by Kev Rowland | Jul 25, 2018 | Reviews
I was a little surprised to realise that this is the fifth Hartmann album I have in my collection, and yet again Oliver has done exactly what I expect of him by now, namely producing an album containing immaculate vocals, with a depth and breadth that is often sadly missing from this style of music, while there is still that edge to every song. They are commercial and radio-friendly yet still maintain the power and authenticity that one demands from music without it being overtaken by the sappiness that some melodic rockers feel that they need. The guys have built a reputation as an outstanding live band and has been called to tour with rock legends as Toto, The Hooters, Uriah Heep, Edguy, Mother’s Finest, Y&T and others, and this comes through in the music which definitely sounds as if it is ready for the band to take on to the stage.
This is hard melodic rock, no room here for over the top sugariness, but commerciality that is grounded in a band that can trace its influences from bands such as Bad Company, and then bringing that right up to date. The production is strong, musicianship spot on, hooks aplenty, the vocals are full of depth and breadth, while the guitars haven’t been sanitised out of existence. This is yet another incredibly solid and enjoyable album from Hartmann, well worth investigation if this is your style of music.
– Kev Rowland
by Kev Rowland | Jul 25, 2018 | Reviews
House of Lords frontman James Christian is back with his fourth solo album, and he has brought some of his old mates such as Tommy Denander and Jimi Bell to come and help him out. The result is an album that feels incredibly together, warm, relaxed while also kicking some serious butt! Christian’s vocal skills are well-known, with power, breadth, depth and range, and when in front of a rocking band with great songs he knows exactly how to put his talents to best use. He can bring it down on ballads, with a slight rasp to his voice to bring the listener in, or he is able to ride the rock horse when he needs to, always in total control.
The result is an album that will immediately appeal to fans of House Of Lords, Robin Beck, Night Ranger, Ted Poley, Revolution Saints, Eclipse, Sunstorm, Hardline and Mr Big. Big guitars, great vocals, strong hooks, it is almost as if grunge never happened as this takes us back to the melodic rock heydays of the Seventies and Eighties, but with more up to date production and guitars. It has taken nearly twenty five years for Christian to release four solo albums, as he is a little busy with HoL, let’s hope that it’s not too long until the next one.
– Kev Rowland
by Kev Rowland | Jul 25, 2018 | Reviews
I have only recently come across this 2013 album, the third from this Swedish project led by Carl Westholm (Carptree). This is very much in the progressive metal area, coming across as being fairly similar to Ayreon in many ways. It is bombastic, over the top, with the guitars providing a grinding bottom edge for the keyboards to lift over, and there will be many progheads who will find the intensity, energy and sheer heaviness just too much for them. But, given that I listen to extreme metal as much as I do to prog then I find it absolutely fine.
There are times when it is symphonic, and during “Invasion” the intensity levels just keep growing and one wonders if they are going to be able to hold it all together. The layers of sound just keep coming, like a wall of music, in a way that I normally associate with Devin Townsend but here with more variety and dynamics. There is a clear understanding from Westholm that music needs to be soft to also be hard, delicate to also be robust, and at times there is the impression that there is an orchestra of metal all being conducted to pull it all together. Those into symphonic metal and/or prog metal should seek this out.
– Kev Rowland
by Kev Rowland | Jul 8, 2018 | Reviews
ScienceNV was formed in 2005 by Larry Jay Davis (guitar and bass guitar), David Graves (keyboards), Jim Henriques (guitar and keyboards) and Rich Kallet (drums). They released their debut album, ‘Really Loud Noises’ in 2008, following it up with ‘Pacific Circumstances’ in 2010 and ‘The Last Album Before the End of Time’ in 2013. Whereas those albums were instrumental, this time they have expanded the band and expanded the concept, so instead of releasing one album every two or three years, they have now released two albums in 2018 which tell the story of Prester John. Apparently, Prester John was a ruler of legend in the ancient world. His kingdom was rumored to be in various parts of the world ranging from India to Central Asia and Ethiopia depending on the century. A letter purporting to be from Prester John circulated around Europe late in the twelfth century and at least one expedition was sent to bring greetings to the ruler and his kingdom.
I must confess to being new to both the story and the band, and although this is an independent release it would have been nice if they could have stretched to a booklet explaining what was happening, instead of just an insert. What I do know is that after a short introduction “Fanfare” we are treated to the longest song on the album, the thirty-two-minute “Eloise’s Tale”. The total length of the album is 55 minutes, with eight songs, so it shows just how dominant this is. The quartet has added a number of additional singers and musicians to this album, and in some ways, it is hard at times to understand exactly what is going on in terms of musical progression. They definitely have more in common with bands from the Seventies than today, with Gryphon probably being the top pick, but there is also a great deal of jazz, as well as more medieval themes and styles. It is a complex, layered, piece of work, often with an acoustic guitar at the base.
There are sometimes when the vocals appear a little sharp, but that must be by design as generally, the singing is very good indeed. The more I listened to this album, the more I felt quite enthralled by it, as it is just so very different to everything else I listen to. I could imagine a young Robert Wyatt being involved with this, with gentle orchestrations also bringing an additional edge. There are times when it doesn’t work quite as well as it could, but overall this is an intriguing and interesting album.
7/10
Kev Rowland
by Kev Rowland | Jul 8, 2018 | Reviews
ScienceNV was formed in 2005 by Larry Jay Davis (guitar and bass guitar), David Graves (keyboards), Jim Henriques (guitar and keyboards) and Rich Kallet (drums). They released their debut album, ‘Really Loud Noises’ in 2008, following it up with ‘Pacific Circumstances’ in 2010 and ‘The Last Album Before the End of Time’ in 2013. Whereas those albums were instrumental, this time they have expanded the band and expanded the concept, so instead of releasing one album every two or three years, they have now released two albums in 2018 which tell the story of Prester John. Apparently, Prester John was a ruler of legend in the ancient world. His kingdom was rumored to be in various parts of the world ranging from India to Central Asia and Ethiopia depending on the century. A letter purporting to be from Prester John circulated around Europe late in the twelfth century and at least one expedition was sent to bring greetings to the ruler and his kingdom.
I must confess to being new to both the story and the band, and although this is an independent release it would have been nice if they could have stretched to a booklet explaining what was happening, instead of just an insert. What I do know is that after a short introduction “Fanfare” we are treated to the longest song on the album, the thirty-two-minute “Eloise’s Tale”. The total length of the album is 55 minutes, with eight songs, so it shows just how dominant this is. The quartet has added a number of additional singers and musicians to this album, and in some ways, it is hard at times to understand exactly what is going on in terms of musical progression. They definitely have more in common with bands from the Seventies than today, with Gryphon probably being a top pick, but there is also a great deal of jazz, as well as more medieval themes and styles. It is a complex, layered, piece of work, often with an acoustic guitar at the base.
There are sometimes when the vocals appear a little sharp, but that must be by design as generally, the singing is very good indeed. The more I listened to this album, the more I felt quite enthralled by it, as it is just so very different to everything else I listen to. I could imagine a young Robert Wyatt being involved with this, with gentle orchestrations also bringing an additional edge. There are times when it doesn’t work quite as well as it could, but overall this is an intriguing and interesting album.
7/10
Kev Rowland
by Kev Rowland | Jul 8, 2018 | Reviews
Robert pointed out to me that I would be one of the few reviewers coming to the second album immediately after hearing the first, so what would I think of the two albums working together? The albums are designed to be viewed as a pair, from the artwork and layout through the music and ideas. While I smiled when I noticed that this was called ‘Volume 0’, part of me would rather it had been called ‘Volume 10’, which of course is 2 expressed in binary code, but that really is nit-picking (yes, I’m a geek – been working in I.T. for more than 20 years, but it’s not my fault).
Lyrically it is the perfect follow-on from the debut, so much so that it feels that it could become part of a permanent loop, so much so that the question becomes “which came first, 1 or 0?”. Musically it does feel very much of the second half of a piece of work, possibly slightly more acoustic? The musical themes and styling of the debut are carried into this, with the same influences very much in play, so much so that one actually finds it quite hard to realize that there was a break between the recording of the two albums as opposed to being recorded at the same time. And if anyone doubts the City Boy analogy just listen to George at 5:20 on “The Future Doesn’t Need You” and see what I mean.
It is also definitely worth mentioning that all the lyrics are in the pack, apart from one, and the only way to get that is to go the Valhalla Biotech site. Once there the lyrics can be seen, but also there are various links, for example, “5 Things That You Need To Know” (which takes you to a blog about becoming more involved in the local music scene) or “Become A Shareholder” (which of course takes you to their store). As I write this, I see that the album is #2 on the PA charts (interestingly I gave maximum scores to #1, #3 and #5 – haven’t heard #4). It is a totally different album to the latest by Roz Vitalis, the current incumbent of the top slot: that is very much a progressive album, from the RIO scene, while this is progressive pop that is fully Crossover. In terms of sheer pleasure and repeated playing this wins hands down, as it just makes me smile each and every time I play it. And isn’t that something that music should be about? The two ‘Ones & Zeros’ albums perfect complement each other, and all that can be done is buy both and listen to them back to back.
http://www.3rdegreeonline.com/3RDegree/Landing.html
9/10
Kev Rowland
