http://www.stormbringer.at/specials.php?sp=20120108_crew&cid=74
Rob Moratti - no stranger to insiders, he was a few years of the successor to Michael Sadler at the Canadian legend SAGA. After his return to the exceptional singer focused on his solo career, which already includes two CDs. Previously, he was a singer and songwriter with his band and then MORATTI frontman of the successful, particularly in Canada and Japan, FINAL FRONTIER band.
Now is his latest album, "Victory" in front and keep - you can already tell in advance - what the line-up promises:
Rob Moratti - Lead and backing vocals (Moratti, Final Frontier, Saga)
Reb Beach - Lead Guitars (Winger, Whitesnake).
Christian Wolff - Lead Guitars, Rhythm Guitars and Keyboards
Tony Franklin - bass (Blue Murder, The Firm)
Fredrik Bergh - Keyboards
Brian Doerner - Drums (Helix, Saga)
Rob talks about his best and most personal album. I can only agree: Melodic Rock at its best, eleven brilliant songs that impress from start to finish and immediately settle in the ear canals. Well produced (by the master himself - the mix comes from Richard Chycki [Rush, Aerosmith, Gotthard, Pink]) and implemented by the excellent musicians.
Fans of FINAL FRONTIER OF GROOVE, early NIGHT RANGER, UNRULY CHILD SLAUGHTER and it is driving these melodies and hooks, the tears of joy in their eyes. Boredom is never announced, but the Canadians surprised with grandiose melodies, varied tempo changes and the right mix of rocking numbers and midtempo songs. With the ballad "Now More Than Ever" sounds from a work that will be among the "CDs of the year" in this genre, then you want only one thing. Immediately press the repeat button.
Highlights wants and I can not mention, this is the album to be compact. Conclusion: smooth victory for "Victory" and five melodic gems for Rob Moratti.
Rating: 5.0 out of 5.0
Author: Manfred (30 June 2011)
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August 27 / 2011
rockreport.be
Canadian vocalist Rob Moratti made a clear round so far: two albums for Moratti in the second half of the 90s, four albums for Final Frontier in the first half of the 00s and more recently: two albums for Saga, the studio album “The Human Condition” (2009) and the live album “Heads Or Tales Live” (2011). As we all know by now, Rob is no longer fronting Saga and that gave him the opportunity to write and record this fantastic solo album, called “Victory”. To come up with an impressive album, Rob gathered some of the best songwriters and musicians. Knowing that everything starts with strong songs, he invited two excellent songwriters in the persons of Christian Wolff and Fredrik Bergh. Both also join him as musicians, next to Reb Beach (Winger, Whitesnake), Tony Franklin (Blue Murder, The Firm) and Brian Doerner (Saga). The result can only be described as stunning: all songs are super catchy, with strong melodies and choruses and the production is also fingerlickin’ good. Responsible for that is none other than Rob Moratti himself, while Richard Chycki (Aerosmith, Gotthard, Rush) mixed the record. Listening to the album it’s obvious that there was a lot of chemistry among the writers/musicians involved. Listening tips include both openers “Life On The Line” & “Everything But Goodbye”, “Hold That Light”, “Take It All Back” and “Standing On Top Of The World”. A clear winner for Rob and hopefully the start of a brilliant solo career. Let’s see what the future will bring for him.
Written by (CL)
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August 11/2011
powerofmetal.dk
Canada got more than hockeyplayers and curling teams, they got a great rock tradition. Triumph, Helix, Lee Aaron, Anvil, Frank Marion and this singer Rob Moratti. Mr Moratti is for me one of the best lead singers in the AOR/Hard Rock's epithet and one of the most underrated. Listen to any of Final Frontiers 4 albums and you'll understand what I meen. I enjoyed his contribution on SAGA's record "The Human Condition" too, but he left them for different reasons, so when I got this soloalbum to review, I didn't really know what to expect.
