Aerosmith is one of the more recognizable classic American rock bands to date, and although they’ve gone through their share of album ups and downs, “Music From Another Dimension” does a fair job of reviving the band’s rock’n’roll origins.
Aerosmith is known for the battling musical tastes of lead singer Steven Tyler versus lead guitarist Joe Perry; Tyler comfortably melds rock into the realms of pop, while Perry tries to hold fast to the band’s rock roots.
This battle comes out in “Dimension” as styles range from the rowdy ‘80s metal influence in “Oh Yeah” to the acoustic, pop chorus ballad “Tell Me.”
At times it seems like “Dimension” does not know what sort of an album it is, with the influence to make “hit songs” only too evident in some of the band’s tracks. The album kicks off with “Luv XXX,” a tribute to their hard rock/rhythm and blues mixtures of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.
“What Could Have Been Love” sounds like a sequel to the “Armageddon” soundtrack. Country music fans as well as American Idol supporters will be pleased to hear Carrie Underwood’s vocals accompanying Tyler’s on “Can’t Stop Lovin You.” Yet just before your hopes drop and you believe rock’n’roll is dead, the band surprises listeners with explosive Perry-riffs and Tyler’s screeching vocals in rock hits like “Street Jesus” and “Legendary Child,” a previously unreleased single written in 1991.
How listeners treat this album will depend largely upon what type of Aerosmith fan they are—do they enjoy the pop sellouts from Tyler’s perspectives, or are they die-hard fans of Perry’s rock memorials? Nevertheless, this album maintains Aerosmith’s tradition of providing diverse music for the band’s multitude of opinions and influences, giving something for everyone to enjoy.
At its heart, “Dimension” gives listeners the classic Aerosmith experience. It’s part rock, part blues, part metal and part something obviously Top 40, but it’s one hundred percent genuine Aerosmith. 3 out of 5 stars.