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HOT NEW REVIEWS
FAIRPORT
CONVENTION ‘GLADY’S LEAP’ (WOODWORM RECORDS/TALKING ELEPHANT/TENACITY
PUBLICITY/UK IMPORT)
Gladys' Leap is the 14th studio album of
the legendary band FAIRPORT CONVENTION, and it was originally released back in
1985, so this new CD release marks the 40th year anniversary of the
album. It captures the popular 1970s band in the typical 80s direction when
Folk had a sort of revival for a short while. It’s 70s folk in an 80s jacket,
so a bit catchier, vocal and radio chorus orientated than in the past (such can
be heard during a song like Honour And Praise and the drum machine domination
of the MIKE OLDFIELD ‘Moonlight Shadow’ ish My Feet Are Set For Dancing), but
the band was still telling folk stories throughout their songs. The band’s line
up consisted at the time of Simon Nicol - vocals, electric & acoustic
guitars, Dave Pegg - bass guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, double bass, vocals and Dave
Mattacks - drums, drum machine, keyboards, percussion, while the legendary
RICHARD THOMPSON and several others made a guest appearance. It might not be
their best album, it’s still an enjoyable album that only sounds a bit dated
here and there. It’s good it got a re-issue, so please be sure to check out
this new release of the rather lost forgotten 80s album of FAIRPORT CONVENTION.
The band is still going strong after almost 60 years in an almost original
line-up, so make sure to check them out at: https://www.fairportconvention.com/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
NATHAN MCEUEN ‘MY
ONE AND ONLY’ (MESA/BLUE MOON RECORDINGS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
The American singer/songwriter NATHAN MCEUEN is the
son of JON MCEUEN, who was the founding guitarist/banjo player of the legendary
American country rock band NITTY GRITTY DIRT BAND. Nathan has already done a
lot in his music career so far and shared the stage with some of the greatest
bands and musicians in pop music history, and he also has released several solo
albums, but this is the first time I get to hear this talented musician. He is
helped by a few well-known session musicians on his mini-CD My One And Only,
and without a doubt Nathan is someone to watch out for in the future, because
his music is very impressive! After a calm start, the mood changes into a happy
uptempo DANNY VERA/CHRIS ISAAKish shuffle pop/rock direction with a strong song
titled Lately. There’s a lot of fingerpicking classic 70s singer-songwriter
pop/rock going on throughout the material actually, while Nathan’s voice is
very impressive, and a song like the country/americana influenced Up To No Good
is definitely a catchy radio-ready hit if you ask me! Sticks & Stones is a
superb catchy little bluesy pop/rock tune (a la QUINN SULLIVAN), and perhaps
the best song, although closing track Beautiful Night has a cool Bossanova
influence. It’s a pity we only have 5 songs on offer here, because Nathan has a
lot of potential in releasing a sensational full-blown record if he continues
to sing and write such catchy tunes. Hopefully we will hear much more of him in
the future! More info can be found at: https://www.nathanmceuen.com/
(Points: 8.7 out
of 10)
EMMA SWIFT ‘THE
RESURRECTION GAME’ (TINY GHOST RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
The Australian singer/songwriter EMMA SWIFT lives in
Nashville, USA, and she released her debut album 5 years ago. That album was
filled with covers of BOB DYLAN songs, and besides a mini-CD, The Resurrection
Game is actually her first full-length solo-CD with nothing but self-written
material, and I must say that she did a great job. She is helped by a lot of
session musicians, and recordings took place at the Isle Of Wight, UK and
Nashville, Tennessee, USA. The music is calm and singer/songwriter, Americana
orientated, yet it’s Emma’s voice that gives it a sensational touch, because
she makes it sound absolutely beautiful! 10 songs are included, and right from
the start with Nothing And Forever until the very end with Signing Off With
Love, it’s a very enjoyable album to listen to! Definitely a big recommendation
here! More info at: https://emmaswift.bandcamp.com/album/the-resurrection-game
(Points: 8.3 out
of 10)
STEVE POSTELL
‘WALKING THROUGH THESE BLUES’ (QUARTO VALLEY RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
The American Singer, songwriter, guitarist, composer
and producer STEVE POSTELL has worked with many well-known musicians, such as
DAVID CROSBY, KENNY LOGGINS, JOHN OATES, THE IMMEDIATE FAMILY, etc. etc., and
he also released a few solo-records, of which Walking Through These Blues is
his latest effort. Musically speaking it is situated in the Americana/rootsy
rock/singer-songwriter/blues direction, and it’s actually quite diverse due to
the involvement of other musicians and singers. The list of guest singers and
musicians appearing on the album is very impressive, because you have LELAND
SKLAR on bass, the VENICE family on guest vocals, DAVID CROSBY on guest vocals,
guitarist WADDY WACHTEL, guitarist DANNY KORTCHMAR, bassist BOB GLAUB, drummer
RUSS KUNKEL, and many more, and these are all well-known musicians whom played
on countless albums the past 50-60 years! There are 12 songs in total on the
CD, and opener Bad Weather is a lovely midtempo southern bluesy rocker that
immediately shows we are dealing here with a great rocker who happens to sing
very well too! Following song is the titletrack Walking Through These Blues,
which is calmer wonderful semi-ballad with a bluesy AOR vibe (80s ERIC CLAPTON
meets JOHN MAYER), and once again showing that Steve has a lovely voice that
belts out these excellent melodies with the help of several guest singers. And
actually the whole album is a pleasure to listen to, because Steve is a great
singer and guitarplayer, and he writes these strong melodic tunes that stick in
your head after hearing them! Other highlights include the superb soulful
bluesy Buried Stone, the Americana/Westcoast singer-songwriter pieces When The
Lights Go Out and 100 Years Old (a la VENICE), the midtempo rocker In The
Presence Of A King and the beautiful westcoast-AOR piece Is This It. Do not
miss this little gem! More info at: https://stevepostell.com
(Points: 8.3 out
of 10)
SU ANDERSSON
‘POSTCARDS’ (FIRMA SU RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
The Swedish singer/songwriter SU ANDERSSON started
releasing albums at a later stage in her life, but since 2019 she has released
3 albums, of which Postcards is the latest CD. Su plays various instruments,
including guitar and synths, while also singing, writing and producing all of
her songs. She is helped by 4 more musicians on this new CD. Postcards tells a
story that leads us through different European cities to which Stu travelled in
the autumn of 2021, because each of the 10 included songs is dedicated to one
of those European cities. Musically speaking it is also a diverse affair, but
overall it might be called singer-songwriter orientated calmer
pop/rock/Americana with a few more uptempo based pop/rockers. The absolute
highlights are the uptempo Americana of Vertigo, the sax driven Transit and the
song Based On A True Story, which is a very strong midtempo bluesy rocker with
a nice catchy melody. Recommended to the fans of somewhat calmer honest
story-telling singer-songwriter pop/rock a la MARY GAUTHIER. More info at: https://www.suandersson.com/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
CHRIS ST. JOHN
‘NEVER WHERE I AM’ (HALO RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
Throughout his life CHRIS ST. JOHN was active as
lawyer for the US Secretary Of State and for a health and education project for
orphans worldwide, but also has a music career going on, which resulted in
several albums, of which Never Where I Am is his latest release. Musically
speaking it is heading into a 70s singer-songwriter and light Westcoast
pop-rock direction with memories of CHRISTOPHER CROSS, AMERICA, JIM GROCE and
JAMES TAYLOR during the album’s finest songs A Flower Blooms, Never Where I Am and
Heavy Lies The Crown. Nice job and a good one to check out if you’re into any
of the aforementioned musicians. More info at: https://chrisstjohnmusic.com/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
NOLAN MCKELVEY
‘HOW SMALL WE ARE’ (INDEPENDENT/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
NOLAN MCKELVEY is a talented