And, yes this is even better than I could imagine and he delivers brilliant Melodic Rock. Rob's got a world-class lineup behind him with veterans in this habit. Reb Beach (Winger/Whitesnake) guitars, Christian Wolff guitars, Tony Franklin (Blue Murder/The Firm) bass , Fredrik Bergh (Street Talk) Keyboards and ex-Saga drummer Brian Doerner. From the first track to the last it's high class in every song, so I can't choose any special track to be my favourite. If you are a fan of melodic rock music with clean, tight sound, perfection in the production, with good guitar playing and great vocal performance, then this is the summer album you should spend your money on.
…...........................................................................................................August 11 / 2011
melodicrock.com
Canadian singer/songwriter Rob Moratti has officially now “been around the block”, with his fan-appreciated Final Frontier releases and an all too short stint fronting prog legends Saga.
Regrouping after leaving Saga, Rob delivers his first ever solo album, which understandably is not a great leap from the style of Final Frontier.
However, where Rob does take a great leap is the quality of this record over his past releases. This is a noticeable jump in songwriting, performance and especially production. This is a great sounding melodic rock record, backed by a powerhouse band.
Reb Beach handles lead guitars; Christian Wolff Rhythm and Lead; Frederik Berg handles keyboards; Tony Franklin is there on bass and Brian Doerner on drums. That's a lot of talent on one CD.
The production is terrific, with the set self-produced by Rob and mixed and mastered by Richard Chycke (Rush, Pink, Aerosmith).
Then there are the songs. They aren't always just straight up AOR or melodic rock. There are some twists and turns and added production effects to modernize the sound a little, but at all times the soul of the album remains true to that old-school style.
Highlights are of course numerous. From the opening drive of Life On The Line, to the over the top AOR vocals on Everything But Goodbye, to the warmth of the slower melodic rock ballad Lifetime.
Power Of Love dips back into the 80s and Final Frontier's core sound with keyboards everywhere.
Hold That Light has that Journey 80s feel, while On And On has a moodier, darker tone and is more guitar driven.
Take It All Back is a great rock ballad with mood and style in spades.
The next few tracks offer a bright, uplifting passage of music before the more urgent Jennie breaks the run.
The closing track is the big ballad Now More Than Ever.
Andrew McNeice rates Victory 93/100
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WERTUNG: 10 von 10
Manchmal ist die Trennung von der Stammband gar nicht mal das Schlimmste und führt sogar zu kreativen und musikalischen Höchstleistungen. Im Falle des Sängers ROB MORATTI (ex FINAL FRONTIER und SAGA) kann der geneigte Musikliebhaber von einem Glücksfall sprechen, dass MICHAEL SADLER(SAGA Sänger) sich dazu entschlossen hat, zu der Gruppe zurückzukehren. Im ersten Moment war dies für ROB, der ihn in der Zwischenzeit ersetzte und auf „Human Condition“ (2009) eine grandiose Leistung ablieferte, mit Sicherheit eine bittere Pille, aber er hat sich schnell wieder berappelt, die Chance genutzt und präsentiert uns mit „Victory“ eines der besten AOR/ Melodic Rock Alben des Jahres.
Der Kanadier war auch schon vor seinem Engagement bei SAGA recht erfolgreich in der Rockszene unterwegs und veröffentlichte unter dem Bandnamen MORATTI die Alben „Desolation“ (1995) und „Legends Of Tomorrow“ (1997). Anschließend schloss er sich der neu formierten Gruppe von MLADEN (VON GROOVE, TRIUMPH, 24K etc.) an und gehörte er zu den Eckpfeilern von FINAL FRONTIER. In dieser fruchtbaren, gemeinsamen Zeit entstanden 4 Alben, die dem AOR/ Melodic Rock Genre zuzuordnen sind.
Für sein drittes Soloalbum lud sich der kanadische Ausnahmesänger eine hochkarätige Mannschaft ins Studio ein, die ihn tatkräftig unterstützte.
Mit dabei waren:
Reb Beach – Gitarre (WINGER, WHITESNAKE).
