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Album Details

• Artist: Heart
• Album: Fanatic
• Label: Legacy
• Year of Release: 2012
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: gwhill on 2012-12-26

I really like this album a lot. There are moments that seem so much like vintage Heart that you’ll feel like you’ve been taken through a time machine. Still, there is a more modern tone to a lot of it. That makes this a great continuation of the musical legacy of Heart.

The album opens with the title track, which is really the kind of thing one expects from Heart. It’s a hard rocker that really feels like it could have come from one of the group’s 1970s albums. There’s a great funky instrumental section and the piece makes great use of a Fender Rhodes. Certain songs on the disc call to mind Led Zeppelin, but considering that the group was originally completely enthralled by Page, Plant and company, that makes perfect sense. “Walkin’ Good” is the one oddity of the set. Sarah McLachlan guests on the tune, and while a good number, it doesn’t really feel like Heart.

“Skin and Bones” is another that’s rather unusual. There are sections that feel closer to guitar oriented jazz, but more stripped down bits that are closer to blues. The first minute or so of “A Million Miles” feels almost like progressive rock. It’s a great tune, but a definite change-up from the classic Heart sound. When one hears “Rock Deep (Vancouver)” it might be easy to imagine it’s 1976. Clearly the balladic number feels like it comes from that period of Heart’s history.

Overall, this disc really is a return to form in some ways for Heart. Yet, at the same time this isn’t some kind of tribute. There are points where the group seem to be stretching and experimenting. It’s sure to please long-time Heart fans. Well, at least the ones who got into the group before they experimented with the pop stylings that linked them to glam metal in the 1980s. That never really seemed to be natural for Heart, and this album feels very natural and very much like Heart.

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