singer/songwriter/bassist/guitarist from the Lansing, Michigan, area in the
USA, and his new CD How Small We Are is a nice
Americana/Singer/Songwriter/Rootsy Rock affair which shows Nolan’s talent
during 10 self-written songs. There are several guest musicians, such as Jesse
Valenzuela (GIN BLOSSOMS), Jon Rauhouse (NEKO CASE, OLD 97’s), Nick Sterling
(WYVES), Stephanie Groot (MARK ZUBIA TRIO) and former bandmate Tim Kelly (THE
BENDERS, THE RESOPHENICS). Highlights include the slightly rockier Same
Conclusion (catchy tune), the bluesy Preparations and The Valley Of The Sun
(RYAN ADAMS style). Concluded, a nice recommended album to the fans of
Americana and rootsy rock light singer-songwriter. More info at: https://www.nolanmckelvey.com/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
KIMMIE RHODES
‘WEST TEXAS HEAVEN REVISITED’ (SUNBIRD RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
When you have WILLIE NELSON, WAYLON JENNINGS, TOWNES
VAN ZANDT and EMMYLOU HARRIS doing duets on your CD, then you’re obviously
doing something right. In this case it concerns the 1995 CD of Austin, Texas
based singer/songwriter KIMMIE RHODES, who released 15 more albums the past 40
years. The CD has now been re-released, and now contains some bonus tracks. The
music is of course country singer-songwriter orientated, sounding calm and
thanks to the duets that are included here a definite must for fans of aforementioned
legendary artists. Kimmie’s own voice has got a typical country twang that
makes it sound quite authentic. More info at: https://kimmierhodes.com/album/west-texas-heaven/
(Points: 7.5 out
of 10)
SISTER SPEAK
‘COMING HOME EP’ (RESO NATION/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
SISTER SPEAK is the recording alias of Canadian
singer, songwriter and guitarist Sherri Anne Nyberg, who also has Swedish
roots. She has a voice that reminds me somehow of SUSANNA HOFFS (of THE
BANGLES), and her music is calm authentic acoustic tingled singer/songwriter
orientated a la JONI MITCHELL. 5 songs are on her EP Coming Home, and all of
them sound quite nice, but the highlight is definitely I’ll Find Peace. Check
out more info on this talented singer/songwriter at: https://www.sisterspeakmusic.com/
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
KYLE CAREY ‘THE
LAST BOUGH’ (AMERICELTA RECORDINGS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
The Last Bough is the new album of the American
singer/songwriter KYLE CAREY, who has already released a lot of albums in the
past. Her music is a mix of Celtic Music and Americana, calm and collected
telling stories that make you feel you’re in Ireland, because that’s where the
music and it’s lyrics are mostly referring to. It’s another nice album by Kyle,
and her beautiful angelic voice gives the songs the touch it needs to get
comfortable. Check out more info on this talented musician at: http://www.kyleannecarey.com/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
BORTA PA VINDEN
‘BACONLINDADE HJARTAN’ (PARAPLY RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
I haven’t got much information on this Swedish band,
but I believe they were active in the late 70s/early 80s, but it took them
another 45 years to release an official CD in the shape of Baconlindade
Hjartan. 10 songs are included, and the opening song Kaos & Terror is a
rather catchy old school uptempo pop/rocker in early 80s style, with a strong
chorus and definitely some ABBA influences here, although rockier. The rest of
the album is a mixture of a lot of rootsy rock, Americana, singer-songwriter
and light pop/rock that sounds quite nice to the ears despite the language
barrier, because everything is sung in Swedish. More info at: https://www.hemifran.com/artist/Borta%20P%C3%A5%20Vinden/
(Points: 7.8 out
of 10)
JACKTOWN USA ‘THE
CAPITAL CITY OF AMERICAN MUSIC’ (INDEPENDENT/FRANK ROSZAK PROMOTION/SWEDEN
IMPORT)
The title of this CD, which is actually an addition to
a book that has been released, it says the capital city of American Music,
which is Mississippi. 9 artists from that US state delivered songs that are
included on this compilation CD. Without a doubt, there is a lot of history in
that area of the USA, especially in the Blues/Soul scene, and these newcomers
show how much more undiscovered talent is still out there in the region. Hold
Up by JACKSON SONS starts the album slowly in a soulful old school R&B direction,
while following track Hooked by DEXTER ALLEN is a superb piece of classic 70s
JAMES BROWN ish Funk at it’s very best, and it features a lovely soaring
guitarsolo. The blues is all over the place during the EDDIE COTTON song
Delivered By The Blues, while we’re suddenly in modern hi-tech pop/synthwave
with the catchy radio hit potential tune Dancing In Our Love (FOUR WASHINGTON).
STEVIE J. BLUES is up next with Juke Joint Lover, a classic midtempo old
school BB KING/MUDDY WATERS orientated bluesy rocker. ZAC HARMAN delivers
a high class BLACK PUMAS/THEE SACRED SOULS ish soulful bluesy groovy tune
titled I Still Got The Blues, and he might be the finest artist on this
compilation CD! Up next is another sensational Bluesrocker called CHAD
WESLEY, who’s song Slow Down has the JOE BONAMASSA/QUIN SULLIVAN groove and
awesome guitarwork, while closing the album is RASHAD THE BLUES KID and his
song Girl You Got It Going On, a great classic Chicago Blues style uptempo
rocker. Especially the last 3 artists deliver some sensational work, and
hopefully we will hear much more of them soon!
(Points: 8.1 out
of 10)
KOWA KLEIN
‘SUMMERTIME’ (SIREENA RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
KOWA KLEIN is a project formed around MARLON KLEIN
(drums, keys, vocals), WIM KOWA (guitar, keys), FRANK ITT (bass) and lead
singer JENNIFER KOWA, who was the wife of Win since 1978. Sadly Jennifer died
recently and this release is therefore dedicated to her, because she sang on
this CD. In fact, she and the other musicians have had a long career, which
goes back all the way to the 1970s when they had success in a legendary German
progrockband called OCTOPUS. Of course numerous other recordings took place in
the following decades, and Summertime is as mentioned the last CD to feature
Jennifer’s strong voice. The album has an original sound with speaking and
singing vocals at first sight, at least during opener Imagination, which has a
SADE vibe going on, but also similarities to GRACE JONES and even NICO comes to
mind, so I think you will then more or less understand what this light funky
pop/rock sound is heading for, yet it does have a modern hi-tech touch here and
there as well. Actually it’s quite good and we can listen to the 10 tracks
without pressing the skip button. The music is melodic, the vocals are spot-on,
the guitarwork has a classic rock approach and it’s quite nice to listen to
strong melodic pop/rock songs such as Time Will Tell, Dance, Summertime and
Sometimes. Quite a surprising release from this German project/band, but sadly
probably an one-off release since Jennifer is not with us anymore. More info
at: https://kowaklein.com/
(Points: 8.0 out of 10)
PILEDRIVER ‘FIRST
NATIONS ROCK’ (FASTBALL MUSIC/BOB MEDIA/GERMAN IMPORT)
Not to be confused with the Canadian metal band
PILEDRIVER from the 1980s, because this German band PILEDRIVER is best known as
Europe’s finest STATUS QUO tribute band, but they also released self-written
material during the 30 years they have been active now, and First Nations Rock
is their latest studio album with 14 original songs. The band’s line up
consists of Michael Sommerhoff (rhythm guitar and vocals) and Peter Wagner
(lead guitar and vocals), Tom Frerich (keyboards), Jens Heisterhagen (bass),
and Dirk Sengotta (drums), and their music is slightly more German teutonic
classic hardrock/metal orientated than the STATUS QUO covers they do while
touring all over Europe. I have to say that they sound quite tight and remind
me a lot of classic ACCEPT, STEELER, UDO, SINNER, and such, with some classic
THIN LIZZYish guitarwork. Vocally Michael sits somewhere between UDO
DIRKSCHNEIDER and MATT SINNER, so with a typical raw German Metal voice, which
you either love or hate, but for this kind of music it’s perfect. The
sound/production and material itself is however very strong actually, and many
of the included songs are highlights, such as Light Years From Here, Ridin’, First
Nations Rock (a perfect ACCEPT banger!), To The Edge Of The World and All
Through The Night.
