KillerStar - The Afterglow
by Kevin Wierzbicki
This is the sophomore release from KillerStar, the David Bowie-influenced band helmed by singer, guitarist and keys player Rob Fleming and drummer James Sedge. The eight songs included on the album are all originals and the guys show bits of Bowie love here and there; a vocal inflection, a quirky melody, themes that seem like something Bowie might have explored. The main thing that this music has in common with Bowie's is that it is all full of hooks, radio-ready even, and quite memorable. And some of it is particularly Bowie-esque, like "So Easy" which reminds of "Rebel Rebel" and the driving title cut "The Afterglow." Adding to the
Bowie aura are the stellar side men that Fleming and Sedge have brought in: Bowie band alumni Mark Garson on keys, bass player Mike Plati, vaunted guitarist Earl Slick and on two songs, guitarist Gerry Leonard. Fleming and Sedge get superb performances out of all four players throughout but their talent really coalesces on the seven-and-a-half minute prog rocker "Rubicon" where Fleming's vocals are aided by sublime background vocals from The Webb Sisters, known for adding similar flourishes to the work of David Gilmour and who appear on every song here. "Proud," which gurgles along with an '80s synth groove, is one of the effort's hook-filled cuts that will have listeners singing along and that nods to Bowie in its vocal styling. Bowie left such a vast and varied catalog that if you wanted to put in the work you could probably find one of his songs that sounds like any given song here, but it is not that obvious. What is noticeable is that
The Afterglow is refreshingly good and meant to hold up to repeat play.
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