For those in AOR circles, Rob Moratti is as much a household name as Lou Gramm or Jimi Jamison. For those outside of such, like any number of death metallers who frequent this site and are asking aloud, “What the hell is a Rob Moratti?”, please allow me to explain. Moratti made a name for himself in the ’00s as the voice of Canadian cult AOR act, Final Frontier. This led to a short-lived stint fronting the legendary Saga, which resulted in the painfully underrated The Human Condition (2009). And yes, I’ll be the first to acknowledge the prospect of Saga sans Michael Sadler is blasphemous, but boy, they sure made it work.
Anyways, just like they do for any melodic rocker with a modicum of success, the good folks at Frontiers swooped in and said, “Hey, let’s give this guy a solo career!”, which is what Moratti’s main focus has been for the past 15ish years. Since his 2011 debut, Victory, Moratti has gone onto release a Journey tribute album and five additional studio albums, the latest of the bunch being Sovereign. And much like every Moratti album before it, this is as much a Frontiers AOR album as one could ask for, from its subtle balance of palatable melodic rockers and sappy ballads, to its squeaky clean production.
Vocally, Moratti is a major label exec’s wet dream circa 1987. Imagine prime Jon Bon Jovi, but with an even wider range and stronger delivery. Heck, if Richie Sambora were to assemble his own band to rival his old partner in crime, Moratti would be the guy for the job. Until then, he does fine on his own, and by “on his own”, I mean backed by an all-star cast of usual suspects for a release of this nature. Whitesnake/Night Ranger guitarist Joel Hoekstra provides those totally tubular leads, while one-time Blue Murder bassist Tony Franklin holds down the low end. Additional collaborators include drummer/co-writer Felix Borg, keyboardist/co-writer Fredrik Bergh, and guitarist/keyboardist Pete Alpenborg.
Together, this studio ensemble tears it up like it’s the ’80s all over again, seamlessly cranking out feelgood melodic rockers that, even at their most formulaic, manage to be enjoyable. Of course, the strongest moments of Sovereign are its most guitar-driven, on which Hoesktra unleashes an old school storm. If the entire outing were dominated by cuts like “Don’t Give Up on Love”, “In the Air Tonight”, and “The Calling”, we’d be looking at a last second album of the year contender. Instead, there’s a bevy off Survivor/Night Ranger worship in between, as well as the contractually obligated power ballads. When it comes to the former, “Two Hearts” is a most excellent slab of lush AOR romanticism, sounding straight from the pen of the legendary Jim Peterik.
For what it is, Sovereign is yet another fine Rob Moratti album. What it lacks in freshness and originality, it makes up for in neon-lit charm and supersonic vocals that are smooth to the ear. While I prefer his vocal talents in more progressive acts like Saga and Final Frontier, Moratti’s solo vehicle serves as a pleasant palette cleanse, especially for a guy like me who’s constantly bombarded by releases dominated by guttural vocals, machine gun riffing, and blast beats. A little bit of clean vocals and melodic rock nostalgia never hurt nobody!
6 out of 10
Label: Frontiers Records
Genre: AOR
For fans of: Survivor, Night Ranger, Work of Art