Joe Lynn Turner - Belly Of The Beast review
| Band: | Joe Lynn Turner |
| Album: | Belly Of The Beast |
| Style: | Hard rock |
| Release date: | October 2022 |
01. Belly Of The Beast
02. Black Sun
03. Tortured Soul
04. Rise Up
05. Dark Night Of The Soul
06. Tears Of Blood
07. Desire
08. Don't Fear The Dark
09. Fallen World
10. Living The Dream
11. Requiem
In an unlikely turn of events, Peter Tägtgren produced a metal album for an overlooked classic hard rock singer.
Joe Lynn Turner is a name that most of us probably stumbled upon quite a lot of times, having been a vocalist for bands like Deep Purple, Rainbow, and Yngwie Malmsteen. However, you probably won't have a lot of people who would consider Turner their favorite vocalist that those projects ever had, especially considering how he only did one album with two of the aforementioned, with his Rainbow albums being his best received of the bunch. I haven't exactly followed what Turner has been up to outside of these bands, so I haven't really checked that project he did with Glenn Hughes, nor Sunstorm, and I've only skimmed through his solo Joe Lynn Turner stuff to unsurprisingly find 80s-ish AOR/Hard Rock that just barely sometimes borders on heavy metal.
So, you can guess why Belly Of The Beast comes as a bit of a surprise. It is, to my limited knowledge, the only Turner album I could unquestionably call metal. Even if it does have its hard rock moments, it has little of the cheesy sap of 80s AOR. More that hard rock, this leans towards power metal, with Turner's vocals still feeling very powerful in his 70s, and the orchestral flair of the music certainly helping that power metal vibe coming along. However Tägtgren's production comes along more than just in the symphonic flairs and the heavy distortion in the guitars, with the industrial-ish processed drums not entirely a sound that merges well with the rest of the sound.
Some Rainbow seeps into "Black Sun", instantly making that one a highlight. As weird as it is for the hard rock-ish moment to feel like a highlight in an album that I lauded and set apart for its heaviness, Belly Of The Beast is the kind of album I appreciate more in concept. I'm not sure how much thought I'd give this album if I didn't already know who Joe Lynn Turner was, and as great of a vocalist as he still is, I don't really find much that is especially distinctive about him as a vocalist. Couple that with the weird production choices, and the cringeworthy conspiratorial lyrics, creates a bit of a frustrating listen.
That said, taking a hard rock singer and making him do a metal album is still such a cool concept. What's next? Bon Jovi and Alex Staropoli? Steven Tyler and Matt Heafy? David Coverdale and Nergal? The possibilities are endless.
 | Written on 04.11.2022 by Doesn't matter that much to me if you agree with me, as long as you checked the album out. |
Comments
Comments: 6
Visited by: 107 users
| nikarg Staff Posts: 7074  |
Yeah "Black Sun" is easily the best track. I generally expected this album to be worse than it actually is. Not great, of course, but not dreadful either. Joe sounds pretty good despite his age. He also looks exactly like Xerxes in the film 300.
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| RaduP CertifiedHipster Staff Posts: 8642  |
Written by nikarg on 05.11.2022 at 13:38  Here he is, just in case somebody thinks we're exaggerating.
---- Do you think if the heart keeps on shrinking One day there will be no heart at all?
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| A Real Mönkey Posts: 876  |
He looks like the titular king from The King and I.
---- "Change the world. My final message. Goodbye." ~Last words of Harambe, seconds before he was shot, according to child he shielded from gunfire
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| Bad English Tage Westerlund Posts: 61081  |
Written by RaduP on 05.11.2022 at 13:44 Wow guy from mumie trilogy... That endless combinations would be cool if they happen for real.
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''  apos;'[image] I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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| ScreamingSteelUS Editor-in-Chief Admin Posts: 5684  |
I'd guess that I enjoyed this a little more than you, but yeah, I think I was hoping for something more exciting than it really is - I have also never found much particularly remarkable about Turner's voice, as skilled of a singer as he is, and it was kind of jarring sometimes hearing a very Tägtgren lick or tone muscling through. I found it consistent and pleasant and I wouldn't mind at all if he continued putting out albums like this, but I don't think I'm likely to come back to it. In concept and execution it comes out pretty similar to those recent Dee Snider albums, though a little more rock-oriented and, I would say, not *quite* as successful. And even Corpsegrinder, since it's the same idea of a younger-generation metal producer procuring a solo album for a respected vocalist of a different scene. I admit that I would be very curious to hear a Jon Bon Jovi/Alex Staropoli collaboration. Next time you interview one of them, ask.
---- "Earth is small and I hate it" - Lum Invader I'm the Agent of Steel.
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| JoHn Doe Posts: 4900  |
JLT trying new things at 70 years old  . A bit strange although I can respect that he's trying new things at least, not playing it safe (although again, a little too late). As for his alopecia - there were rumors for years he was bald. He recently said in an interview he was mocked early on for losing his hair, that's why he's hidden it for so long. Also there's the classic rocker, long hair image... Oh well...
---- I thought the two primary purposes for the internet were cat memes and overreactions.
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