Subject...Aldo Nova

Subject...Aldo Nova

Track Listings

1. Subject's Theme

2. Armageddon (Race Cars)

3. Armageddon

4. Monkey on Your Back

5. Hey Operator

6. Cry Baby Cry

7. Victim of a Broken Heart

8. Africa (Primal Love)

9. Hold Back the Night

10. Always Be Mine

11. All Night Long

12. War Suite

13. Prelude to Paradise

14. Paradise

Tracks:

Subject's Theme
Armageddon (Race Cars)
Armageddon
Monkey On Your Back
Hey Operator
Cry Baby Cry
Victim Of A Broken Heart
Africa (Primal Love)
Hold Back The Night
Always Be Mine
All Night Long
War Suite
Prelude To Paradise
Paradise

Customer Reviews:

Aldo Nova - Subject.......2006-05-10

This album is an absolute work of art. Aldo Nova did not lose anything in the time it took to make his second album. His combination of great vocals blended with wonderful well thought out instruments, made an album to be remembered. I bought the record the first day of it's release back in 1983 and have had it since. Sadly I have not been able find the cd. This album was just as good as his self entitled album which contained "Fantasy". I would have to agree with another review which says "get this cd at any cost."

Canada's answer to Tony MacAlpine.......2006-03-09

It's a shame that most of Aldo Nova's commercial success is restricted mostly to a single song ("Fantasy" from his first release) because this guy is one of the most incredibly talented musicians the rock world has ever heard. As much as I enjoy "Fantasy", his next album has even better songs.

Aldo Nova released 5 excellent albums (Aldo Nova in 1982; Subject: Aldo Nova in 1983; Twitch in 1985; Blood On The Bricks in 1991; and Nova's Dream in 1997). I love all of them, but Subject is my personal favorite. He is one of the great guitarists and a darn good singer. He has also played bass, keyboards, and drum / percussion machines on many of his songs (alongside some studio guests). This guy is a VERSATILE musician (reminds me of Tony MacAlpine, who has exhibited great mastery for both keyboards and guitars as has Aldo Nova).

Subject begins with the instrumental trio of Subject's Theme, Armageddon (Race Cars), and Armageddon. Some cool keyboards in the beginning, followed by motor-sound reminescent of a day at the auto races, and then BOOM!! - the fast-paced Armageddon kicks in with some of Aldo Nova's most memorable fretwork.

"Monkey On Your Back" was the first song here to recieve much airplay on the heavy rock radio stations. Lyrically it takes on an anti-heroin abuse theme. It's a memorable, heavy guitar riff with some interesting voice synthesizer accompaniment and more memorable guitar soloing. Probably my personal favorite from Subject. "Always Be Mine" was the other single released from Subject - a more commercially friendly tune than the former.

"Hey Operator" and "Cry Baby Cry" are two fast-paced rockers heavy laden with keyboard work, and the latter has yet another very memorable guitar solo. "All Night Long" is another fast-pace roker with some heavy keyboard emphasis. All of these are as good as anything that came from Aldo's debut release.

"Victim Of A Broken Heart is a ballad, as is "Paradise" that finishes off the record. I do like both of those songs, although I think Aldo Nova's best ballad was to follow on his next release, "Surrender Your Heart" from TWITCH.

"Africa (Primal Love)" has Aldo Nova making some interesting animal sounds with his guitar (Van Halen fans have listened to Eddie to the same thing also) accompanied with some tribal-sounding beats on the drums and atmospheric keyboards. "Always Be Mine" and "Hold Back The Night" are very melodic tracks. Reminds me of the likes Dokken and maybe the Scorpions.

It's too bad that only Aldo Nova's debut CD is still in print, as he had a LOT to offer the hard rock community with his other release that are even better. Most of his out-of-print stuff is now rare and very difficult to find, and some of those CD's can be quite pricey (at this writing, I've seen Subject sell for over $50 and Nova's Dream sell for almost $90!). So if you can grad those CD's cheap, do it FAST!! Aldo Nova is nowadays writing songs for other artists like Celine Dion, and I've not heard anything in YEARS to indicate he will be releasing more solo recordings.

(Incidentally, his real name is Aldo Caporuscio.)

Nova's masterpiece.......2005-06-15

Subject... Aldo Nova (1983.) Aldo Nova's second album.

Aldo Nova was a guitar god - no questions asked. Although pretty much forgotten in this modern age due to his retirement and changing musical trends, those who do discover his music will not deny that it is an excellent sound no one else ever had or ever will. His 1982 debut spawned Fantasy, an AOR staple that gets heavy radio play, even to this day - it's just a shame it would be his only really big hit. Later releases of his wouldn't get the same hype, sadly. His second album, Subject... Aldo Nova, arrived in 1983. Read on for my review.

