HUNGRYHEART

This album can be summed up in two words 'hot damn'! Albums like this make me happy to have been part of a musical revolution that not only ruled the world in the mid 80's to early 90's, but since 1999 has gained nothing but momentum with young and old alike.
Hungryheart's debut release is nothing short of a 16 year old's prom night wet dreams come true. Take equal parts of any and all of your favorite 80's heavyweights: Tesla, Dokken, Tora Tora, Mr. Big, White Lion, Trixter, Winger, Danger Danger, Lynch Mob (with Oni Logan), Warrant, Bad English and so many others that it crosses your eyes, complete with a production that would make Mutt Lang and Beau Hill perk up and give a listen. Toss in a first rate group of virtually unknown top shelf musicians, blend to a puree and voila - instant homage to our favorite era of hard rock music.
As Hungryheart takes its maiden voyage in your system the mind starts wondering the who's, what's and where's of this group. Of course after checking their website I was knocked back on my heals to realize that these guys weren't from the USA! Nope, they are from Italy, who'd have 'thunk' it. OK, this bad boy was recorded in 1992, and is finally being untombed like Tutankhamun and being rightfully re-released for the masses to enjoy right? Of course not. It was released for the first time in...what...2008?! You mean '88 right? Nope, 2008. Well I'll be. A release so genre specific yet so far away from the melting pot? So long overdue? I know I'm being a wee bit melodramatic, but hey that's why I get the big bucks right? (Wrong again.)
This 11 song ode to all that is right with the world, good ole' fist pumping, toe tapping, head-banging, sing-along, arena rock classics that makes all the boys wanna be guitarists and all the girls want to be with the guitarist... is just the continued shot in the head the music industry needs today. The harmonies are tight and there are guitar-driven, solo filled, hard rocking numbers like "Rock", "Break Away", and "It Takes Two". Tesla/Tora Tora slide guitar/southern-flared rock takes over on songs like "River Of Soul" and "Hard Lovin' Woman" and there is even a ballad or two in "Hang On To Me" and "The Only One".
Unfortunately this CD won't be heard by the masses and will only be sought after by the likes of myself and a handful of faithful that have never wanted to let go of the most underrated, yet obviously influential, musical style that ever Aqua Net-ed itself to the side of your face.
Wake up world, yea I'm talking to you, and do yourself a favor. Put down that 'unmentionable by name crap' you call music and run out and nab this Hungryheart CD today! You will be glad you did.
- Sleaze Roxx

Following on in the great tradition of melodic rock bands from Milano Italy - is a new name to these pages.. Hungry Heart. These guys were formed as far back as 1997, but have only kicked into gear just recently. Their sound harks back to the early 90's with comparisons drawn from the likes of Bon Jovi, White Lion and Tesla. Hungry Heart also touch on a slightly glam sound, but it's mostly a permanent party-metal attitude that prevails throughout this eleven track disc. The two lead personnel are singer Josh Zighetti who's voice is styled heavily on Tesla's Jeff Keith, and guitarist Mario Percudani, who is a very talented player - and not just in the melodic rock field either.
'Rock City' opens the band's account, with its near glam vibe plus the big woah woah gang chants.
'Stealing The Night' is a good window into the potential of this band, with hair metal guitar lines but near AOR sensibilities that works itself into the melodic chorus.
'River Of Soul' refers to the country/hair metal crossover that found a home with many bands back in the early 90's - Bon Jovi, Tattoo Rodeo and Tesla included.
At 7 minutes, 'Hang On To Me' is the album's lengthy obligatory power ballad, combining acoustic and electrics. It's pretty good actually, not unlike Firehouse or Bon Jovi in their quieter moments.
'The Only One' meanwhile, goes down the White Lion path, with Percudani firing off a few Vito Bratta styled guitar run for good measure.
'Innocent Tears' is another acoustic/electric affair, again, with all the aforementioned bands used as reference points, because by now all the influences are easier to detect. The solos on this track are superb. Give Mario a medal!
It must be the songtitle or the lyrics, but 'Hard Lovin' Woman' must've been inspired by Whitesnake! Surely! lol! Add in a twist of Tesla and you have the perfect Hungry Heart inspired melodic rocker.
Perhaps the most AOR moment on the album is 'Breath Away', the song construct is typical of the genre, and is delivered with a good dose of sugar.
'It Takes Two' is a punchy rocker with a tight compressed sound and a simplistic arrangement compared to the rest of the material. To further sell their case to this listener, they even perform a rendition of Michael Bolton's 'Gina' as their closing track. Brave indeed, though it contains none of the AOR genius of the 'great one', this one is played in a harder rock style without any keyboards. Certainly fans of Tesla should take a listen to this, particularly if you want to listen to a Jeff Keith doppleganger in Josh Zighetti. This guy makes the Arnel Pineda vs Steve Perry argument look utterly pointless. Josh' combination with Mario Percudani is the album's strength. A great start for this Milanese band, but with more time under their belt, plus if they decide to recruit a keyboard player to add the extra hundreds and thousands on their songs, this band could definitely go places in the future.
Score: 85/100 - Glory Daze

