On the heels of their re-mastered, re-issued debut album, Fear Not are back with a new vocalist and solid hard rock ep chock full of stadium rock choruses, blazing guitar solos and deep, soulful vocals that will remind a lot of listeners of the late 80’s hard rock/metal scene.
Fear Not trace their origins back to 1991 and originally were known by a different name, Love Life, under which they released an album on a label that wasn’t sure how to actually promote them. Enter in a new guitarist not long after and the band turned heavier and changed their name to Fear Not and then signed to a new label, Pakaderm which released the debut from Fear Not, sometime around 1993. In 2017 Roxx re-mastered and re-issued the debut.
Whenever older Christian rock bands reunite, I’m often left thinking that these are the bands I wish I would have heard back in those days, but at least we have them now. I’ve moved on a bit toward the extreme side of things as I’ve aged, but For the Wounded Heart is a solid ep, if a bit toward the nostalgic side of things. Opening track “Don’t Want None” is in the perfect spot to introduce a new audience to Fear Not. Drum line, joined by a dirty riff and then the rest of the band comes in until the verse starts and the guitars go clean. Throw in a great guitar solo, and an incredible low end from Rod Romero and Gary Hansen and you have a solid song. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the deep, brooding vocals from Eddie Green who sounds as if he stepped straight off a soundtrack of late 80’s mainstream metal. “Shadows Fade” turns a bit toward the ballad side of things, but still keeps a blues/rock feel, while “Carry Me” goes full metal ballad incorporating all the elements one would expect. For the ep, the band re-recorded “Love is Alright” giving it a bit of heavier feel to go with new vocals from Eddie Green in place of original vocalist Larry Worley, who is now on guitars and backing vocals. The ep closes out with “Shipwrecked Hypocrite”, another solid, mid-tempo rocking track along the same lines as “Don’t Want None”.
Fans of Fear Not will undoubtedly want to pick this up and should appreciate the vocals of Eddie Green and the music supplied by four long-time members of the band. As one would want in an ep of this style, guitars are loud, bass and drums contribute significantly to the sound, and all the vocals have that stadium-rock feel to them. The collection of songs is a bit too heavy on the slower, metal ballad and near metal ballad side for my liking, as I would like to hear more of the heavier, rocking songs, but there’s no denying that these guys know how to craft some good songs.
Rating: 7/10
Written by John Jackson
Tracklist
1. Don’t Want None (Come Get Some)
2. Shadows Fade
3. Carry Me
4. Love Is Alright
5. Shipwrecked Hypocrite
Band Members
Larry Worley – Guitar
Chris Howell – Lead Guitar
Rod Romero – Bass
Gary Hansen – Drums
Eddie Green – Vocals
Release Date: March 8th. 2019
Record Label: Roxx Records8
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Lyric video for ‘Don’t Want None’
