House of Lords - Sahara [FLAC+MP3](Big Papi) Metal 1990

"Sahara" is the second studio album by American melodic hard rock super-group "House of Lords" originally released in 1990. This second full-length effort found the "Lords" under a slightly different line-up than the original, featuring lead singer James Christian, keyboardist Craig Giuffria, bassist Chuck Wright, drummer Ken Mary along with new entry guitarist Michael Guy. The album also features guitar contributions by such heroes of the genre as Chris Impellitteri, Doug Aldrich and Rick Nielsen.

While fitting perfectly within the pomp hard rock genre, "Sahara" was substantially differentiated from its predecessor in terms of musical style. The song-writing would rely much more on riffs and tempos rather than melodies; at the same time integrating eastern-scale harmonies to the structures. The eastern-vibe is mainly traceable on Greg's keyboard arrangements, being an element that would partly characterize the group's later releases.

James Christian once again proves himself the ideal singer/front-man for the group, perfectly adapting to the demands of the compositions though the end result is far less catchy than the material found on their debut album. In addition this effort features a surprising consistency in tempos, for the biggest part being either standard or slow pace; clearly a far cry from the rhythmic variety found on later "Lords" releases. While far from the greatest moment in the "House of Lords" catalogue, "Sahara" offers a fair amount of memorable songs namely "Can't find my way home", "It ain't love" plus the classic/minor hit ballad "Remember my name" possibly the album's strongest moment.