FREDDIE NELSON – Shake The Cage

  • 8.5/10
    FREDDIE NELSON - Shake the Cage - 8.5/10
8.5/10

Summary

Independent
Release date: June 23, 2017

Sending
User Review
10/10 (1 vote)

Freddie Nelson, following up on his successful collaboration with Paul Gilbert on United States, brings us a new, well-polished release of Hard Rock blended with elements of Pop and Hair Metal on Shake The Cage. This 11 track collection of Heavy Pop Rock features Nelson on both guitar and vocals. The band is rounded out by Nina Sainato on keyboards, and fellow Paul Gilbert collaborator Thomas Lang on drums.

The highlight of Shake The Cage has to be Nelson’s superb vocals. This is not to say the rest of album and production is lacking, far from it, but Nelson’s crystal clear, pitch perfect delivery leaves little room left in the spotlight. His voice would be right at home singing Boston classics or perhaps the more stratospheric tracks from Triumph. The production of the album is excellent, although varied. A gamut of guitar tones are used, ranging from metal to clean blues. Nicely placed Hammond B3 tones fill out the spectrum nicely while leaving space for the multi-layered vocals. With a high-profile project like United States in his discography, Nelson seems to be well placed to make an impact with his solo work. Fortunately for him, Shake The Cage is an excellent product with which he can represent his solo abilities.

While Shake The Cage may not be the best fit for the hardcore metalhead crowd, any listeners who appreciate the melodic sensibilities of 70s Rock or Blues based Hard Rock with Pop leanings, will be thrilled with these tracks. The songs are overwhelmingly melodic, catchy, and seemingly heartfelt. Considering these songs are from a single songwriter, this is an impressive achievement and places this album on the must-have list of album for fans of solid, guitar driven Rock.

Author

  • Maxxxwell Carlisle

    Maxxxwell was a reviewer and the host of The Maxed Out Metal Hour here on Metal Express Radio. He is the current lead guitarist for LA based metal veterans Hellion. In addition to his ongoing role in Hellion, he has also released 5 albums as a solo artist and appeared as a guest writer and soloist on Michael Angelo Batio's Intermezzo album, named one of the Top 5 shred albums of 2014 by Guitar World Magazine. He continues to collaborate with various Metal musicians and teaches guitar technique and Metal composition via Skype. Additionally, he is a former competitive bodybuilder and enjoys a lifestyle based around health, fitness and Metal.

    View all posts

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.