7th heaven

7TH HEAVEN - U.S.A.-U.K.
© 2008 NTD Records • 18 tracks • Release date: August 2008
MELODICROCK.COM REVIEW (AUSTRALIA)

Chicago natives 7th heaven should be no strangers to those that follow this site. Their acclaimed Silver double CD was a popular
favourite for many and is still being discovered by new fans to this very day. The band's high-tech AOR friendly sound mixed with a
dose of Def Leppard stadium theatrics and layers and layers of vocals have them worshipped in the US Mid-West, but with every
release their profile and stature grows. The band plays hundreds of shows each year and was part of the first MelodicRockFest in
South Bend in 2007. The line-up has changed since Silver, with vocalist Keith Semple (South African born, raised in Ireland) taking
up residence in the USA as the new lead vocalist. He is the perfect fit for the band and judging by the writing credits and the quality
of the songs, has made an immediate impact with band founder, guitarist Richie Hofherr. This band always delivers the goods and they always deliver great value. Silver was a double disc of tunes and USA-UK features 18 tracks. Not all tracks are new however –
there are 6 tracks brought back and re-recorded from the Silver disc that now feature Semple's lead vocals.
If you are new to this band and are going to hear tracks like Cellophane, Gravity, Kill The Cycle, Undone, While You Dream and
Ghost Of Me for the first time – boy – are you in for a treat. Personally I'd rather the album feature all new material only, but as stated,
the band delivers value every time and there is still 12 brand new tracks to enjoy. And yes folks…they are every bit as good as the
Silver material and dare I say – even better.
To me the band sounds more focused this time around and there is less experimentation within the sound and more sticking to what
they do best – and that is delivering the music Def Leppard fans have been waiting for since Hysteria. In fact, if Def Leppard went more
AOR after Adrenalize, this is exactly how they would sound. 7th heaven is pure melodic bliss. Every song is layered with backing vocals
Mutt Lange would be proud of the continuous melodies and hooks within the underlying instrumentation and the lead vocals.
The band's sound is a little programmed at times, but that's their high-tech style that has been constant since the start. The fact is they deliver some of the best classic melodic rock songs of the year on this album. Better This Way is a smooth mid-tempo AOR anthem
that has a monster chorus and a radio friendly riff that would have been a smash hit in any other decade. A monster!
The ballad Still Be Here has plenty of production effects and more soaring vocals through a wonderful chorus.
The mid-tempo Gave You My Word is sentimental and uplifting at the same time and This Summers Gonna Last Forever is simply the
backyard anthem Bryan Adams has been trying to write for the last decade. One of the brightest and most uplifting songs of the year. Perfect! Save Your Life is another uplifting song with a rapid fire guitar riff about empowering yourself – great message and
another catchy chorus of course. Hand On My Heart is a lush pop ballad and the rockier Winning It All has a definite Silver vibe to it.
Oh So Really Old works will with its added angst and catchy melody; Tragedy is a nice tempo changing mood piece and Dream Of A
New Day is more uptempo pop with more great sing-along lines.
The Bottom Line
One of the hardest working bands I know deserves world recognition. This album will help solidify their reputation in the melodic rock
world and should also increase their fanbase. Great songs are the heart of any great record and this album features great songs.
We need to find the band a European label…Mmmmm…

MelodicRock - Andrew McNeice
http://www.melodicrock.com/reviews/7thheaven-usauk.p3
- MelodicRock.com

7TH HEAVEN - U.S.A.-U.K.
© 2008 NTD Records • 18 tracks • Release date: August 2008
CROSSROCKS - (FRANCE)

Small recipe:
- Take a singer, Keith Semple, with the same voice that Joe Elliot
- Sprinkle with choirs well seasoned with sauce DEF LEPPARD
- Add a hint of pop and AOR
- Let simmer for 18 titles
Result: the last album 7th HEAVEN, U.S.A. - U.K.
Indeed, here is a group that more or less underground album after album arrives to impose a brand, style.
In addition, each album is at least good or excellent. U.S.A. - U.K. is for me and by far their best album because they
come in at 18 tracks we mean 18 hits. Who says better? Everything is hyper licked, the songs are saved on.
The production is at the height, the choirs are magic and placement of instruments perfect.
It's hard to find something wrong with this U.S.A. - U.K.
Difficult to pick one song over another, they are all identical quality. The reference to Def Leppard is obviously very strong,
but a Def Lep would have met with groups of Christian pop. The ballads like Still Be Here are perfect, the securities most rock
Gravity as well. A cd which is positioned in my Top 10 of the year easily.
Fortunately, the album is available on their site to a low price in view of the relationship between the dollar and the euro.
Do not wait to buy this

Rated 100 out of 100 (perfect CD)

CrossRocks - Fab
http://www.crossrocks.com/?p=albums&cd=2105 - Crossrocks (France)

Hard Rock Hideout
7th heaven - U.S.A. - U.K.
USA

7th Heaven is an Illinois band whose latest release is called U.S.A. - U.K. and no matter how hard they try there is no way these guys are going to be able to avoid comparisons to Def Leppard. To be blunt U.S.A. - U.K. is quite possibly the best album Def Leppard never released. Anyone, who listened to the songs on this album and didn’t know who the band was would be hard pressed to tell the difference between Joe Elliot and 7th Heaven’s Keith Semple. But it is not only Semple’s vocals, but also the background vocals, the music, and the production itself would make you think Mutt Lange was at the helm for this project, everything is top notch.
The band also comprised of Richard Hofherr Lead Guitar & Keyboards, Mark Kennetz Bass, and Michael Mooshey on Drums have been releasing albums and touring, playing in the neighborhood of 200+ shows a year, since 2000, but this is their first release with Irishman Keith Semple handling the vocals and what a way to start this chapter of the band’s history off.
U.S.A. - U.K. is filled with 18 songs, which in itself is almost unheard of today, but if you add the fact that any of these 18 songs could easily find its way to radio and the Top 40 charts makes it even more amazing. I’m almost cringing as I type this, because I hate this term, but this is “pop-metal” at its finest. The first six songs on this album all sound like vintage Hysteria era Def Leppard, if I had to chose a favorite I would go with “Better This Way” , but “Cellophane”, “Gravity”, “Still Be Here”, and “Gave You My Word” are all just as good, background chrouses, great solos, that will have you tapping your feet and singing along. On track #7 ”This Summer’s Gonna Last Forever” the guys change direction a little but not by much, instead of Def Leppard it seems they took after another Mutt Lange disciple, namely Bryan Adams. It would fit nicely on any of Adams early albums, especially “Reckless”. The band takes another slight twist on the song “Winning It All” , this is the first and only time when Semple doesn’t sound like Elliott or Adams, but the song does not lose anything from that fact either.
Like I said earlier there are 18 songs on this album and not one could be considered “filler”, but a few other songs that really standout are “Ghost of Me”, “Undone”, “Take Me Back”, and “Oh So Really Old”. Any fan of Hysteria era Def Leppard should already have U.S.A.-U.K. in their collection, but any fan of “pop-metal” would be crazy not to add this album to their collection.


http://hardrockhideout.com/2008/12/29/7th-heaven-usa-uk-release-year-2008/ - Hard Rock Hideout