Night Ranger – Hole In The Sun (CD)

Night Ranger has always seemed to be a band that never got to that highest level of popularity, despite having such hair metal classics as “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” and “Sister Christian”. “Hole In The Sun” showcases the band’s ability to create good hard rock. This is first evidenced during the introductory track to “Hole In The Sun”, “Tell Your Vision”. The grit and grind that is present in the track works well as a counterpoint for the vocals, which tie the older hair metal genre closely to the grunge of a Soundgarden. “Drama Queen” follows up “Tell Your Vision”, and it is a track that takes quite a few seconds to get started.

After the act begins to hurtle forward to the chorus, listeners can then realize that Night Ranger has another hit on their hand. “Drama Queen” has a little more of an AC/DC influence to it, but the overall sound of the track still conforms quite well to the previous works of Night Ranger. The entirety of “Hole In The Sun” is strong, but I wonder if the act could not have cut out one or two tracks from the (including the bonus tracks) fourteen song album. Regardless, all one needs to do is to listen to a track like “You’re Gonna Hear From Me” to understand that after twenty years (or abouts) being a band, Night Ranger can still craft a rock song that is heavy, is catchy, and will be on the lips and in the minds of anyone that has had the luck to hear the track. For those individuals that wish tko hear how the current version of Night Ranger varies in style and substance from the Night Ranger that did “(You Can Still) Rock In America”, the band has included to bonus acoustic tracks of their biggest hits – “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” and “Sister Christian”.

“Whatever” is an interesting track in that it shows Night Ranger attempting to go into an alternative type of rock, tying bands like Weezer and Franz Ferdinand to Boston and Styx. The end result is a curiosity, for sure, but it seems like the track’s execution is a little bit on the weak side. Still, Night Ranger has come back strongly with their “Hole In The Sun”, and I would recommend “Hole In The Sun” to anyone that liked hard rock generally and Night Ranger specifically.

Top Tracks: Hole In The Sun, White Knuckle Ride

Rating: 7.0/10

Night Ranger – Hole In The Sun / 2008 VH1 Classic / 12 Tracks / http://www.nightranger.com / http://www.vh1classic.com /