It might sound very cliché tingled most of the time,
and this kind of Teutonic German bar-room boogie Hardrock was done by a zillion
German bands 40+ years ago (on labels such as STEAMHAMMER, MAUSOLEUM, HOT
BLOOD, SCRATCH RECORDS…) after ACCEPT and SINNER introduced it to the big
masses, I can imagine there is a market for it, especially since PILEDRIVER are
doing it at a very high level! Check it out for yourself at: https://www.piledriver.eu/en/
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
FABIENNE MAGNANT
‘CORDAS SENSIVEIS’ (GUIT’ ART PRODUCTIONS/MUSIC BOX PUBLISHING/INOUIE
DISTRIBUTION/VEEV.COM/FRANCE IMPORT)
Out of France comes the talented FABIENNE MAGNANT and
her new album Cordas Sensiveis / Cordes Sensibles is a beautiful piece of
music. Fabienne is a gifted guitarplayer on specifically the
classical/Brazilian and flamenco guitar as well as the viola caipira, and on
this 5th album she brings us into her lovely natural world music adventure that
showcases her enormous talent on the guitar. 16 songs are included in total,
and her amazing guitar playing talent can be heard from start to finish, as she
belts out all these beautiful flamenco melodies on the guitar. Besides
Fabienne, other involved musicians are Dominique Muzeau – bass, Akiko Horii –
percussion, Samuel Thézé – bass clarinet, François Kokelaere – percussion,
voice, poetry, Ricardo Vignini – viola caipira, Pedro Macedo – double bass,
Bruno Menegatti – rabeca and Consuelo De Paula – vocals and poetry. Recommended
to all fans of acoustic driven guitarsounds in a world music setting, sorta
like AL DIMEOLA! More info can be found at: https://www.fabiennemagnant.fr
(Points: 8.5 out
of 10)
RVH PROJECT ‘LAND
OF THE DAMNED’ (SNAKEBITE RECORDS/HARD LIFE PROMOTION)
The RVH PROJECT is a solo project that was created
during the corona pandemic by lead singer/bassist RICK VAN HEUZEN, and along
the way Orion Roos (guitar and backing vocals), and Gerry de Graaf (drums and
backing vocals) joined him, while on the 2nd album Land Of The
Damned we can also hear guest vocalist John 'JayCee' Cuijpers on three of the
tracks. The album follows the debut Enter The Machine that was released back in
2022. The music is a healthy mix of melodic rock, progressive rock, funk and
classic rock, with some very accessible songs. After a few slightly more uptempo
straight-forward rockers at the start, the album gets an interesting
progressive groovy rocking twist during the strong songs Open Your Eyes, Heads
Are Gonna Roll and Marilyn’s Here, which also remind me a bit of the last
couple of DEEP PURPLE albums. The material has a funky groovy bluesy approach
and that feels much better for the RVH PROJECT than the uptempo rockers in the
beginning of the CD. Two of those funkier groovier tunes are the catchy Dance
and Inject The Venom that almost remind me of SJAKO!, yet then slightly heavier
and a bit more melodic rocking. There’s even an early 80s AOR type of song
included, which is the catchy The First Time. Overall however you might call
this album a groovy classic rock affair, and I can easily recommend it to fans
of DEEP PURPLE, URIAH HEEP, Y&T and such. More info at: https://www.facebook.com/rvhprojectnl/
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
FLAMES OF HEAVEN
‘SYMPHONY OF THE UNIVERSE’ (LIMB MUSIC/SUBURBAN/HARD LIFE PROMOTION)
FLAMES OF HEAVEN is the brainchild of Cristiano
Filippini, an Italian multi-instrumentalist/composer who plays on the 2nd
album Symphony Of The Universe lead and rhythm guitars, keyboards,
arrangements, and orchestrations, while the rest of the line-up consists of
Michele Vioni on lead, rhythm, and acoustic guitars; Marco Pastorino (of TEMPERANCE,
FALLEN SANCTUARY and SERENITY) on lead and backing vocals (a MICHELE LUPPI
soundalike!); Giorgio Terenziani on bass; and Paolo Caridi on drums. The sound
is massive on this new album, and without a doubt, there is some great material
to be found on this rather lengthy album. After the short introduction of The
Immortal Fire, we are heading straight into classic fast Italo bombastic
symphonic power metal a la RHAPSODY/LABYRINTH with the catchy On The Wings Of
Phoenix. It really gets interesting with the superb AOR/Melodic Rocker Midnight
Riders, a sensational song with all the ingredients you need to have a classic
tingled AOR tune, which is a catchy hook, a soaring guitarsolo, 80s keys and a
memorable catchy AOR orwurm chorus. The synths/keys of the 80s continue during
the following song A Flame From The Sky, which is another lovely AOR/Melodic
Rocker, this time reminding of classic 80s YNGWIE MALMSTEEN/EUROPE! The Power
Of Stars switches to a combination of both styles, Power AOR Sympho Melodic
Rock/Metal that is dangerously close to SONATA ARCTICA, HELLOWEEN and
STRATOVARIUS. The album continues with this mix of AOR/Melodic Rock and Sympho
Power Metal, with as other highlights the catchy When Love Burns (classic 80s
Scandi sound a la MALMSTEEN/EUROPE/NATION), Darkside of Gemini, The Archangel’s
Warcry, Eclipse and the sensational TALISMAN/EUROPE/TREAT/RETURN/DALTONish
harmonyvocal-chorus driven Tears Of Love And Hate (a song that sounds
dangerously close to the late 80s). The titletrack Symphony of The Universe is
perhaps the greatest sympho power metal tune since the classic days of SONATA
ARCTICA, LABYRINTH and STRATOVARIUS, and also don’t forget to hear the lovely soaring
guitarsolo towards the end of the song! It might not be that original due to
the obvious comparisons to aforementioned bands, but who cares if the
performance is of such a high level as on this CD, because FLAMES OF HEAVEN absolutely
deliver a great classic European symphonic melodic rock/metal album and this is
without a doubt a must-have if you like the classic
MALMSTEEN/EUROPE/STRATOVARIUS/PRETTY MAIDS sound! More information can be found
at: https://www.cristianofilippini.com/en/flamesofheaven/
(Points: 8.6 out
of 10)
MEMORIES OF OLD
‘NEVER STOP BELIEVING’ (LIMB MUSIC/SUBURBAN/HARD LIFE PROMOTION)
Out of the UK comes the band MEMORIES OF OLD, a band
formed around multi-instrumentalist Billy Jeffs (Guitars, Drums, Keyboards,
Orchestration, Backing Vocals), Noah Simmons on Lead & Backing Vocals and Rhys
Morgan on Bass Guitar. Never Stop Believing is the band’s 2nd album,
but the first to feature American vocalist NOAH SIMMONS. Musically speaking we
are heading into bombastic melodic symphonic European Power Metal in the
classic RHAPSODY/FREEDOM CALL/LABYRINTH/HELLOWEEN/MOB RULES style. The
difference is of course the use of an American singer, because Noah adds a very
sweet melodic musical/theatrical AORish voice in the lower register, but he is
also able to sing with a high pitched voice like the legendary
TNT/SHY/QUEENSRYCHE singers, and right from the start with the beautiful
titletrack Never Stop Believing we can clearly hear that mixture of sounds,
because this melodic sympho power metal tune also reveals 70s pop/pomp
influences and comes across like a mixture of HELLOWEEN, TNT, RHAPSODY, ROBBY VALENTINE
and even QUEEN/STYX. Quite unique and definitely very interesting! Other
highlights are Guardians Of The Kingdom, the bombastic synth driven disco meets
EUROPE’s The Final Countdown influenced catchy radio pop song After The Storm, Fire
In The Night (lovely hookladen uptempo catchy TNT/SHY/LABYRINTH mixture
orientated sympho melodic rock/metal) and the HELLOWEENish Journey To The
Stars. The 80s Power Sympho AOR ballad Life Begins Again (STYX meets TALK OF
THE TOWN meets QUEEN) sounds a bit too cliché and nostalgic, while End Of The
Tunnel has a weak chorus. On the other hand, the best song of the whole album
is the superb neo-classical melodic metal piece Some Day Soom, which is a CD
bonustrack only, and reminds me of the 90s bands ROYAL HUNT, NARNIA, NATION and
such Scandi bands.
