Matt and Gunnar do their best to make lightning strike twice, but did they? Eh, not so much.Nelson are one of those one hit wonders from the early 90s that were never given a real shot to repeat the success of their debut. After the Rain is one of the melodic rock classics from back in the day that spawned several hits and put the brothers on the hard rock map. Unfortunately for them, and many others, grunge began to rear its ugly head and effectively killed the music we loved. Gone were the hairspay and the make up, and in were flannel shirts and baggy jeans. I think we all can say that there needed to be a change, but this one came so abruptly that none of us knew what hit us.
Since their debut the Nelson brothers have continued to put out material that veered from their initial sound. Their albums over the last 20 years have been hit or miss, with most of them being misses. Fast forward to 2011 and the band have just released what is being called the official follow up to After the Rain. The new CD is entitled Lightning Strikes Twice, and hopefully it'll be able to recapture the old sound that made them a household name in the 90s.
Lightning Strikes starts off a with a different vibe than their debut. The songs are less punchy and have more of a classic rock vibe to them which, for the most part, are okay with a few stand outs. It is standard Nelson, with big choruses and catchy melodies, but the songs on this CD just don't capture the magic of the debut. It goes without saying that the songs will be somewhat "bubble gummy", but that's okay - as long as the songs are well-written.
The CD starts to get going around track 3 with Ready, Willing and Able, but it wasn't until How Can I Miss You that I started getting into it; it's a mid-tempo rocker with a darker feel to it. It's catchy and sticks with you more than most of the tracks on the disk while the rest are a variety of rockers and ballads. I think the strongest things about this disc are the cool guitar harmonies that are intertwined in most of the tunes on the album. All in all, not a bad record, just not a great one either. The songs seem more poppier than back in the day and have more of a classic rock vibe to them than they did in the 90s.
Bottom Line: A mediocre return from the Nelson twins, but something to build on. The songs are poppy, but do carry some weight due to some excellent axework.
Standout Tracks: How Can I Miss You, You're All I Need Tonight, When You're Gone and Change a Thing
- Ragman wonders if the boys will grow out their locks for the next one...