Stephen
Almost ten years in silence, MECCA finally released their sophomore record, 'Undeniable', which received mix opinions from AOR community. Some call it their best, half of them call it pretty worthless. I suspect people that don't like it probably because it's kinda overhyped with nothing's new and kinda softer than the debut. I must agree that it's not really great as some has stated, but there are great moments here, an undeniable fact.
'Perfect World' and 'Closing Time' are pretty decent but 'Ten Lifetimes' brought up the momentum. Ironically, it's not an uptempo tune, it's a slow one, but the song is just so moving, and the solo is very nice. 'Life's Too Short' is unique with a spoken verse like a motown song, the chorus is good, but 'I Know' and 'Did It For Love' strike better. The latter reminds me a lot to TOTO and among my personal fave.
On the second half, the quality is still maintained and my pick is 'Deceptive Decadence', a great piano-driven track, lengthy, and similar to some songs in SLAMER's 'Nowhere Land'. 'As I Walk Alone' is very mellow, almost westcoast like, probably not suitable for fans of rock, but this made such an awesome midnight song.
Joe Vana's vocal is amazing, the production is also nice and smooth, but one thing that you need to pay attention is that it's a pure AOR record, with a little hint of hard rock in some songs, so people expecting heavier music should stay away, but for those who's looking for a sanctuary in the dead of the night, 'Undeniable' is a good option