Bridger is the new melodic hard rock band put together by Head East lead guitarist Glen Bridger, and also features vocalist Terry Ilous (XYZ, Great White), bassist Greg Manahan (Head East), drummer Danzoid, and keyboard player Sam McCaslin (MSG, Carmine Appice). With a glossy production, plenty of hooks, and tasty playing, Bridger is a solid debut from this new band, showing that anthemic hard rock is still alive and well.
Comparisons to Mr. Big, Great White, Extreme, and Journey will easily be heard as you run through the 10 original songs here, and there are some memorable tracks, like "How Long", "In the Ledge", the powerful "Don't Push Me", and the ballsy "Gonna Get Better". However, there are simply way too many ballads here that have a 'been there heard that' feel to them, like "Tuesday Afternoon", "Without a Sound", "Once in a Lifetime", "Free", and "Good to Be Home", so much so that after a few trips through the CD you get the impression that the band seems more comfortable on the mellower material. That's a shame as these guys can rock when the song calls for it, but for the most part they choose not to. Glen Bridger is a tasty player, but I was left wanting to hear more of his meaty riffs and flashy solos. He is all over the tribute to Ronnie James Dio on "Heaven and Hell", which is also a great vehicle for singer Ilous, but too often the guitarist holds himself back throughout much of the CD.
Despite all that, this debut from Bridger shows some promise. The songwriting and the musicianship is there, but I'm hoping the next time around they can break away from the more ballad oriented fare and flex their muscles a bit.
Track Listing
01. Tuesday Afternoon
02. How Long
03. On the Ledge
04. Don't Push Me
05. Without a sound
06. Free
07. Live for the Moment
08. Good to be Home
09. Gonna Get Better
10. Once in a Lifetime
11. Heaven and Hell (tribute to Ronni James Dio)
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