Christian Wolff – Gitarre und Keyboards
Tony Franklin - Bass (BLUE MURDER, THE FIRM)
Fredrik Bergh – Keyboards (STREET TALK)
Brian Doerner - Schlagzeug (SAGA)
„Victory“ bietet bis auf das letzte Haar perfekt durcharrangierten AOR/ Melodic Rock, welcher Erinnerungen an FOREIGNER, TOTO, JOURNEY und STYX aufkommen lässt. Er knüpft musikalisch dort an, wo er mit seinen Soloscheiben und den FINAL FRONTIER Outputs aufgehört hat. Ihm gelingt es, den typischen Flair des '80er Jahre Melodic Rock ins Jahr 2011 zu transportieren, ohne das die Scheibe altbacken und bieder klingt. Erstklassig ist auch die Produktion der Scheibe, welche von ihm und RICHARD CHYCKI (u.a. RUSH, AEROSMITH und GOTTHARD) durchgeführt wurde. Die Scheibe kommt mit mächtig viel Druck und glasklar durch die Speaker. Das ist schon einmal der erste Pluspunkt, den MORATTI auf der Habenseite verbuchen kann. Die Mitmusiker des Kanadiers sind alle Profis mit super Fähigkeiten an ihren Instrumenten, sprich es gibt nichts zu mäkeln. Hier wird nicht weichgespült, geplüscht oder gar ein klebriger und schwülstiger Sound fabriziert, sondern gerockt was das Zeug hält. Der feine Rock, den uns die Mannen präsentieren, wird mit einer Menge Spielfreude und einer gehörigen Portion Power vorgetragen. Besonders REB BEACH sticht mit seinem Gitarrenspiel hervor. Seine Gitarre dominiert den Gesamtsound und er setzt seine Fähigkeiten absolut im Dienste der Band ein. ROB selbst liefert eine erstklassige Leistung ab und seine kraftvolle, warme und klare Stimme erkennt man unter Hundert sofort wieder. Also auch hier folgen weitere Pluspunkte für „Victory“. Wie sieht es mit dem Material/ Songwriting aus? Nun ja, die Songs, wie kann es auch anders sein, sind die pure Perfektion und lassen keine Ungereimtheiten/ Schwächen durchschimmern. MORATTI hat beim Schreiben der Songs wirklich alles berücksichtigt, was einen guten Track ausmacht. Tolle Hooklines, Melodien und Refrains die schnell ins Ohr gehen zeichnen diesen Longplayer aus.
Das Album beginnt gleich mit einem Paukenschlag, denn „Life On The Line“ bietet einen 1A AOR Rocker. Der Song kann es ganz locker mit dem Material des neuen JOURNEY Outputs aufnehmen. Es geht auch gleich mit einem weiteren Hammer weiter. Bei „Everything But Good Bye“ fällt besonders BEACH's tolles Gitarrenspiel auf und ROB singt sehr kraftvoll und mit einer Hingabe, die so manchen Möchtegernsänger verstummen lässt. Besonders stark ist seine Stimme bei dem catchy Refrain. Totale Granate! Das ruhigere „Life Time“ erinnert mich ein bisschen an die Großtaten der göttlichen STYX. BEACH überzeugt durch ein sehr gefühlvolles und warmes Spiel. Die erstklassigen Gesangs/Background Harmonien und die Melodieführung sorgen dafür, dass ich eine Gänsehaut bekomme. Einen richtigen Eighties Flair versprüht „Power Of Love“. Parallelen zu Songs der erfolgreicheren JOURNEY Phase sind nicht von der Hand zu weisen. Weiter geht es mit dem typischen AOR Rocker „Hold That Light“, der einen tollen Bridge enthält und REB BEACH sich austoben kann. Ein Song, der sich bei mir zu einem Ohrwurm entwickelt hat, ist „On And On“. Es geht ein bisschen kerniger zur Sache und dieser Teufelskerl an der Gitarre liefert wieder eine atemberaubende Arbeit an der Sechssaiten ab. Das Solo ist einfach nicht zu beschreiben! Für mich stellt der Track, der mich ein bisschen an FOREIGNER erinnert, das absolute Highlight dar. Mit der Ballade „Take It All Back“ schafft die Band es, die selige Arena Rock Stimmung zu entfachen und imaginär sehe ich, wie hunderte von Feuerzeuge in Richtung Himmel gestreckt werden. Ein weiteres Highlight, welches sich bei mir in der Ohrmuschel festsetzt, ist „Standing On The Top Of The World“. Es ist einfach unbeschreiblich wie gut MORATTI bei diesem Song klingt. Einzig die kurze Sequenz, bei der seine Stimme elektronisch verzehrt wird, gefällt mir persönlich nicht so gut.
