Head First by Prowess

Rock music-a genre that is either really, really loved or really, really hated.  It's had its ups and downs, victories and struggles, been mocked and frowned upon by society, and has had its fair share of stereotypes.

As for me, it is the one genre (other than blues, classical, and jazz) that motivates me, makes me feel I can do anything.  

That and more is what I feel when I listen to Prowess' (Charlotte, North Carolina) debut album, Head First.  To the best of my knowledge, this is the first debut CD that starts off with the sound effects of someone in battle, "Thunder Underfoot". "Warriors, are you ready?...CHARGE!"   

That they do in a mere five songs.

"Show Me"

"Killing a Giant"

"Overboard"

"Shaker""

"No Survivors"

It's as if certain members of Tesla, Def Leppard, and KISS had sat with them in the studio and advised them of the fun, the underlying yet overpowering drive, and attraction to the opposite sex, respectively, that all and more are staples in rock music, even today.  Those three and more are what has amazed me about this CD, which at this writing, I must have heard at least a dozen times, while simply going about life. 

It's in "No Survivors" that I hear "We are the warriors, take no prisoners", in "Show Me," "Somebody turn the darkness to day...There's gotta be somethin' better than this...You gotta fight, you can't let it be...You gotta fight your heart out...You're not the only one to ever feel alone" in "Killing a Giant." Let me go out on a limb and say that "Shaker" is one of those songs a rock band just has to have.  A song like that is so rare these days.

While I could talk ad nauseum (and even after the cows come home) about how great the music sounds, I will emphasize a feature in rock bands I don't often get an opportunity to notice: the backup vocals. To be able to choose a few selections would be impossible and would not do justice for the rich talent I hear in them.  What I will say is, they flow so well even the so-called tone-deaf could sing them.

It's in my listening to Prowess that I will try to no longer lament that rock music is dead; please join me. We lifetime lovers of rock just have to search longer and more deeply to find it.  

However, what is mostly non-existent in today's rock music, even with those with classic rock elements to it, is making it to where the listener feels they can do anything.  I can envision kids listening to Head First, like the ones in the videos where they listen to Motley Crue or AC/DC. With that said, I suggest anyone, homemaker, fast-food cashier, construction worker, nurse, lawyer, or CEO of a top-five company listen to this CD.  If they do, they will all feel like they can do their part to, as President Donald Trump says, "Make America Great Again."

Morever, Prowess needs to be played by those serving in the military, going through a hard time in their lives (with their career, family, or their health), before a motivational speech, and at marathons (having run in five, myself).  Coming from me, that by no means is an exhaustive list of places and events I'd suggest. You may think I've gone off the deep end.  Obviously, as the bridge in "Overboard" says, "I'm going over."