Concluded, this is definitely an interesting album, quite
pleasant to listen to due to the strong vocals and it’s also a very diverse
album to check, although sometimes it has less to do with Metal. I think fans
of neo-classical sympho rock (sorta like mid 80s EUROPE meets TNT meets QUEEN)
might like this a lot, although I have to add here that not all the songs are
convincing and there are points for an improvement on a future album! More info
can be found at: https://memoriesofold-limbmusic.bandcamp.com/album/never-stop-believing
(Points: 8.2 out
of 10)
BLUE ESCAPE
‘TEASER BLUESER’ (PARAPLY RECORDS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
This album feels very natural and resembles an old
school sound that brings you back to the 1930s/1940s of the Gospel minded
southern parts of the USA. In fact, lead singer Johanna Lillvik and her band
BLUE ESCAPE (Åke Göransson – Drums, Lars Mellqvist – Bass, backing vocals,
Örjan Hill – Piano, soloist, Torbjörn Stenson – Guitar & saxophone, backing
vocals) come out of Sweden, and Blue Escape is their first full-length album.
The music melts Gospel, Jazz, Blues, Folk and Swing, and the 10 songs include
an original song as opening tune, but is mostly featuring covers and
traditionals, of which the oldest The
Gospel Train (Get On Board) is a spiritual from 1872! I love the overall vibe
of songs like the uptempo swinging jazzy Strange Things Happening Every Day
(originally by Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1944) and the LOUIS ARMSTRONG cover
Georgia Grind (1926). It’s like we’re almost going back 100 years in time, and
these Swedes are doing it very well! Recommended as well to fans of the
legendary Dutch singer CARO EMERALD. More info can be found at: https://www.paraplyrecords.se
(Points: 8.4 out
of 10)
MARK SEBASTIAN ‘A
TRICK OF THE LIGHT’ (BLACK SHEEP GLOBAL RECORDINGS/HEMIFRAN/SWEDEN IMPORT)
MARK SEBASTIAN is the younger brother of JOHN
SEBASTIAN, the original singer of THE LOVIN’ SPOONFUL (Summer In The City). In
fact, Mark co-wrote that classic tune, and has throughout his life played and
recorded with some of the great musicians in the scene. His 3rd solo album A
Trick of The Light is a great calmer soulful Westcoast pop/rock affair in a
STEELY DAN kinda direction (just listen to a fantastic song such as You Made A
Monkey Outta Me for example). Mark sings and plays twelve-string guitar and acoustic
guitar, while James Gadson is playing drums and percussion (noted for his work
with BILL WITHERS and MARVIN GAYE) and the well-known session bass player BOB
GLAUB completes the funky groovy rhythm section, although there are several
more guest musicians and backing singers. The album has a healthy mix of groovy
funky uptempo songs and calmer material. Definitely a recommended album if you
like 70s Westcoast pop orientated music and STEELY DAN, but also BILL WITHERS
in particular. More info can be found at: https://marksebastian.com/home
(Points: 8.4 out
of 10)
PAUL FILIPOWICZ
‘BREAKWATER’ (BIG JAKE RECORDS/FRANK ROSZAK PROMOTIONS/USA IMPORT)
PAUL FILIPOWICZ is an American Chicago blues singer,
guitarist, and harmonica player, and his latest album is titled Breakwater. The
album also features Stephen Dougherty – Drums, Martin Lang – Harmonica, E.G.
McDaniels – Bass, Jimmy Voegeli – Keyboards and Erik Bertaud – Saxophone, and
musically speaking we are heading straight into classic Chicago Blues. The 12
songs are a mix of instrumentals and vocal songs, of which most are written by
Paul himself, although a few covers are also included. The result is a lovely
Sunday afternoon record that is perfect for a nap, as it all feels very natural
and relaxed to listen to. Paul has a great voice, and on the guitar he is a
real Chicago Blues master. Ashes In The Wing is one of the strongest songs on
the album, and this is one of the few songs that could be called heavy blues
rock. Check him out at: https://paulfilipowicz.com/epk.html
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
HUM ‘THREE’
(TONZONEN RECORDS/CARGO/CREATIVE ECLIPSE PR/GERMAN IMPORT)
Three is the 2nd album of the German stoner
rockband HUM. They are coming out of Frankfurt, and the band was founded back
in 2019. HIM is a treesome, consisting of Harri Gottschalk (guitar, vocals,
samples), Martin Krause (bass, vocals, noises) and Florian Schnaith (drums,
special fx), and their material on the new album is pure stoner rock. 11 songs
are included, and their music is not that far removed from bands like SLOMOSA,
KADAVAR, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and such. The music is melodic, yet with a raw
fuzzy guitarsound, and I guess a song like Freaks Of Nature pretty much sums up
the band’s sound at it’s best. Fans of aforementioned bands will absolutely
like this high quality German band. More info can be found at: https://www.tonzonen.de/hum
(Points: 8.1 out
of 10)
THE BIRCH ‘VICIOUS
MINDS’ (TONZONEN RECORDS/CARGO/CREATIVE ECLIPSE PR/GERMAN IMPORT)
The German band THE BIRCH releases it’s 3rd
album with Vicious Mind. Their music is classic late 60s/70s psychedelic/garage
heavy rock orientated in the old DE WOLFF style. The band consists of Lucas
Habenreich - Guitar, Vocals, Santiago Garcia Echeverri – Bass and Volker Blath –
Drums, and there are 7 songs on their new album. The vocals are not so strong,
but I think live this band will definitely put on a great rock and roll show,
and their new album is overall a great rocking affair! More info can be found
at: https://theblackcatseye.bandcamp.com/
(Points: 7.0 out
of 10)
J.R. RICHARDS ‘MY
DARKEST HOUR’ (INDEPENDENT/UK IMPORT)
Out of Worcester, UK comes the sensational
musician/singer/songwriter J.R. RICHARDS. He is a multi-instrumentalist who
performs most of the instrumentation himself on his new solo album, My Darkest
Hour, in addition to singing; however, he is also joined by several other
musicians, such as the legendary ELI HLUDZIK (of DAKOTA), guitarist WES GARDEN,
guitarist HAP PHINNEY, guitarist SEAN MCCUE, bassist DAN LAVERY and a few more.
The music is mostly slow to midtempo melodic AOR influenced Progrock/Modern
Rock that sits somewhere between DARE, GARY HUGHES (TEN), TALL STORIES, DAMIAN
WILSON and BJORN RIIS, yet with an own identity and a modern touch here and
there, while also some JOURNEY references can be heard. J.R. (John Robert) has
a superb natural voice, and the songs burst out into emotional AOR chorus
driven songs, with as absolute highlights Safe & Sound, Lost Eversince
(sensational!!!), the uptempo radio rocker Alive (the song DAUGHTRY would have
loved to have written!), Mesmerize, the amazingly massive sounding The Surface
(a little proggy a la THRESHOLD and DAMIAN WILSON) and the JOURNEYesque AOR
ballad Glorious Soul. I was absolutely not familiar with this talented
musician/singer/songwriter, but apparently My Darkest Hour is already his 10th
solo album! Further investigation learns that J.R. was the original vocalist of
the legendary 90s American alternative rockband DISHWALLA, but he left that
band in 2007 to start up a solo career. He is an American of origin, but spends
a lot of time in the UK due to his relationship with British director and
sculptor Min Reid-Richards. Concluded, there is a lot to learn about this
superb singer/songwriter! Anyway, check out this sensational album he recently
released at: https://www.jrrichardsmusic.com/
and https://jrrichards.bandcamp.com/album/my-darkest-hour
(Points: 8.8 out
of 10)
THE ONE ‘LIGHTER
THAN AIR’ (CONSTRUCTION RECORDS/SUBURBAN)
Back in 2023 we were surprised by a lovely progrock
album titled Sunrise from a new band/project called THE ONE. This band is
settled in my own city of Dordrecht, which makes it likewise a special release
for sure, and thankfully they are a really great band compromised of
established musicians from the local scene. 2 years later there is already a
follow-up, and while their debut was a nice 70s progressive rock affair that
showed their love for YES and GENESIS, this new album is definitely more akin
to 80s/90s neo-progressive rock, and in general much stronger. In fact, 30
years ago this album would have been released on the defunct label SI MUSIC.
