Released: 1983
Tracks: Separate Ways (Worlds Apart); Send Her My Love; Chain Reaction; After the Fall; Faithfully; Edge of the Blade; Troubled Child; Back Talk; Frontiers; Rubicon
Best track: Rubicon (no, I’m not lying)
Track to skip: Back Talk
It’s funny; right as I was about to type some stupid intro sentence about this album I realized what this album exactly means to me. What I mean, is that Frontiers was The Album that really got so much of my life rolling. This was the first music that I really ever latched on to. I first heard this somewhere around 12/19/85…right after my 10th birthday. Ha! Wow. And I just turned 30 the other day. Gee, that’ll put it all into perspective. I have been listening to this album almost 20 years on the nose and definitely have been listening to this longer than any other album. Before I heard Frontiers I had no direction. There were a few things I liked, but nothing really grabbed me. I think back in ’85 the only thing I could say that I ‘liked’ was Weird Al, and even then, I’ve *still* never bought any of his stuff. So, my brother asked for this album for his birthday (December 19th obviously) and I got it for him and I still remember that first listen sitting down in his room
straining to read the lyric sheet in that small cassette foldout. I *immediately* connected with this album, and this band, from the first notes of Separate Ways. (Heh, thankfully I wasn’t introduced to the song by that video!) But yes, Journey gave me direction. For someone who in 5 years would become a musician, it was a pivotal moment. It’s funny, but so much of my musical existence has been defined by specific albums: Frontiers, Live After Death, Discipline, A Picture of Nectar, Läther, Dancing. It’s really those points that made me the kind of musician who I am right now (well, that and practice!).
I still enjoy listening to Frontiers. It’s not as strong as Escape, but then, I don’t think it ever was. For some reason it feels like this *album* gets kind of neglected. I’m not referring to the massive hit singles (Separate Ways, Send Her My Love and Faithfully), but the other tracks make me think that. Is this an overlooked album? Maybe, but I’ll definitely say that side 2 is COMPLETELY neglected and usually never mentioned. Chain Reaction, right in the middle of side 1? Great song, totally forgotten about. I really like side 2 though (oh, side 2 being Edge of the Blade through Rubicon). I seem to recall I always have. Obviously the hits on side 1 are good songs and obviously you can tell those would be more popular than the others. Side 2…to me it’s one of the more experimental album sides the band ever released. Although I don’t care for Back Talk as a song, there’s no denying it’s one of the heaviest songs Journey ever wrote. Nice Eddie Van Halen type guitar work from Neal Schon on this track. But those other 4 songs on this side are all pretty different from typical Journey songs. Both the title track and Rubicon are kinda futuristic sounding. Or at least what “futuristic” was in 1983. They’re both cool songs and I really love Rubicon. Such a cool track. Yes I like those hits on side 1 (sometimes a bit cheesy, but still good songs), but side 2 has always been that cool zone for me.
OK, yes, there are things I love about side 1. I mentioned Chain Reaction. That might be my second favorite on the album. I’m always partial to the rockers I think. That’s just the ‘rock’ guy in me. Let the girls have the ballads! Actually, I’m a romantic sap too so I dig the slow ones. I really love those bad ass bass harmonics in Send Her My Love. Ross Valory is such a great bass player. I guess he didn’t mind being 4th fiddle behind Steve Perry, Neal Schon & Jonathan Cain…hell, Steve Smith too. I’ve always loved his bass playing; tasteful and creative and *always* spot on. After the Fall is a nice song too, a little bit cheesy (it’s Journey after all), but a nice, sappy love song. Faithfully & Separate Ways? Of course, still good songs even if they’re overplayed. Frontiers isn’t as good as Escape, but it’s pretty solid. Naturally it will always have good memories for me. It’ll always be *that album* that got it all going.
Rating: 92
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