ZAR
From Welcome…To Goodbye
Label: Metalapolis Records / SPV
Out: September 27th, 2024
Playing time: 01:00:31
ZAR are a Heavy Rock band from Stuttgart, the capital of Baden-Württemberg (Germany). The history of the band goes back to 1988, when singer John Lawton and guitarist Tommy Clauss played together in the Hard Rock band Rebel. Both then founded ZAR. Five albums were recorded in the first period up to around 2003. Then the band apparently broke up. A reunion took place in 2015. One year later, the sixth album ‘Don’t Wait for Heroes’ was released. One of the most commercially successful albums was ‘From Welcome…To Goodbye’ from 1993. A little over twenty years later, Metalapolis Records re-released it with two bonus tracks.
The intro ‘Welcome’ is in the style of a short acoustic ballad. This makes it pleasantly different from the ‘usual’ intros. ‘How Many Tears’ starts off quietly before heavier riffs kick in. A mid-tempo anthem with polyphonic choruses, as was popular in the 80s and 90s. ‘A Touch Of Ebony’ is only slightly heavier, but not any faster. Thommy Bloch proves once again that he is a gifted singer. And it continues with well-crafted Melodic Rock. The tempo picks up a little at the beginning of ‘Thin Line’, but without leaving the medium speed range. On the ballad ‘Eagle’s Flight’, founding member and first singer of the band John Lawton can be heard in a duet with Thommy Bloch. There is a campfire atmosphere in the style of Uriah Heep. There is another guest on ‘Angel’. Here you can hear Ellen Ritz (The 2nd Crash, among others) as a background singer. Another contemplative ballad. But ZAR can also be different, harder, slightly bluesy, as they prove with ‘I’m Still Tryin’’. Or with ‘Bushido’, a faster instrumental rocker. Beautiful guitar runs can be heard here. But the proportion of ballads is high. The next one follows with ‘When The Fire Burns’. ‘Highlands’ is another quiet instrumental. And as was customary at the time, a quiet outro (‘Good Bye’) ends the original album. What follows are two bonus tracks. Firstly, the Survivor cover ‘Didn’t Know It Was Love’. A little harder and punchier than the original. But otherwise very close to the original. The re-release concludes with the instrumental track ‘Kroda Bushi’.
After listening to ‘From Welcome…To Goodbye’ several times, I’m willing to believe that it was a commercial success. ZAR have adapted too much to the mainstream. An album without corners and edges, too much focussed on being safe. Even the two bonus tracks don’t change that. One is strongly reminded of Survivor or the late Bon Jovi. Even if the musicians have done a good job, the album doesn’t completely convince me. Nevertheless, I think it’s good that Metalapolis have reissued this album as a contemporary witness to a bygone era.
ZAR – Eagle’s Flight: https://youtu.be/OrDTmawJiSg?si=g9_4yDd4G9HtcKCI
Lineup:
Thommy Bloch – Vocals, Backing Vocals
Tommy Clauss – Guitar, Vocals on Angel, Backing Vocals
Jerry Schäfer – Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Wolf Urban – Bass
Marcel Asch – Drums
Guests:
John Lawton – Gesang auf Eagle’s Flight
Ellen Ritz – Backing Vocals auf Angel
Track list:
- Welcome
- How Many Tears
- A Touch Of Ebony
- Thin Line
- Eagle’s Flight
- Never So Alone
- I Can’t Believe (In Tragic Ends)
- Angel
- I’m Still Tryin’
- Bushido
- When The Fire Burns
- Highlands
- Good Bye
- Didn’t Know It Was Love (Survivor Cover, Bonustrack)
- Kroda Bushi (Bonustrack)
