You may not immediately recognize his name, but you will almost certainly recognize his voice. Ed Kowalczyk was the vocalist and frontman of the extremely popular and phenomenally successful modern rock band Live; a band that completely dominated the airwaves during the 90’s.
Fast forward a few years and Kowalczyk has ventured out on his own releasing his debut solo effort Alive. As in the past, once these tunes hit the airwaves I feel that Kowalczyk will do quite well with this disc. Yeah, it is your standard collection of modern rock/adult oriented rock, but there is also something about it that gives it a multi-generational appeal. Maybe it’s the finely crafted songs with incredibly catchy hooks and choruses or maybe it is the top-notch vocal performances turned in by Kowalczyk. Whatever the case, once this disc gets noticed I fully expect to see it climbing the charts.
There are no real surprises here though, Alive is exactly what you would expect from Kowalczyk; an enjoyable collection of rock songs that are destined for tons of airplay on top 40 and adult contemporary radio stations all across the country. The whole record has that sort of big commercial feel about it. Alive sounds fantastic and very polished, almost to the point of glossiness, similar to his previous releases and exactly what you would expect from a record in this genre.
I don’t really feel that Alive is too much of a departure from his earlier work with Live but hell, why change something that works and works really well. Bottom line, Alive is a solid modern rock disc that fans of the genre will absolutely dig.
Track Listing:
01. Drive
02. The Great Beyond
03. Grace
04. Stand
05. Drink (Everlasting Love)
06. Zion
07. In Your Light
08. Just In Time
09. Rome
10. Soul Whispers
11. Fire On The Mountain
Run Time: 40:08
Release Date: 07.06.2010
