MILLENIUM – The Best Of … And More

This greatest hits, double CD release by Millenium contains ten previously unreleased tracks. CD one contains seven tracks from their Hourglass release and eight tracks from their Angelfire release. CD two, on the other hand, contains four tracks from their Millenium release and ten previously unreleased tracks, of which four are cover tunes.

The original members of Millenium (consciously spelt with one ‘n’) hail from Tampa Bay, Florida of the United States. If you’re not familiar with Millenium’s work then this release is a fine introduction to the band and a double CD dose of guitar driven, Melodic Hard Rock. The tracks chosen for this Best Of release, as well as the previously unreleased material, are all fueled by some fine melodic lead playing by one Ralph Santolla. His playing will bring a warm smile to most guitar fanatics alive today. Santolla’s guitar playing, coupled with fine vocalist performances by Todd Plant and Jorn Lande, lift the music of Millenium above mediocrity.

Of course none of this might be news to current Millenium fans, and the decision to purchase this release hinges on the quality of the ten unreleased tracks contained within. The unreleased material is kicked off by four cover tunes, “On And On” (MSG), “I Surrender” (Rainbow), “Jane” (Jefferson Starship) and “Love Is Like Oxygen” (Sweet). These represent four finished tracks that were taken from an aborted covers CD project, all of which feature Jorn Lande and famed Ozzy/Rainbow/Ten keyboardist Don Airey. The tracks are all appropriately represented and do justice to the originals, especially “I Surrender” where vocalist Jorn Lande pays fine homage to Joe Lynn Turner. All four tracks are adequately embellished by Santolla’s melodic, attention-grabbing lead playing.

The remainder of the CD contains two unreleased Jorn Lande tracks from the Hourglass sessions, “Rain” and “Anybody,” as well as four demos from the Todd Plant era. A new version of one of the demo tracks, “Heresy,” will actually be included in the forthcoming Millenium album. All demo tracks are nicely produced, polished, and professionally completed. None of these tracks sway too far from Millenium’s music formula, so current Millenium fans should know what to expect. It’s nice to see, for once, that the “incentive” tracks on a release of this type are actually worth listening too!

A minor complaint, if it can be called that, is that on some of the tracks, and Millenium’s music in general, Mr. Santolla likes to occasionally over indulge in guitar solos. While guitar fanatics may not consider this to be a problem, it does, in some cases, detract from the songs’ flow. Occasionally, a rather lengthy solo breaks up a catchy hook-laden chorus. This is especially true on “Love Is Like Oxygen,” where the listener might wonder if the track will ever end. It seems that the most memorable Melodic Hard Rock songs in history (e.g., “In My Dreams” by Dokken) all tend to contain rather short and sweet guitar solos. While certainly not an ear sore, Santolla’s occasional over indulgence tends to break that mold of success. This occasionally ruins what might have possibly been a memorable song that left us wanting more from the guitar solo.

Bottom line, this Best Of release is a nice slab of catchy, Melodic Hard Rock that will please Hard Rock fans as well as guitar lovers everywhere. The unreleased material, some in demo form, is presented professionally and could easily make the final cut of any current Melodic Rock album out there. As an aside, thankfully, vocalist Todd Plant, who toured for a while with ex-members of the Doobie Brothers, has reunited with Ralph Santolla and Shane French for a new forthcoming Millenium album entitled Jericho. We should all wait for this next Millenium release with bated breath, at least one Crew member will!

Lineup

Vocals: Todd Plant, Jorn Lande
Guitars: Ralph Santolla
Drums: Oliver Hanson
Bass: Manfred Binder, Wayne Koho, Steve Hodson
Keys: Ralph Santolla, Don Airey, Dag Stokke
Rhythm Guitar: Shane French
Production: Various