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PRIME TIME
FREE THE DREAM
Frontiers Records FRCD 070
Produced by: Prime Time
Released: Feb. 26 / Website
Closest Relative: Pangea, Royal Hunt
GENRE: AOR
OVERALL: 80%

  1. Hanging On
  2. I'm Coming Home
  3. Until Tonight
  4. The New You
  5. Free The Dream
  6. You Still Belong
  7. Forever You & I
  8. Spanish Fly (Inst.)
  9. Garden Of Eden
  10. Scorned

This is Prime Time's third album, but my first taste of the guys.
The guys are jointly from Denmark and Holland and are most definitely from the European pomp school of AOR delivery with subtle leanings towards the more progressive side.
The guitars are in there, but it's primarily the vocals and keyboards that drive this record. They are both big and commanding, making this album a true delight for the pomp and prog rock inclined.
This album could be best described as being really pleasant!
Now that can obviously be a kiss of death in some circumstances, but this album, in the very best possible way is really nice and polite in it's delivery.
It's possibly the fairly soft or feminine vocals that give this album a softer edge than what a deeper or rougher voice would bring.
But the record works tremendously well as it is. had the vocals been different, I am sure the song wouldn't work as well. As a package, the songs are very high quality and the album is a great listen.
The New You and Hanging On show the guys can play at fast and aggressive pace, with keyboards swirling over the place, it's top notch pomp AOR.
Forever You & I shows the guys are quite capable of a cool lead guitar break, then bust into a big harmony chorus that could only be described as 'sweet'!! It reminds me a little of 80's European act Time Bandits. Good strong hooks and melodies, with a soft delivery.
Then there is tracks like I'm Coming Home, which in all honesty are such fine pieces of melodic bliss, they should attract the attention of most fans of soft rock AOR.
The title track Free The Dream is another great example of swirling keyboards, multiple harmony layers and softly sung, but strong lead vocals.
BOTTOM LINE: The album is most definitely European in musical flavor and in their epic keyboard style there are some touches of Asia and Ten, but also the lighter side of Royal Hunt.
The most important thing is the high quality of songwriting, making this one of the better pure pomp AOR albums I have heard in the last few years.
Highly recommended for those that love keyboards and European AOR.
PRODUCTION: 85% SONGS: 80% VIBE: 75%ATTITUDE: 80%
ESSENTIAL FOR: Fans of pomp AOR, keyboards and the European AOR genre.
DISCOGRAPHY:The Unknown . The Miracle . Free The Dream



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