ROB MORATTI – Victory

Another flag has been raised in the name of ’80s AOR music. Since this Rock subgenre took such a hard blow to the head in the mid ’90s as it faded, it logically would take older icons to cause its re-emergence. Rob Moratti, known from his own Moratti band, Final Frontier, and from a recent stint in Saga, has made the ’80s AOR dream come true once again. With heavy duty members such as Reb Beach (Guitars), Tony Franklin (Bass), and his old Saga drummer, Brian Doerner, one of the greatest voices in AOR has sent out a shout of Victory.

This debut album can be looked at in various ways. AOR fans will adore it as it amazingly fits within the ’80s standards, even though it was quite evident that Moratti kept the rather normal pattern of making a ’80s AOR album. Yet, there are some notable differences that should be mentioned. First of all, not every AOR band had a guitarist reaching the caliber of Reb Beach or a bass player of the likes of Tony Franklin. Both, especially Beach, blazed with high altitude solo moments of pure passion and emotion, which elevated everything this great vocalist has to offer. Second, Victory rocks in ways that ’80s Hard Rock did and isn’t strictly an AOR album. In general, Victory might be banal in a way, yet its players gave it a touch of unique musicianship and style to slightly differentiate it from the numerous other AOR examples.

As it was expected right from the beginning, Victory is not less that catchy and is an easy listening experience. However, some of the greatest songs on this album weren’t just great because they reminded of the past; rather it was because they went overboard to sound special and a little more exciting. “On And On” is an AOR track with a cool sense of Hard Rock complexity. Reb Beach killed with such an addictive solo that makes one wonder why those kinds of solos aren’t on display in his Whitesnake endeavors. Why let Doug Aldrich take all the credit? “Everything But Good Bye” and “Jennie” were equally as catchy as the former, yet on these it was Moratti time. Damn, but this guy has such a strong voice… altogether full of depth and emotions. Although there have been many other AOR vocalists that follow the same voice pattern, Moratti had those young Bernie Shaw affiliations that made him special.

It is good to have Moratti on the AOR horse once again, and on this project it felt that everything was genuinely his. His debut is a true Victory in the name of class. Although some might feel the musical direction is a bit cliché, it is hard to run away from what truly sounds good to the ear and if the ’80s style is involved, then so much the better.

Tracklist

1. Life On The Line
2. Everything But Good Bye
3. Lifetime
4. Power Of Love
5. Hold That Light
6. On And On
7. Take It All Back
8. I Promise You
9. Standing On The Top Of The World
10. Jennie
11. Now More Than Ever

Lineup

Rob Moratti – Vocals
Reb Beach – Guitars
Tony Franklin – Bass
Brian Doerner – Drums