Seven years after his last release (Touch, 2003), the Bad Company’s latest era performer comes back with a new album, this time through the bombardment of new releases by Frontiers, who recruit another 80s hero for their huge and ever growing roster.

For this particular album, Howe leaves the Bad Company “secure” recipe and presents a pure AOR set of songs, obviously US oriented. And this is exactly where you should place “Circus Bar”, since it is based mostly on music and melodies that where adored by fans on the other side of the ocean during the 80s and are still adored even by a more contemporary-mainstream-teenager rock audience.

As for the rest, the melodies are here and they are quite characteristic of the target Howe set with this album. And bull’s-eye it is and securely what it should be, at least twenty years ago. And that, because, today, there are so many young “rock stars” that can do the same thing and in the meantime put their face on every mainstream media there is. There is no question if they can do it better or worse. The thing is that it is just much more possible for Kelly Clarkson to be on the cover of the Rolling Stone than Brian Howe. And as this becomes more and more part of the natural order, music comes second.