Niv- I can agree with you to a point. But-- EVERYthing mimics something through past influences. It's up to the individual songwriter and their degree of talent to create something at least slightly fresh sounding and not be too close in copying their influences. And--here's another thought... How many current bands/artists have fans that date back as far as the 70's or 80's? Most of them likely think anyone that's listening to their material isn't old enough to have the originator's albums of these bands they are mimicking. If so-- they may be offbase,if this board has any credability. I know you're quite a bit younger than the average around here,but you still know alot about the 'vintage' acts discussed at length. My take is-- if it sounds a little bit original/fresh even tho it mimmicks something older, then it has potential to be very good. I'm thinking that Erik's songwriting style just gets old fast,as it's VERY predictable. Now,for those that want to hear more Journey,Survivor,Toto,blahblah soundalike AOR ad infinitum,then I guess it's all good. Personally, I think it's pretty quality stuff that EM writes. Just not quite fresh sounding enough to these ears--I haven't boughten anything by his pen yet. overall,I'd rather see these type of cds out there than all the crap that gets released. T