However, now we have the excellent label CONSTRUCTION RECORDS, and they
released this wonderful 2nd album Lighter Than Air. The band still consists of
the same members as on their debut, which means it features 3 Dutch and 3
English musicians, namely Timothy van der Holst – Drums, Frank “Fish” Ayres –
Spoken Word & Slide Guitar, Max Gilkes – Lead Vocals, Edwin in ’t Veld –
Electric & Acoustic Guitars, Ron Mozer – Keyboards and Nick McGuire – Bass
Guitar. 8 tracks are included, and besides a wonderful looking frontcover, the
included music is also of a very high level, and it is produced very well, so
it's a joy to listen to the album from start to finish.
Opener and titletrack Lighter Than AIr is an
incredible laid-back classic slowtempo neo-progressive rock piece that is
filled with beautiful melodies and thoughtful instrumental parts, reminding of
KAYAK, PENDRAGON, IQ, ENCHANT and all the other great neo-progbands of the
1980s/1990s, yet it definitely has a fresh modern touch in a similar way as for
example MYSTERY. A truly sensational start and perhaps one of the best prog
songs of 2025! The following song is the cheerful uptempo symphonic rocker
Paint It Red, an uplifting song with the keys upfront and a sound that is close
to 80s IQ and even IT BITES, while 80s FISH fronted MARILLION influences shine
through during the beautiful epic piano led prog semi-power ballad The Wolf.
Juno is a real proggy tune, as it takes a while to get into and it features a
slightly complex rhythm, but after about 4 minutes we get to hear such a lovely
soaring guitarsolo and a sorta short melodic chorus, it makes you want to
listen to it over and over again. How A Shadow Feels is up next, and this is
basically a great little melodic neo-progrock song with rockier and calmer
parts, very much reminding me of KAYAK circa Close To The Fire. South Of
Cookham Wood shows that Max is a fantastic vocalist, because he gives this 70s
tingled progressive rock ballad an emotional approach, and once again (70s)
KAYAK comes to mind, and I also need to mention the beautiful soaring melodic
guitarsolo by the excellent guitarist Edwin. I'll Be Gone follows, and this is
a great semi-ballad with an epic approach, because it switches into an uptempo
rocker halfway, while closing track The Beautiful Lie is another song that
starts slow and calm, but develops into a massive sounding progrock journey
that any progfan out there will love!
Concluded, THE ONE might have delivered here the best
Dutch progalbum of 2025, because it ticks all the boxes. It's classic Neo-Prog
all the way and super melodic featuring a lot of beautiful hidden melodies you
re-discover by each new listen, and the musicianship and vocals are top-notch
as well, so I can highly recommend this new THE ONE CD to anyone who is a fan
of bands like ENCHANT, IT BITES, KAYAK, PENDRAGON, PALLAS, ARENA, MYSTERY, etc.
etc. More info can be found at: https://www.constructionrecords.nl
(Points: 8.8 out
of 10)
STAN BUSH ‘BORN
FOR BATTLE’ (L.A. RECORDS/USA IMPORT)
What more can we say about this AOR legend! He started
life in a fantastic underrated countryrockband called BOULDER, of whom I bought
a vinyl record out of the bargain bins 35 years ago! During the 80s and early
90s he released classic AOR albums, and somehow his 1983 solo debut is still my
favorite one! Ever since 1983 he continued to release new albums, and somewhere
I lost count how many he has released so far, but in 2025 he is still alive and
well, and he released a great new album titled Born For Battle. He was kind
enough to sent me a CD of the release, and if you’re familiar with him, you
will more or less understand what to expect here. It’s basically typically STAN
BUSH AOR, with this time the keys and synths upfront, and a modern almost
orchestral touch here and there. The result is a nice listening experience of
11 well-produced songs that were written by Stan himself, or in cooperation
with guitarist/producer/keyboardplayer HOLGER FATH and the legendary LENNY
MACALUSO. The rhythm section of drummer Craig Yamek and bassist Mick Mahan
complete the line-up of musicians on Born For Battle.
Opener The Sound Of Victory is not the strongest song
on the disc, as this is basically a modern take of 80s uptempo keyboard driven
AOR, but when following track Invincible kicks in, we are definitely heading
into classic 80s SURVIVOR esque midtempo AOR and with the keys upfront, the
catchy hooks and memorable chorus armed and ready, this is STAN BUSH at his
best. The next 2 songs are even better, the uptempo Runnin’ The Gauntlet and
Heart Of A Lion is pure classic 80s AOR that fits somewhere between classic 80s
STAN BUSH circa his 1987 The Touch area and SURVIVOR circa Vital Signs. I am
not saying it reaches that impossible high level, but it surely captures the
same vibe and soul. Prisoner Of The Heart is the first song that gave me the
AOR goosebumps I haven’t felt in a long time, as this is prime-time AOR with
all the ingredients the genre screams for. Stan still sounds like Stan, but you
can hear he has aged vocally speaking, but on the other hand that’s a normal
process of course. The 2nd part of the album is slightly weaker, but
still has some nice AOR material, such as Freedom (this song has a sorta 80s
MICAEL BOLTON touch) and the classic 80s SURVIVOR Rocky Movie alike midtempo No
Surrender.
Concluded, Stan is a living legend, and if you’re
familiar with his earlier work, then you will definitely like his new album.
More info at: www.stanbush.com
(Points: 8.1 out
of 10)
MIKE DANGEROUX ’15
SHADES OF BLUE’ (RD RECORDS/DM MUSIC/USA IMPORT)
Out of Chicago, USA comes blues musician MIKE
DANGEROUX, who sings, plays guitar, bass and wrote all of the 15 included
tracks on his new album 15 Shades Of Blue. The other musicians joining him are Vincent
Varco – Keyboards, Piano and Daron Casper Walker – Drums. Together they created
a great traditional blues rock record that has a sorta laid-back R&B/Gospel
touch. Mike has a lovely smooth typical American voice of the old school
R&B school and you can hear that clearly during the calmer semi groovy ballads
such as Palm Of My Hand, Heart Of Stone, Tides Of Your Love, the lovely blues
ballad Ghosts Of The Past and one of the few uptempo bluesy rockers, the rather
catchy She Can’t Stop Rocking. Concluded, this is both a blues and an old
school R&B flavored album that I can highly recommend if you want to hear
something that sounds like a cross between BB KING, ROBERT CRAY BAND and GEORGE
BENSON. So basically despite the Chicago connection, the music is much more
than classic Chicago Blues Rock. More information can be found at: https://www.mikedangeroux.com/
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
PAUL REED SMITH
‘EIGHTLOCK – LIONS ROARING IN QUICKSAND / PAUL REED SMITH NASHVILLE SESSIONS /
THE PAUL REED SMITH BAND’ (STEELE RECORDS/USA IMPORT)
Although I am a huge music fan, I am not a musician
myself, so I am not that familiar with all the guitar brands, although of
course Fender and Gibson are known to me. However, the 3rd
best-selling guitar worldwide is PRS, a Maryland, USA based guitar
manufacturer, which was founded by PAUL REED SMITH. Paul started making guitars
while still in high school back in the early 70s, and eventually started up his
own company after early success with the first guitars he made and selling them
to the legendary PETER FRAMPTON and CARLOS SANTANA. Meanwhile a lot more
well-known musicians became his customers, such as JOHN MAYER, MARK TREMONTI,
AL DIMEOLA, MIKAEL AKERFELDT (of OPETH), ALEX LIFESON (of RUSH), JIMMY PAGE,
TED NUGENT, MYLES KENNEDY and countless more. I guess you can say that Paul is
a huge name in the guitar industry!
