Swedish Hit Makers Back On Target (Room Service - Roxette)

Member Name: naffcaff

Product:	Room Service - Roxette
Date:	21/05/02 (160 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Commercial, Wide appeal, Crafted and well produced

Disadvantages: Rock purists will probably dislike this

Roxette, purveyors of mass appeal pop for 12 years, return after a brief absence with an album of tracks aimed straight at the European charts.

Per and Marie have populated the UK charts throughout the late 80s and early 90s with hits like The Look, Listen To Your Heart and Joyride. But it's tough at the top and although the gigs never dried up, the hits did around the mid 90s. However, as well as an ability to write great tunes with word perfect English lyrics, the Scandinavians also have a knack of offering bands with staying power and Roxette have risen again with this album which is almost as fresh as their early material.

Fans of their powerful ballads are well served by the melancholic Bringing Me Down To My Knees. The 80s brought us some pretty awful power ballads, which we prefer to forget some 15 years onwards. Per and Marie have always been the true power ballad leaders with just enough fuel to keep the rock purists happy.

The outright slushy Milk And Toast And Honey is pleasant and understandably the first single release. Real Sugar and Fool will not disappoint those favouring their uplifting rock/pop tunes.

Even the trademark Roxette chant, the catchy hook featured on many of their earlier hits reappears on The Centre Of The Heart, showing that it's business as usual for this Swedish hit-making duo.

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