck it in there for the fourth album in a row by merely mentioning the title at 1:16 and later in the song), and Sail Away could have been a sequel to Hitch A Ride if not for the specified nature of its writing. What could it have done less with? CA retreads, but we all knew those were coming, so it wasn't so bad. More of? PICKSLIDES!!! I didn't get my pickslide jones off of this album, and that was very sad. But regardless, this album is definitely one of my BOSTON favorites!!!

What's great about it: NEW BOSTON!!!

What's not so great: Not enough pickslides!

I would recommend this to a friend!

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