Besides making guitars, he is also a great guitarist
himself, and he was kind enough to sent me 3 CDs he recorded in the past 18
years, of which Eightlock – Lions Roaring In Quicksand is the most recent,
dating back to 2023. Besides Paul with his soaring guitar melodies, the other
musicians include Mia Samone Davis: Lead and background vocals, Mike Ault:
Guitars, Bill Nelson: Guitars and vocals, Gary Grainger: Bass, synth-bass, and
vocals, Dennis Chambers: Drums, Gregory Grainger: Drums, percussion, and vocals
and Ju Ju House: Drums and percussion.
14 songs are included on the CD, and both opener Sarah
and following song Never Give Up On Livin’ combine intelligent smooth soulful
vocal melodies, bluesy guitar riffs with a strong groovy R&B alike rhythm
section, yet overall it still rocks in a slightly classic funky Westcoast-AOR
direction, sorta like mixing TOTO, STEELY DAN with EN VOGUE, so this is quite
an unique but interesting affair we have here on our hands. Thankfully the
incredible high level of musicianship, lead vocals and melodies continues the
rest of the CD, with as other highlights I’m Ready, Breathe, Phoenix In My
Blood, Look At The Moon (very smooth song, with guest singer CHUCK BROWN) and Ay,
Doctor. Eightlock has an own identity for sure, and that’s a melting pot of
Soul, Blues, Funk, Westcoast and Melodic Pop/Rock. Quite a surprise this
release, because it is a very sensational album that should appeal to a lot of
people out there. (Points: 8.3 out of 10)
The CD Paul released as THE PAUL REED SMITH BAND back
in 2007 starts with a superb sensational classic 80s tingled uptempo AOR rocker
titled One In The Same. I was blown away by the immense high quality AOR sound
here, as if we stepped in a time machine back to the mid-80s, because this song
sounds like a cross between JEFF PARIS, MICHAEL THOMPSON BAND, JOURNEY and
such. It simply beats anything Frontiers Records has released the past 20
years! In fact, this song alone is non-stop making round trips on my CD player!
The line-up of the band on this CD is besides Paul on guitar and vocals, the
legendary DEREK ST. HOLMES (yes, the man with the golden voice behind TED
NUGENT, WHITFORD/ST. HOLMES and many more) on vocals, bassist Gary Grainger,
drummer Greg Grainger, guitarist Michael Ault, as well as a few guests. I was
not expecting this to be a pure 80s high quality Soft AOR album, but it surely
has all the ingredients, including the soulful vocals, soaring guitars, catchy
hooks and memorable choruses, it is really close to the aforementioned acts,
and especially if you like for example TOTO, the 1986 JOURNEY album Raised On
Radio, MR. MISTER and MICHAEL THOMPSON BAND, then you’re in the right direction.
Other highlights are the smooth midtempo AOR tune Jealousy (remembering 80s
JOHN WAITE and RICHARD MARX, the uptempo rocker Tracks Of Silver, the beautiful
midtempo AOR piece Rage (SENSATIONAL!) and the groovy rocker Burn Baby Burn.
The CD has a long playing length, and except for the bluesy The Truth Doesn’t
Matter Anymore and the funky STEELY DAN ish Napoli (still featuring some great
twin guitarwork towards the end of the song), this album is a must-have for any
fan of thoughtful intelligent AOR like MICHAEL THOMPSON BAND, PHILIP BARDOWELL,
JIM PETERIK SCHERER/JIMI JAMISON, JOURNEY/STEVE PERRY, JEFF PARIS and TOTO, so
with a groove and soulful vocals without sounding dated. In fact, this is an
undiscovered AOR Classic straight from the underground, yet with a familiar
face (Derek) on vocals, and he never sounded better than on this album!
(Points: 9.0 out of 10)
Then there’s also a CD that was released back in 2010.
It is called PAUL REED SMITH NASHVILLE SESSIONS and the album is titled Look At
The Moon, which musically is a melting pot of soul, blues, pop and melodic
guitar pieces, and once again it is a very enjoyable album that features
instrumental and vocal featured songs. One of the highlights is the lovely
titletrack Look At The Moon. Without a doubt, here we have an amazing legendary
guitarist, who gathered a bunch of musicians around him to record and release 3
high quality albums that all have their own identity. The AOR fans absolutely
need to check out the Melodic Pop/Rock. Quite a surprise this release, because
it is a very sensational album THE PAUL REED SMITH BAND from 2007. …More
information can be found at: https://eightlockband.com/
(Points: various)
DARKNESS SURROUNDING ‘IS THERE SALVATION?’ (SAOL/CMM MARKETING/GERMAN IMPORT)
The production of the 2nd album of the
German band DARKNESS SURROUNDING is huge, and there is definitely some
interesting memorable material on the CD. The band melts death metal growls
with melodic clean female vocals, so they could be labeled as a melodic
progressive power death metal band. The band consists of Kassandra
"Kessi" van Bajgar (clean vocals, guitar), Tim Daus (growls), Simon
Adolf (lead guitar), Nico Schubert (bass guitar), and Leonard Pott (drums), and
there are 10 songs on their new album Is There Salvation?’. Songs like Achromatica,
Virtue's End and the superb Chained Eternally are very strong, catchy and
melodic, leaving the cookie monster death male vocals a bit behind and really
focusing on the lovely clean female vocals. On the other hand, the other songs
are also featuring the female vocals, but then the male growls are pushed
upfront most of the time, such as can be heard during uptempo songs like Through
History's Lens and Portrait Of Solitude, which both also have strong memorable
melodic choruses. Imagine a mix of Melodic Death Metal and LACUNA COIL, then
you’re quite close to the sound of DARKNESS SURROUNDING. It’s all done at a
very high level, so therefore I can easily recommend this German band! More
info at: https://darkness-surrounding.de/
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
NIGHTBLAZE
‘EVARICADE’ (ART OF MELODY MUSIC/ATOMIC
STUFF ITALY IMPORT)
As soon as opener State Of Grace blasts through the
speakers, it is clear we are dealing here with quite a sensational 80s inspired
AOR/Melodic Rockband. Evaricade is the 2nd and sadly final album of
the Italian band NIGHTBLAZE. I have no idea why this is their last album
together, because when I hear a song like the superb Tonight, I am slowly
heading into the reason why I started writing in the music business, because
this is a lovely classic uptempo AOR rocker that reminds me a bit of PROPHET
during their 80s heydays, although I also smell comparisons to the legendary
HEAVEN’S TOUCH, SWALLOWS and DANGER DANGER (debut). The music fits somewhere
between AOR and Melodic Rock, with a focus on strong lead- and harmonyvocals,
catchy hooks and memorable choruses, such as this song Tonight that might
easily become the AOR/Melodic Rock wetdream of 2025! The song is also featured
in a beautiful romantic version later on the CD. Also the 2 other new songs are
reflecting the big smooth AOR/Melodic Rocksound we all love so much. I reviewed
their debut not too long ago, and this new final album consists of 4 new
unreleased songs and 6 alternative versions of their first album (including a
cool dance and ethnic version!). The line-up is still the same, featuring Italian composer,
multi-instrumentalist and producer DARIO GRILLO (PLATENS, VIOLET SUN), Damiano
Libianchi (PERFECT VIEW) on vocals, Dario's brother Alex Grillo (PLATENS,
VIOLET SUN) on drums, and Federica Raschellà (STEEL TYRANT, EVIL EYES) on bass.
