by Kev Rowland | Jun 3, 2018 | News, Reviews
By Kev Rowland
Back with their fifth studio album, it has been a while since I last heard this German band that morphed out of Sieges Even, as there have been two other albums between this and 2011’s ‘Touchstones’. I would have classified their last album as solid neo-prog, but while I do think that classification is still the best place for this as a whole, there is much more crossover in what they are doing now. This has a lightness and deftness of touch to it, yet at the same time, there is a maturity and feeling of a band knowing exactly what they want to get across to the audience. Bringing in RPWL’s Yogi Lang and Kalle Wallner to undertake the production was a touch of genius, as that act has also been through a great deal of change as they have moved to adulthood, and together they have all combined here to show that there is a prog band that has very much come of age.
The current line-up, consisting of Markus Steffen (guitar), Arno Menses (vocals), Ralf Schwager (bass), Markus Maichel (keyboards) and Dirk Brand (drums), has remained unchanged for quite some time. Markus and Arno starting working together in Sieges Even before moving away, while Ralf (Dreamscape) and Dirk Brand (Axxis, Geoff Downes & John Wetton) also have strong reputations, but it is as this quintet that they are now becoming best known. The vocals soar, the melodies hit while the harmonies and musicianship are all that one would expect and want from a band like this.
The approach is far more song-based than before, and although they can hit hard when they want to (witness the keyboard-led melodic hard rock introduction to “Every Able Hand”), they are also content to lighten it up and let Arno take center stage. This is an incredibly accessible progressive rock album, one that brings the bands of the Nineties right up to date, and also not being afraid to use hints of the Seventies when the need is right, but all wrapped up in commercially acceptable radio-friendly songs that are a delight.
8/10
by Kev Rowland | Jun 3, 2018 | News, Reviews
by Kev Rowland
Born and raised in Kobe, Japan, Takaaki Otomo started learning classical piano at the age of five, moving onto jazz when he was fifteen, inspired particularly by Oscar Peterson. He has released a number of CDs as a leader and sideman, and then in 2014 moved to New York City. Composer Bernard Hoffer heard him playing at a restaurant in New York, and knew that it would be wonderful to hear him record in a trio setting, and set about making that a reality. Takaaki was joined by Noriko Ueda (bass) and Jared Schonig (drums), and they selected five originals, four jazz standards, plus one Broadway show tune (Takaaki’s suggestion) and two novelties from Gustav Holst’s The Planets. The originals were two tunes by Takaaki, one by Noriko, and two of Hoffer’s tunes written specifically for this project. Although Hoffer doesn’t perform, he was heavily involved, arranging eight of the numbers on the show.
Takaaki (pronounced Tock-ah-OCKie, rhymes with hockey) is an incredibly lyrical and accomplished pianist, and uses the full range of the grand piano, while in Ueda and Schonig he has discovered some incredibly capable and willing partners. There are times when the trio are in full flight, and it is incredibly majestic. Takaaki did start learning classical music, and this shows in some of the pieces as they move in and out of the jazz form. I must comment on their version of “Mars”, as while I have heard it undertaken in both its original form and with rock bands, this is the first time I have come across it as a jazz trio. It starts very true to the original, but at just under two minutes in length, Takaaki starts to stretch his musical wings and instead of playing the piece as composed, he starts to use it as an influence and plays in and around the piece. Overall it is an album that can be enjoyed on many levels, always pleasant and interesting without ever really pushing the boundaries a great deal.
7/10
by Kev Rowland | Jun 2, 2018 | News, Reviews
By Kev Rowland
Here we have the follow-up to the Bristol band’s debut album, 2016’s ‘Fed To The Lions’. That album established them as one of the most electrifying new bands around, and with ‘Change Your Position’ being released on Nuclear Blast Records, that reputation will surely grow. The line-up comprises Alex Veale (vocals, guitars), Antonio Angotti (bass, backing vocals), JP Jacyshyn (guitars, backing vocals) and Jack Taylor (drums, backing vocals), but they actually credit producer Evansson as the fifth member of the band as he contributes so much. “In my mind, this is what a modern guitar band would sound like,” says Alex. “We’re influenced by so many different genres. It’s no secret that guitar music is struggling generally. We’re on a mission to help keep it alive and well.”
They have drawn on influences as diverse as Queens Of The Stone Age and White Denim through to David Bowie and Prince, then bring it all up to date. Actually, the single thing that distresses me most about this album is the cover photograph. I mean, it’s not exactly rock and roll is it? But, in many ways, it also sums up the band in their refusal to conform as they can move from music that has an obvious funk groove to something that is far darker and immensely heavy, yet all the time retaining their own identity. Each time I play “All That Medicine” I am reminded of Living Color, as the groove just drips through it all, but then they can lay it down and become a metallic monster. These guys just refuse to conform, and also can’t wait to get back out on tour. “The best part about music is seeing bands play live,” says Jack. “It’s what The Beatles and the Stones and those other great bands were doing back in the 60s. It’s what The Hives and The Bronx and other electrifying live bands which inspired us more recently were doing. We’re creating music for people who want to go and experience that.” Catch them if you can, both with this album and onstage, just don’t spend too long looking at the cover.