L'Italia terra di santi, poeti navigatori e di… melodic rockers !!! Già, siamo arrivati addirittura a stravolgere i luoghi comuni, tanta e tale è la quantità di band dedite al genere più adulto e maturo del rock duro e, nonostante qui da noi a farla da padrone siano oramai sempre e solo i generi più heavy della nostra beneamata musa ispiratrice, formazioni sempre più consolidate come Edge of Forever, Eva, Homerun e Myland, si stanno pian piano ritagliando una loro fetta di pubblico e di affezionati e, grazie soprattutto a pubblicazioni sempre più curate nei minimi dettagli, sono riusciti a rinvigorire una scena oramai competitiva come non mai.
Ad aggiungere maggiore valore e vigore allo stato di grazia di cui sopra, giungono oggi pure i new comer Hungryheart, emblematico quartetto provenienti da Lodi che, con il loro omonimo disco d'esordio, sono riusciti a dimostrare ancora una volta, nonostante i puristi del genere possano pensare il contrario, che anche qui dalle nostre parti si può produrre dell'ottima musica senza per questo dover sottostare ai voleri di etichette che, nonostante operino sul territorio italico, sembrano più attratte da ben altre faccende estere, piuttosto che valorizzare il patrimonio, e che patrimonio, artistico nostrano.
In fin dei conti, meglio così, anche perché, come recita il vecchio detto "se vuoi fare le cose per bene, te le devi fare da solo", ed anche in questo caso i nostri amici Hungryheart, per riuscire nel proprio intento, si sono rimboccati veramente le maniche, ed hanno tirato fuori gli artigli, riuscendo a pubblicare un disco, nel suo complesso veramente fenomenale, caratterizzato da una produzione appropriata, e da una gamma di suoni adeguati agli standard qualitativi che il genere stesso preso in esame dai nostri richiede, arricchendo il proprio bagaglio compositivo, grazie ad una cascata di melodia allo stato pure che, anche nelle parti più rock e veloci, si riesce pur sempre e comunque a percepire.
Dunque un humus melodico di sottofondo, a volte davvero esagerato, che caratterizza ogni singolo degli undici brani ivi presenti, e che soprattutto, permette ad ogni singolo ascoltatore di perdersi in un turbinio di infinite sensazioni ed emozioni, lasciandosi letteralmente lusingare dal calore umano emanato con grinta da una band formata soprattutto da appassionati del genere, che, diciamolo pure, punta gran parte del proprio giocoforza sulla raffinatezza e sull'eleganza di una componente musicale veramente degna dei maestri del genere, andando a disegnare un ipotetico percorso sonoro pervaso da ambientazioni sonore che sanno di scandi rock, class metal ed arena rock come in un ipotetico coacervo fra i migliori Dalton, Da Vinci, Firehouse, Bonjovi e Stage Dolls. .
Avvolto da un lavoro d'artwork abbastanza kitch, ammettiamolo, il debutto di questi quattro rocker, è uno di quei classici dischi col botto, veramente destinato a lasciare il segno indelebile nell'animo nobile degli amanti del melodic rock e dell'AOR in generale, potendo far leva attorno a suadenti composizioni dotate di un airplay radiofonico a volte davvero irresistibile, refrain orecchiabili e partiture musicali veramente sopraffine, tutti elementi comunque che si evincono ascoltando brani del calibro dell'ipotetico singolo "Rock City" tipica party song dal retrogusto di natura tipicamente hair metal a la Danger Danger meets Swedish Erotica, arricchita da un refrain strappa-orecchie e da partiture dal sapore catchy, o l'altrettanto valida "Innocent tears" che abbina un certa espressività poetica e blueseggiante di certi Dogs D'amour e Quireboys, con un riffing di scuola chiaramente americana, diciamo Cinderella e Kix su tutti, mentre è proprio sulle note della fantastica "Hard lovin' woman", introdotta dallo splendido interludio strumentale "Shadows", che i nostri riescono a toccare vette espressive veramente inarrivabili, grazie ad un episodio tacitamente influenzato da reminiscenze che sanno veramente di Europe e Treat, in un hard rock corposo e virulento versatile e compiutamente in your face. Una band quindi realmente capace di dare vita a brani affascinanti, oserei dire quasi elitari, irresistibili, avvincenti, d'altra parte le melodie cromate della seducente "The only one", brano immolato sull'altare dello melodic rock più puro ed incorruttibile, Easy Action, Melidian e Rat Bat Blue, della sognante "Breath Away", brano che meriterebbe sicuramente qualche passaggio radiofonico, mentre la "Gina" sembra veramente uscita dalla penna fatata di sua maestà Desmond Child presentando tutti i crismi e la peculiarità di scrittura del maestro americano.
Disco perfetto in ogni sua piccola componente, lo ripeto ancora una volta, che sicuramente meriterebbe di stare sugli scaffali di ogni rocker degno di questo appellativo, al di la del genere o sottogenere preferito, anche perché gli Hungryheart sono una formazione che, questo ne sono sicuro, potrà fare tanta, tantissima strada, il dado è tratto, ora tocca a v - Hard 'n Heavy