It’s a very enjoyable album that will also be loved by fans of H.E.A.T., WORK
OF ART, HEAVEN’S EDGE, VALENTINE, PERFECT PLAN, just to name a few. It’s a
shame this band will not continue, because they definitely have something to
offer and are easily beating the countless other melodic rockbands. Check out
more info at: https://www.facebook.com/Nightblazeofficial
(Points: 8.7 out
of 10)
BACKLASH ‘TIME TO
IMPACT’ (ART OF MELODY MUSIC/ATOMIC
STUFF ITALY IMPORT)
Not to be confused with the German Melodic
Hardrockband BACKSLASH, because BACKLASH is a new Italian AOR/Melodic Rockband
formed around Massimo Ordine: Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Andrea Frighi:
Guitar, Keyboards and Angelo Franchini: Bass, and on their first CD Time To
Impact we can also hear guest musicians such as Massimiliano Mosci: Guitar, Luigi
Bellanova: Guitar, Mirco Zuffa: Drums, Hammond, Keyboards and Lee Small: Guest
Vocals. Together they created an 80s inspired American AOR affair. Influenced by
bands like SURVIVOR, GIANT, BAD ENGLISH and such, they came up with a similar
sound on their debut album. It took them 10 years to finish it, but we
definitely have an interesting result here. Although it’s impossible to reach
the high level of the aforementioned legendary bands, BACKLASH does deliver
some great 80s AOR/Melodic Rock on this album, especially during songs like the
uptempo All On The Line, the semi-ballad No Shelter From The Blues, Forever
Night, Looking For A Stranger and Over And Over. Nice one to check out if
you’re a melodic rockfan. More info can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/backlash.melodicrock
(Points: 8.1 out
of 10)
3ZKS! ‘3’
(INDEPENDENT/SPAIN IMPORT)
3ZKS! from beautiful Barcelona, Spain are back with a
new album titled 3, which likewise is their 3rd album so far. The
band consists of JL Gutierrez: Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Belén Gutiérrez:
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals and JkAndrés: Composition and all instruments, and
their music is classified as 80s influenced AOR/Melodic Rock. Their sound is
not to far away from the legendary other Spanish sung AOR acts from the past,
such as ALIADOS, ALIANZA, LA FASE, CODA, 91 SUITE, SANGRE AZUL, etc. Sung in
Spanish, that is no issue, although of course lyrically it is hard to follow
what they’re singing about, but the vibe is good here. The shared female/male
vocals make it interesting, and despite the Spanish language, you might also
trace influences of classic 80s light aor/poprock acts like BON JOVI, BRYAN
ADAMS, TOTO and ROXETTE. Starting to feel like summer when listening to a
foreign language sung AOR/Melodic Rock record, which for me personally has been
a while ago! Anyway, check them out at: https://www.youtube.com/@3zksoficialyoutubechannel597
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
VARIOUS ARTISTS
‘KILLED BY DEAF – PUNK TRIBUTE TO MOTORHEAD’ (MURDER ONE RECORDS/SAOL/CMM
MARKETING/GERMAN IMPORT)
I absolutely love a bit of classic 80s/90s
punk/hardcore and of course I am a huge fan of the legendary MOTORHEAD, so a
combination in the shape of a Punk Tribute to MOTORHEAD, it is a winning
combination, because you have here 14 rocking punk versions of classic
MOTORHEAD songs in total. The sound/production is very impressive, and
especially when you have major bands like PENNYWISE, RANCID, GBH, MURPHY’S LAW,
ANTI NOWHERE LEAGUE and a few lesser known acts (including a great GIRLSCHOOL
alike sounding band called SLAUGHTERHOUSE) on board, it is an enjoyable ride
from start to finish. Bomber, Overkill, Ace Of Spades, Born To Raise Hell, Iron
Fist… they are all covered on this CD. However, the absolute highlight is the
closing track, which is the THE DAMNED 1977 classic Neat, Neat, Neat. This
version is previously unreleased, and features MOTORHEAD frontman LEMMY
KILMISTER himself. He recorded this song back in 2002 with THE DAMNED, and now
23 years later it is officially released on this tribute CD. Therefore this
album is a must-have for a lot of people out there! Highly recommended if you
like classic punk/hardcore/MOTORHEAD rock and roll!
Points: 8.2 out of
10)
CHRIZ DOE ‘COOKIE
DOE’ (FASTBALL MUSIC/BOB MEDIA/GERMAN IMPORT)
Out of Germany comes CHRIZ DOE, and their debut album
is titled Cookie Doe. With a title like that, people will probably ask if
there’s a serious band, but they are definitely a real band, and yes, there’s
fun and diversity in their music, which means this is not a standard
hardrock/metal release. The band consists of Chriz Doe: Vocals, Henny: Drums,
Backing Vocals, Gerrit: Guitar, Bass and Kevin: Keyboard. 11 songs are
included, and opener No Pain, No Gain features a strong, uptempo melodic metal
chorus. The following track Welcome To The Doez offers a nice melodic
progressive metal vibe; however, both songs also reveal diverse influences
(techno, death metal growls, metalcore), which ultimately sets the band apart
from their contemporaries. The vocals are ok, and the drums’/production sound a
bit modern, but on the other hand the band does deliver some catchy tunes all
throughout the album, such as 10,000 days, Lost In Thoughts, and Join The Party.
The combination of melodic metal with all kinds of other music styles and
throwing a bit of fun lyrically speaking, it makes CHRIZ DOE an interesting
band, especially if you like for example STEEL PANTHER, yet perhaps this band
is a bit more serious than those guys. UGLY KID JOE also comes to mind here and
there. Anyway, check out more info at: www.fastball-music.bandcamp.com
(Points: 8.0 out
of 10)
TESKEY ‘WHITE
WOLF’ (INDEPENDENT/USA IMPORT)
White Wolf is the debut album of the Arizona, USA
based band TESKEY. Not to be confused with the Aussie band THE TESKEY BROTHERS,
TESKEY are just as authentic for sure, because their album takes us straight
back to the late 60s/early 70s psychedelic heavy blues rock/classic rocksound
of that era in music history. They were founded just recently, in 2024, and
already in 2025 their first full-length debut CD hits the market. The band
consists of Brandon Teskey: Guitar, Lead Vocals, Matt Baldwin: Bass, Peter Murphy:
Keyboards and Brandon Gaddy: Drums. The first couple of songs (Under The Sun,
Cast Aside Child) are hard hitting uptempo classic bluesy rockers with that
psychedelic late 60s/early 70s vibe, and a song like Upside Down World dives
heavily into the late 60s British Blues rockworld of especially PETER GREEN’s
FLEETWOOD MAC. These guys are doing it at a very high level, writing their own
songs in that style, and with a fantastic guitarist who lets his guitar sing,
and a vocalist with a raw bluesy tone in his voice, it all makes sense here
that TESKEY is a band you want to check out. At times they remind of a cross
between CINELLI BROTHERS and IAN SIEGAL, with a sorta ALICE COOPER alike singer
(especially when you listen to a strong semi rocker like Don’t Take My Angel or
Shadow Side) and a PETER GREEN alike guitarist. No single weak moment to be
found here, and this band could easily hit the European Blues Festival season
next year. An appearance at Culemborg Blues or Breda Jazz would bring them the
audience they need, because they absolutely deserve it. Check them out at: https://teskeyband.com/
(Points: 8.2 out
of 10)
SYRINX ‘TIME OUT
OF PLACE’ (OCULA RECORDS/CANADA IMPORT)
Time Out Of Place is the 2nd full-length
album of the Canadian band SYRINX. In the past we have seen more bands under
that name, but this is a rather new band, as they have been active since 2018. The
band's current line-up features JP Abboud (lead vocals), Graham McGee (guitars,
synths, backing vocals), Bobby Shock (bass, synths), Seth Lyon (drums,
percussion), and Lady Chanelle (supporting vocals). Their music is complex yet
melodic, and without a doubt, very interesting to check out. There are 9 songs
on the CD, and after the short intro of Mitosis (Second Light), we are heading
straight into 70s/80s underground occult classic rock during the rather catchy
following song 1875, which has a lot of focus on strong clean melodic lead- and
harmony vocals in a way reminding of a cross between TRIUMPH, RUSH and BLUE
OYSTER CULT. There’s pieces of 70s prog, proto hardrock and very early 80s
melodic rock, with a dark sinister approach that even touches a bit of very
early progressive metal like the first couple of FATES WARNING albums. The bass
is quite upfront and the theatrical vocals really give it this 1982/1983 ish
prog hardrock vibe, especially when you listen to the rather complex but still
melodic sounding The Master's Host, which almost reminds me of a band like
TWELFTH NIGHT, yet with JUDAS PRIEST ish screams. If this would have been
released indeed in the good old early 80s, it would probably have been a cult
underground collector’s item by now. I absolutely love the soaring galloping
guitarsolo of the aforementioned song The Master’s Host. Anyway, next song Solace
Within is a sorta mini-Rock Opera like SAVATAGE in a lower budget early 80s
setting. The Knowing is a real classic 80s metal belter, with a pumping sound,
high pitched vocals, and a sound that should be placed somewhere between RUSH,
RIOT and JUDAS PRIEST. It is clear that this band recorded everything in the
good old fashioned analog way, which might put some people off, because don’t
expect a full-blown production. This album captures an authentic early 80s
sound, which definitely makes them even more interesting. A Waking Dream is one
of the few calmer songs, a melodic proggy tune with some cool synths and
capturing a real RUSH kinda vibe. Shades of Your Purpose begins as classic
proto-melodic metal within an early NWOBHM setting. The vocals, however,
utilize a theatrical prog-rock style, with the chorus recalling a calmer QUEENSRYCHE—all
without the benefit of a full-blown production, as previously noted. On the
other hand, this makes them standout and interesting for certain fans of the
genre. Unraveler is a more straightforward uptempo tune, and actually a
sensational one, with an early 80s melodic metal kinda feeling, not unlike RIOT,
and it features a very strong chorus. Closing track It Left is a proggy tune,
like RUSH meets early QUEENRYCHE and the very first DREAM THEATER album.