8/10
by Kev Rowland | Jun 2, 2018 | News, Reviews
By Kev Rowland
The very first time I played this I asked myself why on earth had this album been self-released? This is crying out for major label support as it is just so damn good! Possibly I need to take a step back a bit. Valhalla Lights … are Ange Saul (vocals), George Christie (guitar), Brent “Badger” Crysell (bass) Deon Driver (drums). George, Brent, and Deon have been playing together for 17 years and were the backbone of legendary Australian stoner rock band Fort who undertook national tours with Clutch (two tours), Kyuss Lives, Fu Manchu, Brant Bjork, Grinspoon, Nebula and shows with Monster Magnet, Helmet, the Black Keys, COG, Shihad (NZ), Tumbleweed, and The Hard-Ons. Joining the powerhouse trio is Ange Saul who has played Canadian Music Week and was invited to play the world’s biggest music conference & festival: SXSW in Austin, TX with her previous band The Black Lullaby.
What we have now is a band that belongs in the early Seventies, with a singer who idolizes Janis Joplin, producing music that contains slabs of sound, always striving to hit that overdrive with a singer who can more than hold her own at the front. These guys need to play as if their lives depend on it as it is the only way they can keep up with Ange. I was really enjoying the album, with one crunching song following on from another solid riff as the band pursued by two of my favorite Blacks (Sabbath and Widow – although the mighty All Blacks are the ones who really own the color) when I came to “The One”. I was stunned to come across this, as here Ange is accompanied by a much gentler and orchestral support, and she also sings in a different style, allowing her vocals to be way more delicate, with just some reverb. This song is so very different from the rest of the album, capturing a totally different side to the band, yet also displaying the depth of their versatility. The last time I was thrown so much by a single song on an album was with “Bother” on Stone Sour’s debut, which my long-suffering wife loved immensely and wondered why I said she wouldn’t enjoy the rest.
Valhalla Lights is all about quality vintage instruments and tube driven amps played at high volume, catchy riffs that stick in the mind, thumping drums and crashing cymbals, all put together to create a wall of sound… and powerful and melodic vocals cutting through to sit over the top. And I love it
8/10
by Kev Rowland | Jun 2, 2018 | News, Reviews
By Kev Rowland
Just put this on and listen to the melodic rock majesty that only happens when musicians who really know their stuff join forces and do something because they love it so much. This is the third album from W.E.T., who comprise Robert Säll (the “W” from Work of Art), Erik Mårtensson (the “E” from Eclipse) and Jeff Scott Soto (the “T” from Talisman) along with Eclipse guitarist Magnus Henriksson and drummer Robban Bäck. All the guys involved have been having some success recently, with Mårtensson (coming off a highly successful new Eclipse album and preparing for the release of the self-titled Ammunition album), Soto (coming off his own successful solo album, plus the debut of supergroup Sons Of Apollo), and Säll (having just completed the production of a forthcoming record with Steve Overland of FM and about to start working on the anticipated fourth Work of Art record).
They have all been around the traps for a long time, and I have been a fan of JSS for many years both solo and with the mighty Talisman (a live video of “I’ll Be Waiting” is downloaded to my phone), so to get a band like this having fun is always going to deliver class results. This is melodic hard rock which hasn’t been sanitized out of existence and instead relies on the band producing melodic hard rock with crunching riffs and harmony vocals and a singer who is strong enough to shine over the top of it all. This is very much a song-based album, with everyone putting their heart and soul into every number. The end result is an album that any fan of the genre needs to get out and purchase immediately, if not sooner. Want great riffs, hooks, solos, punching hard rock and great vocals? What are you waiting for?
8/10
by Kev Rowland | Jun 2, 2018 | News, Reviews
By Kev Rowland
Sometimes a thought can lead to some different and unusual places, and this is exactly what has happened here when Lockyer wondered what would have happened if Sinatra and Reinhardt had met and collaborated together. To assist in this journey he invited Ben Powell (violin), Rob Hardt (clarinet) and Ed Bennett along for the ride, and the result shows how much he loves both styles of music. I have never been a massive fan of Sinatra, to be honest, it’s not really my style of music, but over recent years, have been investigating Reinhardt and especially his recordings with Stéphane Grapelli. With this album, I soon discovered that while I appreciated Lockyer’s vocals, and what he was attempting to do when marrying the two artists together, what I really wanted to listen to was his amazing guitarwork combined with the lyricism of Ben Powell. An album of just the two of them, with no vocals whatsoever, would be a very special set indeed, but that this doesn’t work is far more due to personal taste than to any failing in the presentation.
It may not be exactly what I am looking for in music, but Lochyer’s approach to Django-style acoustic guitar is masterful, and the album is well worth investigating.
7/10
http://www.rochlock.com
