I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I’m reviewing the new Honeymoon Suite album, Wake Me Up When the Sun Goes Down, on July 1 – Canada Day. The ninth studio album from these enduring Canadian rockers will be released via Frontiers Music Srl on July 25.
Fun fact: In 1983, the band entered a demo of their soon-to-be-hit song, “New Girl Now,” into a contest hosted by Toronto rock station Q107. Winning the contest led to a multi-album deal with WEA Canada, signed by industry legend Bob Roper!
The first single from the new release, “I Fly,” is classic Honeymoon Suite and breathes new life into their unmistakable 80’s melodic rock-inspired sound. It’s an upbeat anthem with nothing in it to dislike.
Derry Greham (guitars, keyboards, backing vocals), shares, “I had originally come in with the music that ended up becoming ‘I Fly.’ We had a great chorus and we knew the track could be super cool if we finished it right. There were several re-writes over the course of a few months, but we finally hit on a really great verse and pre-chorus that rolled perfectly into the ‘I Fly’ chorus.”
Honeymoon Suite pride themselves on their ability to evolve while keeping their classic sound intact -resonating with both new and old listeners alike. There’s no better example of that than the third track, “Every Minute.” This song will appeal to rockers from 8 to 80!
Lead vocalist, Johnnie Dee, flexes his musical muscle on “Stay This Time.” Range, depth, soul. He gives it his all on this introspective track.
And just when you think this band is firmly entrenched in the pop rock category, they hit us upside the head with “Crazy Life.” Greham’s sizzling guitar takes center stage on what may be my favorite cut on the album.
The closer, “Ever Leave You Lonely,” left me wanting more. These guys haven’t lost a musical step in their four plus decades of rocking the True North and beyond.
While the 90s brought lineup changes to the band, the early 2000s saw the reunion of the original members — Johnnie, Derry, Gary Lalonde on bass and Dave Betts on drums — along with the addition of keyboardist Peter Nunn, a lineup that remains strong to this day.
I’ve heard them described as “a Canadian version of Night Ranger.” I think that’s both a compliment and a pretty accurate comparison.
If you liked their two biggest and timeless classic hits, “New Girl Now,” and “Feel it Again,” you’re going to like Wake Me Up When the Sun Goes Down. I definitely did!
I’m Music Magazine Writer Steve Pawlowski
HONEYMOON SUITE are:
Johnnie Dee – lead vocals
Derry Greham – guitars / keyboards / backing vocals
Dave Betts – drums
Gary Lalonde – bass
Peter Nunn – keyboards
I am a lifelong fan of this band, and even like a lot of their 90’s output. While I found Clifton Hill, and Alive very much a strong return to form; to me WMUWTSGD feels more like B sides or leftover recordings that didnt make it onto the last album. I back this up by the fact that it was a year between albums; and historically that’s not this bands usual pace.
All this said it is not a bad album; just far from their best. 6.5/10
You may be onto something about the B-sides/leftover tracks. That was rather quick of them to be putting out another album. Let’s hope the next one is all new and delivered in a timely pace.