Before Brian here at Rockeyez gave me this disc to review he forwarded me the link to the HUNGRYHEART myspace site so I could check these guys out. I have to say I surprised they hailed from Italy. If not for the slight accent on the vocals I'd swear they were some hot melodic rock newcomers from the US.
The songs are very much in the American melodic hard rock style of bands like ADRIANGALE or the classic CCM band GUARDIAN. Those comparison bring me to another point because the singer in both those bands is none other than Jamie Rowe and HUNGRYHEART singer Josh Zighetti is close in vocal style to Rowe with a little of Michael Bormann (JADED HEART) and even a bit of Jeff Keith (TESLA) thrown in. Another comparison in style I'd make would be the great and sadly missed British act PRIDE.
This album is chock full of cool songs like album opener "Rock City", which has a cool DANGER DANGER vibe thanks to it "party feel" backing vocals and "Stealing The Night" which is another good one with its melodic chorus and nice guitar work. Other highlights include the ballad "Hang On To Me" and "Innocent Tears", which is a pretty nice mid-paced melodic rock track with guitars that remind me of the style of EUROPE's Kee Marchello. The moody acoustic instrumental piece "Shadows" is a cool little change of pace for the album as it leads into the hard driving track "Hard Lovin' Woman" which sounds a bit like TESLA meets WHITESNAKE.
The album has some more hits like "Breath Away" (which is a super melodic track) and "It Takes Two" (with its feel-good AOR vibe) meanwhile it only a few misses along its way.
These guys are definitely worth keeping an eye on and I look forward to what they could do with their future endeavors.
- Rock Eyez

