Wide Awake (In My Dreamland)

Wide Awake (In My Dreamland) is the seventh album, on which Jeff Scott Soto concentrated his experience across AOR, melodic rock and hard rock into one record. Released on Frontiers in November 2020; he calls it his “lucky number seven,” showing his attachment to it. Beyond the rich volume and variety of expression, he changes how phrases are placed song by song, conveying the melodies' emotion in fine detail. He has said they built on what fans expect of him while adding contemporary sounds. The dense keyboards and guitar from the co-production with Alessandro Del Vecchio support the vocals while building big choruses. Fabrizio Sgattoni's guitar and Edu Cominato's drums anchor the base, and August Zadra plays the lead on “Between the Lines.” From the advance single “Love's Blind” through “Someone to Love” to the title track, the flow is clear. CD versions also came with live material from the 2019 Frontiers Rock Festival. Rather than showing off flashy technique, it focuses on how a mature singer makes good melody work — a satisfying record.