Hailing from Thessaloniki  in Greece, No Turning Back has been some four years in the making for melodic hard rock band Redrum and features none other than former Jaded Heart frontman Michael Bormann on vocals with Borman also partly responsible for the mixing and mastering of the CD.

Now 2007 has, in my humble opinion,been rather a poor year as far as straight ahead melodic hard rock albums go. Indeed the highlights have been few and far between with one of the stand out releases being from Mr. Bormann's former band Jaded Heart with their latest album Sinister Mind. However playing both the Jaded Heart and this Redrum release back to back I find myself preferring No Turning Back as it is more melodic in nature and is very much in the vein of a heavier early Bon Jovi/Bonfire, with lots of more modern melodic metal overtones. Just as Bormann caped 2006 with his excellent Conspiracy solo album he, along with his Greek colleagues have rounded out 2007 on a high note  and put a smile back on this jaded melodic rockers face.

Opener Rise up is a definite highlight of the album, fooling the listener with its slow opening before turning to driven power rocker. Elsewhere other highlights include Heart to Heart which features a cool neo classical keyboard intro before turning into an excellent Bon Jovi style rocker circa their New Jerseyera. Likewise the Judgement day Is another of the standard out tracks and Rock Nation is definitely big fun with its shout along hooks, with more than a hint of Thin Lizzy. Finally Ready For The Big Ones, which is reminiscent of a heavy Warrant closes the album in fine style.

Although I’ve praised Michael Bormann so far,  he’s only part of the story here. Guitarists Athan 'Lyssa' Kazakis and Panos Baxevanis are very much the driving force behind No Turning Back, having produced the album to very high standards it has to be said and co-writing all of the material ether together or with Bormann. As an album No Turning Back is easily recommended to any fan of melodic hard rock in general and will no doubt appeal in particular to fans of Jaded Heart and Bormann himself. If there is anything negative at all about this release is perhaps it is in the band name, and branding of the outfit. Red Rum is not a name that trips easily off the tongue when it comes to a band. In English at least the name refers to either a drink or very famous race horse and this album is no old nag that’s for certain - somehow a better name may well help the album appeal more and certainly be easier to market. Now all we need are some live shows!

Let us know your views on No Turning Back

Track Listing

Rise Up
No Turning Back
Thirsty For Love
Heart To Heart
Judgment Day
Innocent
Lonely Days
Rock Nation
You Are Unusable
To Good To Be True
Overpower
Ready For The Big Ones

Line Up

Athan 'Lyssa' Kazakis - Guitars
Panos Baxevanis - Guitars
Michael Bormann - Vocals
Billy Topalides - Bass
Thanos Sarketzis - Drums