FM (UK) Old Habits Die Hard review

Old Habits Die Hard it is the album that marks the 40th anniversary of FM, a sublime British AOR band capable of maintaining an impressive level of quality through fourteen albums published between 1986 (the year of the essential Indescreet) and, indeed, today.
Once again, in Old Habits Die Hard Steve Overland’s very clean voice confirms itself as the brand of elegance that distinguishes FM among a thousand clones, together with a package of melodies, sounds and arrangements that sees no moment of slowing down in the eleven pieces that make up the album. And, perhaps, this time the band really wanted to carve grooves that were destined to mark an important glimpse of its history, the composition of the pieces having been overshadowed, first, by the cancer diagnosis of keyboardist Jem Davis (fortunately, which resolved as best as possible). ) and, therefore, by the death of Chris Overland, Steve’s brother and guitarist who was among the founders of FM.
Out of The Blue opens Old Habits Die Hard great, with its refined mid-tempo that immediately refers to the greats of AOR, above all Foreigner.
Don’t Need Another Heartache has a great groove that supports an ascending climax of guitars until it flows into a full chorus that is a bit reminiscent of Dare.
No Easy Way Out is a decidedly 1980s AOR (and that’s a plus), while Lost, Another Day in My World and Leap of Faith represent the harder side of FM. Leap of Faith highlights the British band’s innate tendency to develop crystalline and never banal melodies, which here are reminiscent of those of the Stage Dolls. Another Day in My World, on the other hand, is almost theatrical and dramatic, a candidate to deserve the award for the best piece of the lot.
California is a typical highway song, to be played at maximum volume while racing along an artery that crosses the United States. And if Cut Me Loose flows smoothly without leaving much of a memory, Blue Sky Mind hits the mark. Written by Jem Davis on his experience of fighting the disease, Blue Sky Mind has a great chorus, which never ceases to be appreciated even after numerous listens and joins Another Day in My World as the highest point of Old Habits Die Hard.
Black Water is an intimate and, at the same time, pompous ballad, capable of alternating different atmospheres thanks above all to a very elegant arrangement that best enhances the structure of the piece.
In short, with Old Habits Die Hard FM only confirms what we would have expected from them even 40 years after the band was founded. We repeat: we will never cease to be amazed by the monstrous level of quality of the productions of the British, musicians and authors still full of ideas, enthusiasm and dynamism after all these decades. In these historic bands that have never been tamed lies the lifeblood of a genre that never stops regenerating itself in new generations who pay respect to those who contributed to that genre, first, to forge and then to keep alive. Thank you, FM: we will always owe you a lot.