Would you like to hear some melodic hard rock that will convince you from the first hearing? Would you like the sweet sound of the six cord goddess to be at the top of everything? Do you feel like hearing the music of German team CASANOVA/BONFIRE seeing some of BON JOVI and WHITE LION? Then, without second thought make your investment on this talented band coming from Italy which, after eleven years of roaming around the clubs of Italy, comes back with a brand new release!!! A work that successfully gives out, at some level, the freshness which characterizes other similar releases during the golden age of the 80s’. Exaggerating? Not at all. “Rock City”, “Stealing the Night”, “Hang On To Me”, “The Only One”, “Hard Lovin Woman”, “Breath Away”, "It Takes Two” are capable, expressing my personal opinion, of bringing spring in this specific piece of music, even if it’s just temporarily. So what if a song; “River Of Soul”, to be exact, fails to convince with its’ CINDERELLA mood or even the, without doubt, steal from EUROPE in ‘‘Innocent Tears’’, that does not give reasons to cover such a fine try for Kaiada. To add some good points, the singer’s voice matches great with the band while at the same time surprises pleasantly with his performances. The record ends with the very good “Gina” of Michael Bolton.
Score: 8,5 - Rock Wind

Hungryheart is a new Italian band that has released their self titled debut album filled with great 80s American hardrock/AOR. This four-piece band combines great riffs with wonderful melodies and the songs contains huge hooklines that reminds of bands such as Trixter, White Lion, Firehouse, Danger Danger and Evenrude. Their singer Josh Zighetti has a great voice that reminds of Trixter's Peter Loran and the production is good.
Stealing The Night is a strong melodic rocker that could have been taken from Trixter's debut album. Rivers Of Soul is a more blues tangled rocker with an acoustic feel that makes me think of Tesla. Hang On To Me is a brilliant 80s power ballad with strong melodies and a superb chorus. The Only One is a fantastic up-tempo Aor-rocker with big hooks and a sing-a-long chorus in the best White Lion style. Hard Lovin' Woman starts slow but turns out to a great guitar rocker. There are a couple of songs that feels a bit average and don’t reach the same level as the best songs but if you're into those mentioned bands, this is a band you should check out.
They end the album with a cover version of the classic Michael Bolton song Gina. They do a really good heavier version with more guitars and less keyboards. A strong debut album with a couple of killer songs.
- Melodic.net

Banda Hungryheart pode te confundir ao ouvir o hard rock bem americano dos anos 80 praticado pelo quarteto, pois apesar das semelhanças no vocal ou no instrumental, trata-se de uma banda italiana de hard rock, e facilmente enganaria o ouvinte ao deparar com o som incorpado e oitentista da banda, bem nos moldes americano do estilo.
Você encontrará algumas semelhanças de bandas como Bon Jovi, Bad English, Trixter e algo de Firehouse, boas influências não faltam no debut do Hungryheart, além de seu próprio talento, pois parece fácil criar músicas que te prendem e baladas bem feitas, mas não é, a banda não deixou a desejar nestes quesitos.
A banda é formada por Josh Zighetti – Lead Vocals, Mario Percudani – Guitars, Background Vocals, Lead Vocals on track 4, Lele Meola – Bass , Emilio "Pingo" Sobacchi – Drums. Vale ressaltar o vocal de Josh Zighetti, que em alguns momentos lembra Paul Laine(ex-Danger Danger) e Robert Mason(ex-Lynch Mob e Big Cock) e os belos riffs e solos de Mario Percudani, mostrando-se eficaz também nos vocais na bela faixa a la Bon Jovi "Hang on to Me". Há outra com essa semelhança "Innocent Tears", uma das mais legais do cd.
No total são 11 faixas do mais puro hard rock, incluindo um cover do Michael Bolton "Gina", que ficou legal, mas as faixas próprias que são os destaques do álbum, como já é mostrado na faixa de abertura "Rock City" a la Danger Danger, as já comentadas a cima, além de "Breath Away", se não for a melhor, está entre as melhores do álbum.
Excelente estréia do Hungryheart, grande supresa vinda da Itália e muito recomendado.
Score: 9/10 - On the Road Magazine

