SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: TODD RUNDGREN – ARENA (REISSUE)

TODD RUNDGREN
ARENA (REISSUE)
CLEOPATRA RECORDS

Arena is Todd Rundgren’s 19th studio album, originally released in 2008. This is a straight re-release of that album making it its first appearance on vinyl. The CD version, however, features three bonus tracks.

Arena is one of Rundgren’s total solo projects, and featured Rundgren playing all the instruments, producing and engineering the album, and even designing the album sleeve. Although the album opens with the melodic and acoustic-based “Mad”, the album quickly becomes a much more guitar-based rocking affair. Songs like “Strike” open with some pretty heavy power chords, and Rundgren proves he can yell out lyrics with the best of them. He does sprinkle in some surprises, such as the synth-based “Today”. The album is a pretty hard-rocking album.

The bonus tracks are interesting, his cover of “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away” sticks pretty close to the original, while his cover of “21st Century Schizoid Man” is an absolute tour de force with very strong vocals from Rundgren. The third bonus track, “Worlds On Hold” is from an album in which Rundgren was involved, The Prog Collective. These three songs add a little to the original, which is a good, strong album. It is a heavy album and one that fans will welcome on vinyl.

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