This feels like a total late-80s time capsule.
Everything about Into the Street — the giant hooks, glossy production, dramatic vocals, and soaring guitar work — sounds like it should’ve been blasting out of car radios sometime around 1986 instead of 1990.
That’s what makes this really fun.
Boulevard sits somewhere between AOR, melodic hard rock, and radio-friendly arena rock. It never goes fully over the top like Poison, but it definitely lives in that world. At times, I was reminded of Foreigner, with big choruses, clean arrangements, and songs built to sound huge. There’s a pop sensibility running through the album, too, with keyboards and harmonies playing just as important a role as the guitars.
“Talk to Me” is an incredible opener for this kind of album. It has the kind of immediate, radio-ready energy that makes it sound like an obvious lead single to my ears. Randy Gould’s guitar work is sharp and melodic, the rhythm section gives the song a strong push, and David Forbes delivers the vocals with a confident, slightly gritty edge. He’s got exactly the kind of voice this music needs: powerful enough to sell the drama, but controlled enough to keep the melody front and center.
“Where Is the Love,” takes a different approach. It’s a moody, mid-tempo song built around atmospheric keyboards and a more serious emotional tone. The chorus is especially good, with the layered vocals and harmonies giving it a much bigger sound. Whether that’s double-tracking or the band joining Forbes, the arrangement works beautifully. His voice remains the centerpiece, but the way everything comes together around him gives the song real lift.
“Lead Me On” brings the guitars back to the forefront with another big melodic-rock chorus. The song has a sweeping quality, helped by the slide guitar, and it sits comfortably between hard rock and radio-friendly pop. It doesn’t need to be particularly heavy to make an impression; the hook does most of the work.
“Eye of the Hurricane” is almost pure pop-rock, with a bright, upbeat melody and a chorus that sounds ready for a movie soundtrack. I could imagine this playing over a montage in Pretty Woman. There’s a Richard Marx quality to its clean, accessible songwriting, though Boulevard gives it enough guitar-driven energy to keep it firmly in rock territory.
“Light of Day” is more dramatic and theatrical. The arrangement builds gradually, giving the song a sense of scale without relying solely on a big chorus. The keyboards help create that expansive atmosphere, while the guitars and drums add momentum as the song develops. It’s one of the album’s more ambitious moments, and it shows how effectively the band can use dynamics rather than simply going full blast from the beginning.
“Crazy Life” leans into the anthemic side of the band’s sound. The chorus is designed to stick, with Forbes pushing the melody and the band filling out the arrangement behind him. Boulevard has a knack for making these songs feel big without losing sight of the tune, and this is another good example of that approach.
“Rainy Day in London” is the obligatory rock-band ballad, slowing things down and giving the vocals room to breathe. It’s earnest and does what you’d expect from a song like this. The saxophone adds a little extra color, helping it stand apart from a standard guitar-and-keyboard power ballad.
“Where Are You Now” moves back toward pop-rock. It has a lighter touch than some of the album’s bigger anthems, with a melody that reminded me of Huey Lewis and the News if they were a little more firmly rooted in rock. The song’s clean arrangement and easygoing hook make it another example of Boulevard’s ability to make accessible music without stripping away the guitars.
“Need You Tonight” brings the energy back up with a strong groove and another catchy chorus. The guitars and drums give it plenty of forward motion, and Forbes sounds right at home with the more forceful delivery. There’s a solid rock song here, even if I wish the production gave it a little more muscle.
“Eye to Eye” gives the album another dose of melodic hard rock. The guitars have a little more bite here, and the band sounds comfortable balancing its heavier side with the big vocal melodies and carefully arranged backing.
The production is my main reservation. The mix sounds a little thin, lacking the bass weight and punch that would give the guitars and drums more muscle. The performances are solid throughout, and I wish the sound let them hit harder.
Still, if AOR and melodic rock are your thing, Into the Street is about as good as this style gets. Forbes is a terrific fit for the material, the hooks are strong, and Boulevard know how to make a chorus soar. This isn’t quite my kind of rock, but I can appreciate how well they do it.
Verdict: Worth a Spin
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