Written by James Gaden
June 06, 2010
Second solo album from the Crystal Ball vocalist.
In 2007, Crystal Ball vocalist Mark Sweeney released his debut solo album, �Slow Food�, a venture that was a strong collaboration with ex-Jaded Heart singer Michael Bormann, who co-wrote many of the songs as well as producing. Three years later, Mark has recorded his new solo album �All In�, which sees him this time take on the vast majority of the song-writing himself, and hooking up with Casanova/Mad Max singer/guitarist Michael Voss in the producer�s chair.
As Mark himself explains in the liner notes, he has a love of both melodic hard rock and metal, and the title of the album is deliberately representative of that ethos as all styles are gathered here. Mainly though, it�s the melodic/AOR side that is presented, although be warned - get to the last track without reading the liner notes and you�ll think you�re listening to a totally different album! �Demons� here is listed as a bonus track, but is a rampant metal workout that would easily grace any Crystal Ball album, and features the dual talents of Jorg Michael on drums and Stefan Kaufmann on guitar.
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Elsewhere the album is essentially a �pick-n-mix� collection of emotive ballads and commercial rockers, with my favourites being the two Michael Voss co-writes: �Why Do You Hate Me�, with it�s Johnny Lima style spunkyness and upbeat catchy chorus, and the slower, more intense but equally melodic and enjoyable �Too Late�. Meanwile, �Gimme a Sign� is a cool Casanova style rocker and �Another Day� reminds me a little of commercial Ten circa �Babylon�.
There are two duets on the album: �Leave it all Behind� featuring Offspring�s Pearl, which comes across like some overblown Disney soundtrack presentation, and �Moments�, an altogether cooler ballad which is lifted by Robin Beck�s impassioned vocal performance.
Biggest disappointment has to be �Stare at the Sun�, a flat, lacklustre track co-written with Mark�s Crystal Ball partner-in-crime, guitarist Scott Leach. I really would have expected much better from the pair than this damp squib.
However, the main purpose of this CD is obviously to present another side of Mark Sweeney to the fans, and in that respect, it succeeds admirably. Just watch out for that bonus track, ha ha!!
Bruce Mee