Tale Music 2000
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,

This is only a single with one track, but I feel this band deserves the recognition. After all, Urban Tale are the first Finnish AOR band in ages, and a very good one too!

"One Day" is an awesome ballad in the Journey vein, yet retains the band's own identity. The production is good, and the band is full of capable musicians, but the biggest surprise were the vocals. Singer Kimmo Blom has a great voice, a bit like Steve Perry, and I can imagine him doing a fantastic job covering Journey tunes, as the band has done on a few occassions. What's more, I didn't notice a trace of finnish accent! The backing vocals were good too.

I am very much looking forward to hearing more "Urban Tales", and meanwhile, I suggest that you all visit the Urban Tale page at mp3.com , where you can listen to three of their songs. Currently they have "One Day", another ballad called "Still Strong" and a pop rocker "Passion Takes Over" available there, all very good!

Frontiers/Now & Then 2001
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
4 July 2001

Fellow Finns Urban Tale shook the AOR community last year with their awesome "One Day" single and aroused quite a bit of interest. Swedish production company Roastinghouse signed the band and locked them into their studio. Now the final product has been licensed to Frontiers/Now & Then, and it's here for all of us to hear.

Urban Tale has been called "The Finnish Journey", and granted, vocalist Kimmo Blom is a deadringer for Steve Perry. The songs are more or less in the Journey-vein too, although there are other influences to be heard as well. There's a bit of Toto here and a little bit of Tall Stories there... The production of the album seems to be very good, a classic AOR sound updated to meet the demands of 2001.

Songwise the band hit the bullseye on several occasions. The aforementioned "One Day (I'll Make You Mine") is still a fine ballad in the best Journey fashion, "Passion Takes Over" a good "7th One"-era Toto-like soft rocker and "Runaway Train" an excellent uptempo track with a very good chorus. The best of 'em all though is "King Of Hearts". Hidden between its' Toto-meets-Tall Stories -like verses is a chorus that most songwriters can only dream of, absolutely addictive even after the first listening! This song could take the radiowaves by a storm...DJ's and radio programmers all over the world, would you please wake up!

Frontiers/Now & Then 2001
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
4 July 2001

Suomen ylpeys Urban Tale järisytti AOR-piirejä viime vuonna loistavalla "One Day" -singlellään ja herätti paljon kiinnostusta. Ruotsalainen tuotantoyhtiö Roastinghouse otti bändin riveihinsä ja lukitsi heidät studioonsa. Nyt valmis tuote on lisenssoitu Frontiers/Now & Then-firmalle ja pitäisi olla kaikkien saatavilla.

Urban Talea on kutsuttu "Suomen Journeyksi", ja tottahan se on että laulaja Kimmo Blom kuulostaa todella paljon Steve Perryltä. Biisitkin ovat enemmän tai vähemmän Journey-tyyppisiä, mutta vaikutteita on otettu myös muualta, olin kuulevinani Tall Storiesia siellä ja Totoa tuolla...Tuotantopuolella ollaan onnistuttu hienosti, aikaan on saatu tyylikäs modernisoitu AOR-soundi.

Biisiosastolla bändi osuu napakymppiin useammin kuin kerran. Aiemmin mainittu "One Day (I'll Make You Mine") on edelleen hieno slovari parhaaseen Journey-malliin, "Passion Takes Over"-kevytrokkibiisi muistuttaa "7th One"-aikaista Totoa ja "Runaway Train" on erinomainen nopeatempoinen kappale mainiolla kertosäkeellä varustettuna. Levyn parhaaksi biisiksi nousee kuitenkin "King Of Hearts". Sen kevyellä kädellä soitettujen Tall Stories-meets-Toto -tyyppisten säkeistöjen väliin on piilotettu kertosäe josta useimmat lauluntekijät voivat vain haaveilla, äärimmäisen tarttuva jo ensi kuulemalta. Jos radioasemien ohjelmapäälliköt ymmärtäisivät hyvän päälle, tämä biisi voisi piristää kummasti soittolistoja.

Frontiers 2003
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallström,
26 January 2003

Son of a Gun indeed!! The finnish gunslingers of Urban Tale, return with yet another album filled with rock ammunition. They come out with all guns blasting really as everything from production to the performances from all musicians involved is very professionally done.

"Signs Of Times" was again recorded by Anders Theander (ex-Eurock, Bewarp) at the Roastinghouse studios in Sweden. Which stands for quality I may add! However, it's maybe too serious rock in the end?? Don't get me wrong! This is far from being a lousy CD! Still, I actually miss a couple of hooks here and there and they're playing a bit more complex music this time.