Opting for a different producer,
Tommy Shaw works with
Richie Cannata, the saxophonist in
Billy Joel's band (their collaboration continued onto 1987's
Ambition). If
What If isn't as stylish as
Girls with Guns, it's certainly every bit as slick, slathered in synthesizers and gated drums, sometimes opting for fully robotic arrangements, as on the stiff funk of "Friendly Advice." With this MTV-ready palette in hand,
Shaw attempts to get serious, indulging in a bit of nuclear paranoia on "This Is Not a Test" while writing a bit about alcoholism on "Reach for the Bottle," odd choices on a record that also contains a fair number of power ballads, the
Springsteen wannabe "Bad Times," and the theme to Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins. Every song here is part of the puzzle that adds up to the sound of mainstream 1986, when it was still possible for arena rock refugees like
Shaw to score video hits but the window was closing rapidly. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine