“Forever More” opens the seventh studio record by Tesla and features a creepy, yet catchy, acoustic guitar intro. The heavy guitars enter with Jeff Keith’s vocals, while a clean guitar remains in the background. This tune is a classic example of how the triple guitar attack can still work well together. There is a beautiful acoustic interlude at 3:14, which is reminiscent of the intro to Ozzy Osbourne’s “Diary of a Madman.” The guitar solo is short but tight, and appropriately transitions the song to the final chorus [DOWNLOAD]. 8/10

“I Wanna Live” is a fun rocker that keeps the snare drum pounding throughout the verses, while the guitars make full use of the separate left and right channels. The song’s verses sound similar to the style of rock, heard in Ram Jam’s “Black Betty.” 7/10

“One Day At A Time” has an energetic and catchy clap-along feel. The lead guitar at 1:42 contains cool runs and pull-offs that would make Angus Young proud. However, the chorus of the tune sounds very predictable. 7/10

“So What” begins with a heavy wah guitar while the rhythm guitar plays the main power chords in a punk rock rake style. The verses are mellow, providing a nice contrast in the song. 7/10

“Just In Case” is a power ballad that begins with a short lead guitar part in the intro. This track seems to be a love song about making it into Heaven — Hey, it worked for most bands in the 80s, and it still sounds good today, no matter how cheesy the power ballad formula may be. 8/10

“Fallin’ Apart” is another ballad that contains an acoustic intro with a lead guitar in the foreground. This track is a predictable tune about love, forever, breaking up, and trying to hang on. This is another predictable song but it is also another catchy one. 7/10

“Breakin’ Free” opens up like a Def Leppard track but is also reminiscent of a modern rock song often heard on mainstream radio in the 90s. There is a cool sounding scale that the lead guitar uses before the choruses. 7/10

“All of Me” has a heavy beginning with light keyboards. The verse has a dark feel while the chorus has a happy pop-punk feel — a simple strategy that has been scientifically proven to work. 7/10

“The First Time” contains a dark sounding clean guitar intro and verse before breaking out into the most uplifting power chorus heard from Tesla in years. The listener has great trouble resisting the cracking of a slight smile of joy during the refrain. [DOWNLOAD] 8/10

“Pvt. Ledbetter” is a letter to a soldier that expresses thanks for their service. This song will go over like a Toby Keith stadium anthem when Tesla performs this tune in the southern states. 7/10

“In A Hole Again” begins with a clean guitar in the style of Metallica’s “The Day That Never Comes.” When the song kicks on the distorted guitars in the chorus, the tune becomes less exciting, and more like a filler track. Jeff Keith also has a strange vocal effect at 2:45. However, the song does get more interesting. Check out 3:05 for a great guitar riff that makes the listener want to throw the devil horns straight in the air. This riff serves as a perfect segue into an extended epic guitar solo. This song had the potential to be the best one on the recorded. 7/10

“The Game” ends the album with a heavy riff-driven power surge of evil — it is straight forward energetic classic heavy metal [DOWNLOAD]. 8/10

Overall, the guitar work of Frank Hannon and Dave Rude are by far the high points of Forever More. Jeff Keith does not sound quite as awesome as he used to, but he can still adequately front the band. Fans of Tesla and big guitar rock will definitely enjoy this record, and that is exactly who rock bands from the 80s should aim to please.

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