Wer weiß, ob „Victory“ erschienen wäre, wenn ROB weiterhin bei SAGA das Mikro geschwungen hätte. Vermutlich wäre es zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt erschienen und er hätte sich auf die Arbeit mit der Hauptband konzentriert. Tja, und der AOR/ Melodic Rock Aficionado hätte noch länger auf diesen superben Output warten müssen.
Wie sage ich es immer so schön: Alles hat seinen Sinn und ich persönlich bin glücklich darüber, dass es so gelaufen ist, denn sonst wäre mir eines der besten Scheiben aus dem Genre, vorerst verwehrt geblieben.
Wer auf phantastischen, erdigen und ehrlichen Rock steht, welcher auch ab und zu an die Ära von Gruppen wie JOURNEY, FOREINGER und STYX erinnert, muss hier unbedingt zugreifen! Hier stimmt einfach das Gesamtpaket. Tolle Band, geiler Sänger und phantastische Songs.
Leute, ab zum Plattendealer und das Ding mal ganz lecker in den Einkaufskorb schmeißen! Das Album ist einfach viel zu geil geworden, um in den Regalen zu versauern.
Von mir kann es nur eine Benotung geben! 10 Punkte machen sich auf meinem Rockhimmel breit und mein CD Player tritt eher in den Hungerstreik, bevor er „Victory“ wieder freiwillig ausspuckt.
Goetz 10/10
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metalkaoz.com
Being a major influence for fellow / later bands and artists surely is a good thing, since nice music keeps circulating but also because people influenced by you sometimes produce better albums in a certain period (or the last years - you choose!); AOR giants JOURNEY came up with a new album recently which I did not find entertaining at all. And - on the contrary - ‘cult’ melodic Rock representatives like this charismatic Canadian singer has just unleashed a fistful of breaking tunes in his out-now debut solo album, “Victory”. Kill your idols and support the underground, c’mon…
Rob Moratti is not a household name, that’s for sure, but if you’ve sank your teeth into harmony-friendly pompous AOR/Rock you’ve possible come to meet him as the singer behind bands like VON GROOVE and FINAL FRONTIER, not of course willing to omit his recent participation in the ranks of renowned Canadian pomp rockers SAGA. The first thing I can certainly credit Rob with is his easiness in catching the so-called sky notes; man, he certainly can sing high, reminding a lot of the charisma of the one and only Steve Perry (or - to a lesser extent - Mark/Marcie Free and Tony Mills) without being a cruel imitator at all. Next thing is he does not have such a scope in mind (or at least this is what I think…); Moratti has a throat clad in thinness but his voice finally sounds metallic enough (no, not ‘Metal’ you spike-loaded metalhead) giving the songs this extra something in terms of timbre and harmonia behavior.
The songs themselves are as fine as Rob’s voice, thankfully. In fact “Victory” looks as if it’s a way more than just a good selection of song to fill your hunger with. The melodies are excellent, the rhythm section is simple yet ample and ‘arena’ recorded, giving the whole album a production fortunately fat and not as typical and computerized as the vast majority of e.g. the Frontiers recent catalogue. There’s a variety in tempos here, with fast paced boulevard Rock tunes, mid-tempo shake-your-booty dancing cuts and milder AOR moments. The likes of JOURNEY, FM, SHY or other megatherions of the classic AOR scene are present of course, but Rob proves to be a smart artist not willing to fall in the trap; songs like “Life On The Line”, “Power Of Love”, “Hold That Light”, “Take It All Back” and “Standing On Top Of The World” have their own atmosphere drawn and the final result proves to be more than satisfying.
Looking at the guestlist this is an easy thing to say, now thinking more deeply. When you have Reb Beach (WINGER, WHITESNAKE, DOKKEN) and Tony Franklin (THE FIRM, BLUE MURDER, Glenn Hughes, QUIET RIOT) enlisting their services to your record, there’s no way you can grumble about the musicianship’s status. Reb especially portrays his unlimited talent once again since he always knows when and where to give boost and where to hold back the horses. As for his soloing, just give a listen to the atmosphere he’s inspiring during the awesome ballad called “Take It All Back”…
Yes, yes, yes: “Victory” is the melodic Rock you’ve been dreaming about for this summer. A better than good companion, this first Rob Moratti release shall unarguably haunt your audio system and there’s no serious excuse letting this chance pass by. I did not expect such an exciting high-quality release, I confess. Phew, these Canadians!
Written by Grigoris Chronis
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June 26 / 2011
HEAVY PARADISE
Moratti's victory? I think that with this album the charismatic frontman achieved to reach his best album to date! In "Victory", Moratti collaborated with a bunch of great musicians such as Reb Beach (Winger, Whitesnake) on guitars, Fredrik Berg (Street Talk) on keys, Tony Franklin (Blue Murder, The Firm) on bass and his friend from Saga Brian Doemer on drums. So, with an impressive list of musicians plus the talent of Rob Moratti you can't go wrong with this release!
From the very first notes of the opener tune of "Life On The Line", this album grabs you and leaves you hungry for more!! Great harmonies, catchy chorus lines, clever hooks, inspired guitar riffs and solos and Moratti's amazing vocal lines are the things that you are going to hear in "Victory". I think that Moratti put his heart and soul to record an album that will please every single fan of this gerne and the final result reach the perfection. Reb Beach's guitar work is brilliant and shows why this guitarist is in the world's frontline of guitar players.
The rhythm section is solid and it makes you wonder if this band has been together for a long time! Every single track shines here and there is no filler in sight! If I had to pick my personal five tunes from this album, I'd say that the perfect "Life Time", "Standing On Top of the World", "Hold That Light", the beautiful ballad "I Promise You" and the anthemic tune of "On and On" are my top tracks from this album!
Bottom line is that Moratti achieved to release an album that will make an impact in the melodic rock scene. An album that every single fan will be pleased and will end up among the best top 10 releases in every melodic rock site across the net! Well done Rob!
HEAVY PARADISE RATING 9.5/10
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June 26 / 2011
Hardrockhaven.net
Since his earliest days with his self titled band, Moratti, on through his work with Phenomena, and as well his guest vocals on Tor Talle’s astounding 2005 project, Northern Light and his tenure with Final Frontier and Saga’s 2009 Human Condition, Moratti, has indeed proved himself time and again as one of the great voices of melodic rock. While it is his voice that is the focal point of Victory, note must be given to what is one amazing group of guest musicians – Reb Beach (Winger, Dokken, Whitesnake,) Fredrik Berg (Street Talk, Bloodhound,) Tony Franklin (Quiet Riot, Blue Murder, The Firm) and Brian Doemer (Helix, Saga.)
With a sound firmly planted in AOR, Victory opens with what could have been found on any Final Frontiers release, "Life on the Line," complete with subtle guitar riffs winding their way around the track. Reb Beach proves why he is one of the rock world’s finest guitarists, with solos laying a delectable showing just under the blanket of power chords. Listen as well to the perfect, mid tempo "Life Time," the prog-ish, "Power of Love," the rocking, head nodding "On and On," the grandiose keyboards of "Hold That Light," the gentle "Take It All Back," and with a sound that will remind one of Work of Art or Northern Light is the ballad "I Promise You." Wonderful as well are the incredible drums of "Standing On Top of the World," where Moratti’s voice reaches into the upper octaves, and closing this fantastic release is the piano and lush guitars of "Now More Than Ever."
Moratti seems to have a vocal style that has indeed remained as strong as ever. While age is indeed little more than a number, it has been proven that there are certain vocalists that unfortunately time catches up with and their voice becomes not as strong as it once was. On the complete other sides of the gamut are vocalists who seem to defy such a notion and stay as remarkable as ever – age be damned. Moratti is such a singer.
The sound on Victory is flawless, the musicianship as perfect as one could hope for and overall the sound flows easily from one track to the next. Pleasing on the ears, it is indeed tangible that Rob Moratti poured out his heart and soul on this release, and the end result is exquisite. The musicians play off each other extremely well, knowing their instruments and using them to accentuate certain passages and emotions. The songwriting was seemingly done with care, taking into consideration when to bring into focus a guitar, a keyboard or drum roll and when to pull back. The sentiment heard throughout is solid and real, and as has been said so many times, if the listener can feel of those feelings that the songwriter is trying to express, the result will be a compilation that a listener will want to come back to time and again. This is one of those times.
So…..the "best of" deliberation will surely carry on, but Rob Moratti, with this release, has established himself as one of the great ones, for this, in every way possible, showcases his talent as a lyricist, musician and vocalist. This was truly an unbelievable CD, one that will surely make many top ten lists for 2011.
Written by Franco Cerchiari
Rates "Victory" 9.5/10
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May 22 / 2011
myglobalmind.com
http://myglobalmind.com/2011/05/21/rob-moratti-victory/
What a successful career lead singer Rob Moratti has had since he started singing and officially wrote material for his own band Moratti in the early 90′s. The legendary singer eventually joined the project Final Frontier with songwriting partner Mladen (Von Groove) and together they released 4 very highly thought after albums in the melodic rock circle. I really only got into Moratti’s stuff via the last Final Frontier record “Freelight” which got rave reviews all over the place. His amazing vocal range is something that makes the man something of a legend in these kneck of the woods; and why not? But is not just his great vocal arrangements but rather his versatility, case and point after he joined the legendary Canadian prog rock outfit Saga in 2008, needless to say he fit right in contributing both songwriting and production for Saga’s record “The Human Condition”. I know that particular scenario had to be put through a magnifying glass as it was a bit of a different style for Rob, but from what I have read from longtime Saga fans; he did a great job in that situation.
Needless to say Moratti is no longer in Saga as they have reunited with their original singer Michael Sadler who Rob replaced after he left the band for family reasons. Whatever the up and down band changes and different projects, the man is a heck of a vocalist and I was really looking forward to his new solo CD to see what music direction he decided to vent from his list of repertoires.
My suspicion was right yes he’s back to his natural habitat and here we have a freaking brilliant display of Melodic Hard Rock as only Rob can remit, but wait the line up here is also superb as it consists of veterans of the scene the likes of Reb Beach (Winger / Whitesnake), Tony Franklin (Blue Murder / The Firm), Brian Doerner – Drums (SAGA) as well as Christian Wolff on guitars and Fredrik Bergh on Keyboards. Man is been a while since we had a real good Melodic Rock record seems like,well wait no more because “Victory” is a triumphant return to shape for Rob and company.
Leave it to the pure AOR vibe of “Life On The Line” to teach you how it should be done, with an explosive voice of Moratti breaking through with impeccable originality and style similar to the classic “Lydia” hit from his Final Frontier days. Where to start with the hits here? Another pure melodic rock bliss infuses your engines with “The Power Of Love”; again Rob reaches some grandiose notes and along with some killer riffs leading the way, you have a winner once more. The instrumental solo in “On And On” is yet another highlight in this deep record of arena filled melodic anthems; mad props to both Reb Beach and Christian Wolff for shredding the mind away with this addictive riff they both do a great job on guitars throughout. What’s the point of breaking down each song when all have is plentiful quality to offer to the listener? I have to give some attention to the keyboards by Fredrik Bergh who does a great job of carefully crafting them into each song without making them swallow the song over. “Jennie” adds a nice ballad rush towards the end of the record adding more value to this empowered core.
The end result is aesthetically pleasing and soothing to your ears as Moratti here can naturally hits these notes in his sleep soaring with instillation and feel, a trait only veterans of the genre can reach. What also works here is the super strong musicianship of all the members involved, Beach is excellent as we all know he usually is, the drums are carefully crafted into each melodic tune by Saga drummer Brian Dorner, and the production is pristine; glaring each track to sore higher then the previous one. This one picks up where Final Frontier left off in 2006 , what a powerful punch of keen musicians, firm musical direction and of course marvelous front lead in the vocal department. Welcome back Rob a place where you belong; victory is indeed yours. Seal it up and highly recommended for all Melodic Hard Rockers out there!!!!
Written by Denys
Ratings Denys 9.6/10
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