Tom Keifer : Rise Review
Tom Keifer, former front man of the rock band Cinderella, has an instantly recognizable voice. The singer and his #Keiferband are releasing their second album titled, Rise, on Cleopatra Records. The album presents eleven tracks that feature Keifer’s gritty vocals with blues-infused hard rock. The album has a theme of overcoming challenges with the music being written by Tom Keifer, Savannah Keifer and Kendra Chantelle. The band line up is, Keifer vocals, his wife — percussionist, pianist and singer Savannah Keifer — and backing singer/percussionist Kendra Chantelle and the #keiferband, which is lead and rhythm guitarist Tony Higbee, bassist Billy Mercer, drummer Jarred Pope and keyboardist Kory Myers. Rise was produced by Tom Keifer, Savannah Keifer and Kyle O’Connor.
The seductive sounds of Savannah Keifer and Chantelle singing harmony with atmospheric slide guitar bring the album to life with “Touching the Divine.” As the tune progresses it is obvious that all the elements of a great rock tune are in play here, a catchy riff, a big chorus and of course, the attitude and style a of great front-man’s vocals, Tom Keifer. Keifer’s singing style is unique in both his sound and in his inflection and ending of phrases. The bluesy hard rock style is energetic, melodic and filled with passion. The lyrics are empowering. There are some wonderful vocal fills in the last minute of the tune, this band rocks!
“The Death of Me” opens with static that is followed by a bluesy heavy metal riff. Keifer’s vocals are produced with a low-fi effect for the first phrase, but then the production opens into a full rich sound. The band is well oiled, after many shows on the road, and Keifer’s vocals are exceptional and filled with his raspy sounds and screams. The chorus is full of the rich sounds of Savannah and Chantelle adding support. Higbee plays a short, but energetic and bluesy solo. The band delivers attitudinal metal with the style of the eighties.
Rise has outstanding writing and Keifer is amazing. The production might have some fans straining their ears though. The mix is heavily compressed, flattening out most of the dynamics on the more aggressive tunes and the vocals are also buried in the mix on the same tunes. Even though, the music is still strong enough to capture your attention and there are multiple ballads the really let Keifer’s voice to be heard. Rise is a killer album!
Tom Keifer: Website
Tom Keifer
Rise
September 13, 2019
Cleopatra Records