I wasn't expecting Aldo Nova's sophomore album to top his debut - I'd heard it was awkwardly progressive and Nova's sophomore jinx. I'd also heard it didn't top the debut. None of that crap was true. THIS IS ALDO NOVA'S ULTIMATE ALBUM. The album is progressive, melodic, and hard rocking - three things I LOVE from rock albums. The sound here is, in my opinion, a better one than the one Nova used on his debut (and that's saying a lot since I LOVED his debut!) Rather than Loverboy-esque hard pop rock, Nova's sophomore album opts for a melodic heavy sound - one that he would never top in my personal opinion. There are a lot of brief instrumentals on this album, and every one of them showcases Nova's guitar virtuoso skills. This is one of those albums that's tough to put into words - experiencing it for yourself is the best way to get an opinion for it. Admittingly, it's possible you'll like Nova's first album more than this one (it's the one most people remember him for), so I recommend buying that one first, and if you want to beyond the debut, buy Subject. More likely than not, you won't regret it.

Sadly, all of Aldo Nova's albums are long out of print, with the lone exception of his recently-reissued self-titled debut. Hopefully his entire catalogue will get the same treatment the debut album did, since that isn't his ONLY good album. If you want to get Subject... in the meantime, you're likely gonna have to order it or find a used copy.

Subject... Aldo Nova RULES. Aldo Nova's debut was a masterpiece, but this is (in my opinion) a superior album! I really think Nova found a sound all his own with this release (while I loved the debut album, I did find it to be a bit cheesy at times (not that that's a bad thing) and too similar to Loverboy at places.) I give this album my strongest recommendation, but only after you've heard Nova's debut. THIS is the best Aldo Nova album, but you'll appreciate it more if you here his first album first.

DIE HARD ALDO NOVA FAN.......2004-10-15

I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A BIG FAN OF ALDO NOVA EVER SINCE THE DEBUT.
I FOUND "SUBJECT" TO BE RATHER INTERESTING. DELIGHTFULLY DIFFERENT. ALL THE TRACKS WERE PUT TOGETHER VERY INTELLEGENTLY. ALL THE SONGS BLEND TOGETHER BEAUTIFULLY.
ALDO NOVA IS BY FAR A MUSICAL GENUIS!

Maybe you had to be there..........2004-08-01

...but the truth is, if you were watching MTV in the early '80's or listening to AOR you were well familiar with a song/video called "Fantasy" by a guy called Aldo Nova...it's a song that still finds its place in the rotation for "classic rock" radio stations even today.

And even though the follow-up single/video, "Ball And Chain" was pretty good, you wondered just what this guy was capable of; he had already proved that he COULD BE Canada's Paul McCartney (at least in the sense that he could play all required instruments and perform all necessary vocals on a successful debut album).

"Subject...", sadly out-of-print as of this writing, proves that indeed the potential was there. This early Bon Jovi protege' (see the liner notes for the "Bon Jovi" debut CD) proves that he was indeed a force to be reckoned with regarding the atmosphere in which the early 1980's recording industry was leading...hey, if Loverboy and April Wine could score gold and platinum records Stateside, why not a guy who could write, arrange, and perform most (if not all) the musical/vocal parts on a single album?

Possibly because Aldo tried to follow mid-'70's Canadian rock gods Rush into the realm of AOR success via the pretentious route of the "concept album"...always a dangerous trek for those better suited for the pop/rock genre...and unfortunately, Aldo found that the people who REALLY dug his debut album and those who loved Pink Floyd or Rush weren't exactly the same peer group.

Nonetheless, this album was received warmly enough so that Aldo was given the sandwich position in a North American tour with Blue Oyster Cult (headliners, obviously) and German heavy metal up-&-comers Accept (of "Balls To The Wall" fame).

Things looked good...it was a great tour (I saw it with primo seats), but for some reason the USA music press never caught on. Maybe Aldo Nova was lost under the radar. If so, that's a d@mn shame...because this guy is a musician's musician.

Anyway, this is a rather ambitious project for a guy releasing only (at the time) his 2nd album on a major label...and it is possible the label got cold feet at the prospect of releasing it...but the truth is there are a number of radio friendly songs on this album...see "Monkey On Your Back", "Hey Operator", "Victim Of A Broken Heart", "Always Be Mine", and "All Night Long".

Sequenced between those tracks are a number of "experimental" songs that give this album the degree of "what the f#$& was he thinking?" license that doom most prog-rock offerings to lore and legend...but the truth is that compared to both earlier and later releases, Aldo Nova was trying to get the most out of art for the sake of art itself. Whether this means anything coming from a guy with a mullet at the time is for history to decide...but the truth is that this an ambitious album that may well have been let down by its label...and the success of other video-oriented bands at the time.

For fans of early-'80's pop/rock, this is required listening. For people who wonder if Aldo Nova ever recorded anything after "Fantasy", prepare to be completely blown away. Find this one at all cost.

Music Info:

Music Info

music info

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