Following the success of their 1990 eponymous major-label debut, Vicious Rumors embarked on a grueling tour supporting several other A-level pop-metal acts and then returned to the studio for their follow-up.
The results were less than commercially successful, but that's more of a reflection on music and cultural mainstream shifts away from heavy metal and embracing the new-to-them music that was known as grunge.
Welcome to the Ball pretty much treads the same water as their last album, but does it in a way that is tight and focused.
"Abandoned" sounds a bit like Iron Maiden's epic anthem "Caught Somewhere in Time" and Carl Albert has never sounded more like Bruce Dickinson -- but that's a mere oversight when listening to the quality of this album as a whole.
This was also the second in a series of releases reissued in 2005 on the Wounded Bird imprint, and would be worth seeking out for both die-hard fans and metal fanatics alike.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AbandonedMiss C.J. Albert, Mark McGee, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:15 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 2 | You Only Live TwiceMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 03:37 | 8 MB | 26 MB |
| 3 | Savior From AngerMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 4 | ChildrenMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:55 | 11 MB | 32 MB |
| 5 | Dust to DustMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 30 MB |
| 6 | Raise Your HandsMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:02 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 7 | Six StepsistersMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 03:31 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 8 | MastermindMiss C.J. Albert, Wayne Shorter, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 03:54 | 8 MB | 27 MB |
| 9 | When Love Comes DownMiss C.J. Albert, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:58 | 11 MB | 34 MB |
| 10 | Ends of the EarthMiss C.J. Albert, Moss, Geoff Thorpe | Vicious Rumors | Play | 03:12 | 7 MB | 24 MB |
| 11 | Strange Behaviour | Vicious Rumors | Play | 04:07 | 9 MB | 30 MB |
| 45 mins | 103 MB | |||||
| 45 mins | 320 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miss C.J. Albert | Composer |
| 2 | Carl Albert | Group Member, Vocal Harmony, Vocals |
| 3 | Larry Howe | 8-String Bass, Bass, Drums, Group Member |
| 4 | Mark McGee | Composer, Group Member, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mixing, Producer, Vocal Harmony, Vocals (Background) |
| 5 | Moss | Composer |
| 6 | Michael Rosen | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| 7 | Michael Rosen | Producer |
| 8 | Wayne Shorter | Composer |
| 9 | Dave Starr | Bass |
| 10 | David Starr | Group Member |
| 11 | Geoff Thorpe | Composer, Group Member, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mixing, Producer, Vocals (Background) |
| 12 | Vicious Rumors | Primary Artist |
| 13 | Vincent Wojno | Assistant Engineer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |