Wheels Of Fire – Up For Anything

Its been two and a half years since Wheels Of Fire released their debut album “Hollywood Rocks” to some acclaim. Now Wheels Of Fire return with their second album “Up For Anything”, once more with the Avenue Of Allies label.

Singer Davide “Dave Rox” Barbieri and guitar player Stefano Zeni, who formed
the core of the band for the first album “Hollywood Rocks”, are here joined for “Up For Anything” by new members Marcello Suzzani on bass, Andrea Vergori on keyboards & piano and Fabrizio Uccellini on drums. Dave and Stefano are also the primary song writers for all tracks of the album, however they collaborate here on a number of songs with Alessandro Del Vecchio (Lionville, Edge Of Forever, Hardline) and Pierpaolo “Zorro 11” Monti (Shining Line, Charming Grace, Lionville).

There are also some top quality guest performers, as the album features James Christian (House Of Lords) on lead and backing vocals for “Don’t Walk Away”, along with his wife, the wonderfully talented Robin Beck. Swedish guitarist Rob Marcello (Danger Danger) also appears on “Up For Anything”, laying down the solo for “No Mercy”. So with a firm line-up and some very talented guests, how did they do here?

Overall the album has some very good production. There is quite a modern feel to “Up For Anything”, both musically and lyrically, without detracting from its melodic rock roots. That said, the second track here, “Don’t Walk Away”, has elements that make it feel like an older Bon Jovi song (you know, before they started to sound like they should have called it a day) largely because of the talk box.

The highlights here include the mid-tempo rocker “Don’t Walk Away”, which as we’ve said already features James Christian performing a duet with Davide Barbieri, and Robin Beck on backing vocals – this makes this a great track. Other highlights include “Pain”, a slightly heavier, faster track, the ballads “Tell Me” and “Web Of Lies” which also features some good guitar work by Stefano Zeni, the very catchy “Nothing To Lose”, and “No Mercy”, which see’s a rather good solo by guest Rob Marcello.

Verdict: 7.5/10 This is a good little album. There was only a couple of songs here that didn’t quite grab me, but overall its well produced, well performed, and there are a few very good songs on offer. If you like melodic rock, this an album well worth buying.

Wheels OF Fire intend to tour in 2013, so keep a watch out.