Flashback Review #69 - Phil Vincent - Unknown Origin

This review was written for the Rock Is Life.com website in 2006. (2012 Update: After the original review went online, I got a nice email from the artist).

Phil Vincent
Unknown Origin
Self-Released - 2005
http://www.philvincent.com

What's The 4-1-1?

The singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Cranston, Rhode Island releases his 9th solo album of classic melodic rock music.

Genre

Hard Rock / Melodic Rock / Rock

The Good

I have never heard any material from Phil Vincent before. Now that I have, I am eagerly anticipating picking up more CDs. While Vincent has appearances from a few other musicians, the music on this CD was almost exclusively played by himself. This seems to be a great thing because I have to say that I was very pleased by almost everything I heard. There is a slightly raw tone to some of his vocals, but in a decent way. It doesn't distract from the overall enjoyment of the music.

The guitar playing features a ton of great riffs and solos. He claims influences as diverse as Pink Floyd, Talisman, Survivor and The Beatles. While I don't really hear the latter in Vincent's music, you can definitely hear the classic and melodic rock influences in the songs.

The album opens with a great driving rocker in "Thanks For Nothin'". Other stand out tracks are "Get Away" and "Goin' Through The Motions". The track that I enjoyed the most was "Never Gonna Let You Go".

The Bad

The only thing I didn't really care for was the overly long and rather pedestrian ballad "Faithless".

The Verdict

Phil Vincent's Unknown Origin employs a great hard melodic rock sound that is reminiscent of the great 1980's hard rock sound. The CD does this without sounding dated. I thoroughly enjoyed this album and I think you will to.

Did You Know?

The liner notes for the CD thank Brad Delp and Tom Scholz from classic rockers Boston. The album is dedicated to the friends, families and survivors of the Station nightclub fire in West Warwick, Rhode Island.

Rating: 4 out of 5