R E V I E W S

Madison Paige - Famous Last Words - indy - 2004 Reviewed by: Nailer

Track Listing1. bind 2. hold me over 3. the one that got away 4. nothing denied 5. heaven in hand 6. any day now 7. fear and storm 8. ella sabe solamente 9. breakin' my heart 10. stay this way 11. next to you 12. when I'm gone 13. restrained

Been quite a while since I've listened to anything that was fairly happy outside of the German power metal scene and the occasional white metal CD. Madison Paige are as sunny as the California area they come from with a "metal-lite" sound that is nicely melodic and female-attracting. Think of the "sweeter" numbers from groups like Bon Jovi, White Lion or even the AOR work of Styx.

The guitar work from Damon Valley is straight from the late 80's and essentially supportive of the vocal-driven songs, but "Bind" has some nice trill leads that give the guitars a bit of the spotlight and "Any Day Now" is at a randy pace that lets him show off a little quickness. "Fear and Storm" is a bit more experimental than the others and it didn't fit in for me. After 13 songs I did start to get a little weary of the sugary stuff. The 10 best songs would've been plenty.

If we were to see a market return to 1987's rock ballads, which the new millennium generation mainly missed, then I do think this band could have a some hits. Two things need to happen in the mean time--production and image. "Famous Last Words" is held back by the production which understandably was made on a small budget. A good producer could really get the sound up. Rarely do I comment on a band's look, but the mall stuff needs to be turned into something more consistent and rock worthy.

Bottom Line: Catchy, pretty-boy rock from the West coast with hit potential.


--Nailer 06.04.04

CD	TITLE	BAND	DOR	REVIEWER	DATE
	Famous Last Words	Madison Paige	2004	Nailer	6/4/2004

INTERVIEW	BAND	INTERVIEWER	DATE
Richie Rivera	Madison Paige	Nailer	6/21/2004

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