Australia's Wonrowe Vision is the hard rock project from Mortification frontman, Steve Rowe.
MISSION INVINCIBLE (2010) SILVER BULLET
RECORDS/SOUNDMASS/ROWE PRODUCTIONS
CD:
Mission Invincible
DVD: Wonrowe Vision Live First Ever Show: Ballan Skate Park, Jan. 30 2010
|
Line-up: Steve Rowe - Bass Guitar, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Whistling Lincoln Bowen - Guitar, Backing Vocals, Whistling Andrew Esnouf - Drums Additional musicians: Nick Henson - Gang Vocals, Whistling Mitch Barker - Gang Vocals, Whistling |
Steve Rowe is a man of passion. He loves God, he loves his family and he loves Christ-centered music! The latter has not only been an influence for him throughout his life, it has also been his livelihood for over 25 years! He's gone from classic heavy metal, via thrash metal and on through death metal, and back again. Still, there is one genre, a movement, that maybe influenced him the most, especially during his younger days; namely the pioneering Christian hard rock bands from the '70's. Bands and artists like Resurrection Band (later to become REZ), Jerusalem, Barnabas, Altar Boys and 100% Proof. That is the foundation for which Steve now presents Wonrowe Vision, a Christ-centered, hard rockin' biker band!
With him Steve brought Lincoln Bowen (ex-Mortification) on guitar, and Andrew Esnouf on drums. The first album, entitled 'Mission Invincible' was released in 2010. Wonrowe Vision doesn't exactly sound like any of the bands I listed as influences. Still, this is definitely music rooted in the same era. The easiest way to describe them would be as a rowdy mix of hard rock and punk, played in a biker club! The songs are guitar and bass driven, with Steve's songwriting easily recognizable. Mind you, this is a far cry from any of Steve's former bands (Mortification and LightForce). But there is no hiding his signature all over this album. You also recognize his bass playing immediately. And what is a Steve Rowe album without the man's humor? One look at the cover art, and then some of the song titles and you'll understand that Steve likes to have some creative fun with everything he partakes.
On the downside I find 'Mission Invincible' to be very badly produced. Maybe this was intentional to try and recreate the sound of the '70's. If that is so, then I still say they failed. The bass and the guitar are drowning the drums in the mix, and the vocals... well, let's say that Steve is a much better growler than he is a singer. This has been my complaint with Mortification since 'BloodWorld', and unfortunately his short comings as a singer are even more apparent here. It's a little sad really, as this project could have been a perfect opportunity to explore other singer instead.
On the positive side, if you're a fan of Steve and his music, there's plenty of good song to enjoy on 'Mission Invincible'. I have to confess that it took me a while to fully enjoy this disc, and it will probably never be a frequently played album, but I like for what it is! Songs like "The Spirit Of The Rock", "Vaporizer" and "The White Rock" are all great slabs of rock 'n' punk, that'll have your fist pumping and feet stomping along in no-time!
'Mission Invincible' also comes with a DVD. It features the band's first 2 concerts, filmed with a single camera. As of writing this I have yet to watch this portion of the package.
Killer tracks: The Spirit Of The rock, Vaporizer, The White rock, Smile Your Way Through Life
Related artists:
