BAI BANG
Livin’ My Dream
AOR HEAVEN, 2011

By Shane Pinnegar

There’s been such a glut of quality Swedish sleaze and glam rock in the past few years that it’s hard to keep up with it all. Bai Bang is one member of this movement that we will always find time for – over a long career they’ve proven masters of the anthemic chorus, champions of the catchy riff and lords of the melodic party metal tunes.

The eagerly awaited “Livin’ My Dream” is another feather in the band’s cap – a collection of ten classy, catchy, hard rock songs impeccably played and sung, and lovingly produced by Pontus Assarsson.

Opener ‘We’re United’ and title track ‘Livin’ My Dream’ both deserve a big stage and crowd – straight from the textbook pages of the late 80’s, and ‘Come On’ has the potential to be the biggest hit White Lion never had.

I’ll probably get shit for saying this, but ‘Stay’ wouldn’t be out of place as the strongest song on a (*gasp*) Roxette album, such is it’s pop-metal sensibilities and synthesisers – but I mean this only in the best possible way!

Continuing on the pop metal from ‘Die For You’’s lush orchestration and backing vocals make it another legitimate mainstream chart single possibility, before closing anthem ‘Put On Her Dress’.

Bai Bang have raised the bar with the production on ‘Livin’ My Dream’ – it’s layered yet airy, lush yet never cloying. This is an album full of great songs that deserve to be heard – get your copy now!