Concluded, we have here a highly recommended band that released an album that
sounds like it was recorded 40 years ago, yet that makes the, standout between
the countless overproduced albums being released nowadays. Actually, it is
quite close to the ASHBURY album Endless Skies, If anyone remembers that
obscure classic! There’s a bit of RUSH here, some early QUEENSRYCHE and RIOT
there, then you mix it up with TRIUMPH, BLUE OYSTER CULL, and even GHOST, make
it sound like the early 80s, and there you go, it’s SYRINX wonderful new album
Time Out Of Place. I also love the artwork of their frontcover, and I can
therefore highly recommend this album! More info at: https://priestsyrinx.bandcamp.com/album/time-out-of-place
(Points: 8.5 out
of 10)
GREG NAGY ‘JUST A
LITTLE MORE TIME’ (INDEPENDENT/USA IMPORT)
Just A Little More Time is the 5th album of
the impressive classic soul R&B/Bluesrock singer/guitarist GREG NAGY from
(originally) Flint/Detroit, Michigan, USA. He has a fantastic classic soulful
tone in his voice, and he also plays the guitar very well, so we have a winning
combination here. I am quite surprised he has not broke through yet, because
when you hear such a smooth ballad like the soulful bluesy Breaking Me (but
making me a better man), the amazing Rainy Night in Georgia or Love Letter, you
hear something absolutely sensational! He also rocks from time to time, because
Between The Darkness And The Light is a superb heavy blues rocker that even
recalls a bit of JOE BONAMASSA! Anyway, he offers a selection of original songs
and covers (JOHN LEE HOOKER/TONY JOE WHITE and a surprising one of the ALICE
COOPER classic Only Women Bleed), so it’s a very enjoyable introduction to this
incredible talented singer/songwriter/guitarist! He is assisted on the album by
a bunch of other musicians, such as Josh Ford: Rhythm guitar, percussion (also
co-producer), Jim Alfredson & Clif Metcalf: Keyboards (Hammond organ and
piano), John Barron & Rocco Popielarski: Bass and Todd Glass, Renee
Gonsalves, & Donny Brown: Drums, while there’s also a list of guests,
including Bobby Murray: Guest guitarist (ETTA JAMES' longtime guitarist), Larry
McCray, Peter Madcat: Harmonica, Keith Kaminski: Saxophone and Lynne Calloway:
Backing vocals. Concluded, this is a highly recommended album for the fans of
authentic blues soul/r&b with a killer voice and superb guitarwork! Hopefully
he will be able to travel and tour Europe someday soon! More info can be found
at: www.gregnagy.com
(Points: 8.6 out
of 10)
ATOMIK TRAIN
‘ATOMIK TRAIN’ (CROWN X RECORDINGS/MATCHBOX MUSIC GROUP/CANADA IMPORT)
Out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada comes the sensational
classic 80s sounding melodic hardrock/metal band ATOMIK TRAIN. Their same
titled debut album Atomik Train was produced by John Webster (AEROSMITH, MOTLEY
CRUE, ALICE COOPER), and is quite a superb album from start to finish, loaded
with killer rocksongs in an old fashioned format, yet with a modern up-to-date
approach as well. The band is formed around lead singer Francois Babin, lead
guitarist Junior Bourcier, drummer Alex Guilbault and bassist Yves Maltais, and
right from the beginning of the CD we are heading into classic melodic
hardrock/metal with uptempo songs like Supersonik Speedway and Destination.
Things slow down during the semi power ballad Back On Earth, which is a very
strong song. The vocals of Francois are absolutely picture perfect here, as he
has quite an amazing powerful range, while instrumental this is how classic
hardrock needs to sound like, featuring excellent soaring guitar solos all over
the place, while still keeping the door open for memorable hooks and melodies.
There’s a bit of everything in here, including influences of APRIL WINE, TRIUMPH,
VAN HALEN, Y&T, SKID ROW, BUCKCHERRY, SPREAD EAGLE, SVEN GALI, AEROSMITH
and so on. However, the band has more or less created an own vibe on their
first CD, which also reveals a cool cover of the Canadian Rock Classic Lunatic
Fringe (an original by RED RIDER – TOM COCHRANE). Other highlights include the
groovy hard hitting Playground, the catchy uptempo melodic rocker Never Again
and Animal Fire. Concluded, here we have a real great new upcoming Classic
Canadian Melodic Hardrockband to check out if you like bands such as HELIX,
APRIL WINE, TRIUMPH, SVEN GALI, VON GROOVE, WALL OF SILENCE, URGENT, KILLER
DWARFS, KICK AXE…
The band also was kind enough to include an older CD
of a former band of the guitarist JUNIOR, which musically speaking is quite a
different but beautiful affair, rooted firmly into calmer piano-keyboard led
calm instrumental territory. Definitely an interesting album to listen to as
background music.
Without a doubt, this is a Canadian band to check out
a.s.a.p. if you like classic Northern American Melodic Hardrock of especially
the late 80s/early 90s period. More info can be found at: https://atomiktrain.com/ and https://atomiktrain.bandcamp.com/
(Points: 8.7 out
of 10)
IVAN JACQUIN
‘INTIMITES’ (INDEPENDENT/FRANCE IMPORT)
Intimités is the new solo album of French
singer/songwriter/musician IVAN JACQUIN. He is a gifted
singer/songwriter/composer who does a lot of side-projects, and also plays and
composes a lot on his own, also on this CD, except for bass, guitar and drums,
which were played by guest musicians Amanda Lehmann – guitar and vocals, Maria
Barbieri – guitar, Henri-Pierre Prudent – drums, Denis Codfert – drums, Trev
Turley – bass and Richard LeFranc – bass. Together they created a beautiful
calm album that is influenced by mostly 70s progressive pop/rock, symphonic
pop/rock and theatrical pop/rock, sorta like KAYAK, ALAN PARSONS PROJECT, yet
with a French Chanson flair, because Ivan sings in French. Although sometimes
comparable to a band like LAZULI, yet less proggy and more focused on
theatrical melodies. In fact, songs like Un Chemin, In The Air and Derriere la
Fenetre are clearly sounding like they are 70s French pop classics. Perhaps too
poppy for the progfans out there, I can imagine if you like melodies such in
French with a symphonic theatrical approach this will be right up your alley,
because Ivan absolutely delivers an impressive album here. Closing track Autre
Depart has stunning instrumental parts that has a lot of KAYAK similarities. Quite
unexpected, this is a highly recommended album that could easily gain him
success inside and outside the sympho/prog world. More info can be found at: http://facebook.com/ivanjacquin/
(Points: 8.4 out
of 10)
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