Search - Paul Sabu :: Strange Messiah

Return of the "AOR" Messiah.

Nikiforos V. Skoumas | Athens Greece, Cambridge UK | 11/17/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Paul Sabu is a well known figure in the Hard Rock-AOR field; if not amongst fans then definitely amongst musicians. He has contributed production services to a variety of glam metal acts, with Kiss and Alice Cooper ranked as his most acknowledged "clients".

His latest work "Strange Messiah" was a victim of poor reviews with most journalists agreeing on the fact that this release is lacking in terms of clear musical direction.

While not far from the truth, for someone who has heard most of Sabu's catalogue I am under the impression that Paul is trying to revisit all the hard rock styles he has been through the last 28 years while shaping them into a new record.

Not bad at all, Tracks such as "Strange Messiah" and "Piece of my heart" are very pleasant additions to Sabu's repertoire.



I started to collect Sabu's albums during the previous summer (2007) and I must admit some of them are extremely hard to find (on CD that is). Even putting his discography in order seemed quite a task so I would like to share the knowledge I have accumulated while trying to complete Sabu's catalogue as a recording artist.



1979: SABU- "I N THE DISCO" (g, v)

1980: SABU- "ON THE ROCKS" (g, v)

1984: SABU- "KIDD GLOVE" (g, v)

1985: SABU- "HEARTBREAK" (g, v)

1987: ONLY CHILD- "ONLY CHILD" (g, v)

1992: ONLY CHILD- "2" (g, v)

1995: PAUL SABU- `PAUL SABU" (AKA "IN DREAMS") (v)

1996: SABU- "SABU" (V)

1998: SABU- "BETWEEN THE LIGHT" (v)

2006: JESSE DAMON- "REBEL WITHIN" (g)

2007: PAUL SABU- "STRANGE MESSIAH" (g, v)

"

Great melodic HARD rock

Justin Gaines | Northern Virginia | 04/11/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"2007's Strange Messiah is the latest release from Paul Sabu, one of the most prolific guitarist/singer/songwriter/session musician/producers you've never heard of. Aside from his own solo work, Sabu has been quite active behind the scenes with several AOR/melodic rock artists over the past three decades.



Strange Messiah is one seriously heavy album. There's a strong Y&T/Whitesnake feel to Sabu's sound, but this album has a noticeably harder edge, specifically with Sabu's muscular voice. It's also a very melodic album, and is full of great guitar hooks and solos, irresistible melodies, and the kind of rock anthems that always seem to sound best when you're driving your car with the volume up, singing along and keeping time on your steering wheel.



Fans of high quality melodic (hard) rock, especially artists like Pretty Maids or Jorn (two other stars on the Frontiers/Locomotive roster), will definitely want to check out Strange Messiah. Old school hard rock fans wondering why nobody seems to make this kind of music anymore are also in for a real treat when they discover Paul Sabu.

"