We have already seen on our ‘Eurorock’ trip that melodic rock is alive and well right across the continent. Hungryheart who hail from northern Italy are flying that banner high with their self-titled debut album released recently on the Free Mood label. Formed back in 1997, following an amalgamation of two local bands, they consist of lead singer Josh Zighetti, guitarist Mario Percudani, bass player Lele Meola, and drummer Emilio ‘Pingo’ Sobacchi. It was not all smooth running though and the band nearly ceased to be when all its members decided to pursue solo interests.
However, they got back together and went about putting down an album that would underline the reputation they had gained on the Italian tour circuit. With an obvious passion and talent for AOR and heavy melodic rock, they have come up with a highly impressive first album. Hungryheart by name and hungryheart by nature, their enthusiasm and commitment to the cause radiates from every note. For lovers of melodic rock Hungryheart is a welcome addition indeed. Basing their inspiration on 80’s and 90’s bands such Whitesnake, Bon Jovi and Giant, Hungryheart not only pays homage to the era but also adds their own stamp to it along the way. Melodic rock is still a huge seller and the market most definitely remains out there. If a band can come up with a killer airplay favourite then the moment is there to be seized. The album opens with just that, a radio friendly romp through a wonderfully catchy “Rock City”, which has just the slightest hint of Def Leppard about it. It is nicely balanced, never over forced, and as a result the track acts as a positive statement to what they can produce.
“Stealing The Night” opens with all the purpose and power of an eighties classic resulting in another memorable track. “River Soul” is soaked in Bon Jovi and, if anything, builds successfully on the strength of the opening of the album. When Mario’s guitar kicks in and the chorus leads you on a sing-along you could easily convince yourself that you are listening to an established classic rock track from days gone by. However, it has to be said, that these are no mere imitators and to suggest that would be doing them a great disservice.
The first ballad “Hang On To Me” is highly impressive with Josh in great form. The nicely stripped down band gives him the perfect space in which to deliver an album highlight. The band put their foot back down on “The Only One” which contains some scorching guitar from Mario, whose playing throughout varies from the intricate to highly impressive solos to some powerful riffs. “Innocent Tears” takes us back into Bon Jovi territory and opens out into a chiming and superbly written song. “Shadows” shifts us down with some beautifully performed acoustic guitar. “Hard Lovin’ Woman” gives us another memorable track and a further example of the exceptional song writing. Suddenly it kicks off into a well worked riff and chorus that none other than Whitesnake would have been proud of.
“Breath Away” keeps the quality flowing before the catchy “It Takes Two” and final track “Gina” brings this highly enjoyable and consistently good album to a close. Hungryheart absorbs and, more significantly, adds to all the key elements of great melodic rock from those heady days. It took them over ten years to release this album and the result is definitely one that should be explored and, no doubt, enjoyed by the vast army of fans of well written rock music.
- Blog Critics

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Score: 8/10
- Melodic Frontiers

Mensch, was sind die Italiener zur Zeit fleissig! Nachdem in den letzten Jahren musikalisch bereits einige großartige Epic Metal Sachen und ein paar gutklassige Sleaze und Glambands aus dem "Stiefelland" zu uns rübergeschwappt sind, gibt es jetzt immer mehr AOR und Melodic Rock Klänge aus Bella Italia zu entdecken. In Punkto melodischen Rock konnten da zuletzt Myland auf sich aufmerksam machen und für durchweg wohlwollende bis euphorische Reaktionen sorgen - da will eine Band wie Hungryheart natürlich nicht hinten anstehen und legt mit ihrem selbstbetitelten Debüt gleich mal nach.
Der Sound von Hungryheart ist durch und durch von den Rockgrößen der 80iger Jahre beeinflusst. Hier ein bisschen Danger Danger, dort eine Prise Bon Jovi, dann noch ein wenig Bad Englisch und Whitesnake, fertig. Im Vergleich zu Myland hört sich die Combo sogar noch ein wenig "amerikanischer" an. Das kann man vor allem an dem Gesang von Frontmann Josh Zighetti festmachen. Der klingt mit seiner völlig akzentfreien Stimme, die irgendwo zwischen Mike Tramp, Jon Bon Jovi und David Coverdale liegt, dermaßen ur-amerikanisch das man beim ersten Hören des Longplayer schwören könnte eine bisher unbekannte End-Achtziger Amiband zu hören.
Wer auch nur ansatzweise was mit den von mir bereits genannten Bands anfangen kann muss hier also reinhören. Hymnen wie "Rock City", "Stealing the Night" oder Hard Lovin Woman" gehen ab wie Schmidts Katze und für nen Song wie "River of Soul" hätten Cinderella früher getötet!
Score: 8,5 - Rock Dungeon