LA TORMENTAROCK - reviews 3

Desde Argentina nos ha llegado este adelanto de la banda del guitarrista Gonzalo Ledesma. Nueva formación pero no gente nueva, Ledesma ya ha participado en el anterior proyecto de Adrián Barilari (RATA BLANCA, ALIANZA) que también participa en el disco poniendo voces en algunos temas.
La historia de Broken Heart es inusual, cuando menos, tienen el disco grabado, pero no tienen compañía que se lo edite (en el momento de hacer esta crítica hay al parecer una compañía española interesada en sacarlo), así pues su manager se viene para España a ver si hay suerte y empieza a probar por las emisoras pequeñas en busca de apoyo, además según él la intención de Gonzalo Ledesma es establecer la banda aquí, venirse con el cantante Marcelo Arenas y reclutar al resto de los músicos en nuestro país.
Musicalmente Broken Heart pueden definirse en una onda Hard Melódico, con buenas melodías y grandes bases, la guitarra de Ledesma vale la pena oírla, se le podría definir como un seguidor de Yngwie Malmsteen, pero sin la saturación de éste. Los temas tienen un gran trabajo de composición y arreglos, con mucha fuerza, sobretodo en el tema que seguro será uno de los singles "Loco". "Adrián Barilari pone las voces en un precioso medio tiempo titulado "Angel Alado" junto con Marcelo Arenas.
Esperamos que pronto podamos disfrutar de esta banda en forma de Cd, porque el adelanto merece la pena de verdad.

From Sweden comes this new shot, a debut album for this 4 piece Hard Rock band called "FATAL SMILE", Robin Lagerqvist (drums), Markus Johansson (bass), H. B. Anderson (vocals) and Y Unutmaz (guitar) offer us a demonstration that the new bands don´t forgett where the Hard Rock beguns, full of classic Hard Rock songs mixed with the modern sound of today, influenced by bands like BLACK SAB BATH, METALLICA or WHITESNAKE, "Beyond Reality" is a couple of songs that sure don´t let you stay quiet, from the potent rhythm bases to powerfull guitars and impressive vocal melodies, all the songs sounds consistent, with impresives changes of direction.
From the beginning with "Bad Kharma", Fatal Smile define their positions, catch you in their particular universe of sound, leaving you from the dark tranquility of a "Beyond Reality" (great vocals by H. B. Anderson in a powerfull song) to an ""Scene of the crime" (This one with a little beat of Queensryche´s sound that remember us The "Operation Mindcrime" album) or if we want to see "Butterflies" in a power mid - time song with a great refrain, "The Saviour", "Warfear" or "Circle of Fire" are some of my favourites (in a Cd that is hard to choose anyone) cause are full of classics sounds. All The album is in a good music level, in adiction with the huge production of H. P. Camper (alias of Jonas Östman (Yngwie Malmsteen)) makes this debut album a pleasing surprise.
"Beyond Reality" is the culmination of a hard work accomplished by the band during a long time, composing and playing alive, at this moment the band is played in festivals with giants of rock like Bruce Dickinson, Halford, Motorhead or Saxon, cause in their own words "We´re born to perform live".

Yes, it is certain, the Englishmen have returned, this year 2002, one of the big bands of Melodic Rock born in Europe has finally recorded an album again, 12 years waiting their return, it has become hard, but now following the wave of returns of the big formations, so much to enter in study like to put on above a scenario, the Englishmen have not missed the appointment and they collaborate to that this year 2002 can maybe be one of the most fruitful of the last times. Of course so that this return went to the big thing, it could not miss magnificent presence Tony Mills´ voice that together with the guitar Steve Harris is the authentic soul of the group from its beginnings both they admitted that they had spent great part of the 2001 preparing songs for the Cd, they had not had the intention of to compose 2 or 3 new songs and to throw of file, the result is of the best thing that one can listen this year, they have gotten, Not like others that its sound is in agreement at the current times, but without forgetting its own identity, its sound at all.
Since some months ago it arrived to my hands the McD "Breakaway" that the times of advance of this ago, "Unfinished Business" the doubts you began to form in my mind, because it sounded too well, if SHY returned and they made it this way album goes waited for us.
The doubts have vanished completely, the new Cd is really IMPRESSIVE, Mills and Harris, with compositions like the one that included the advance "Breakaway", they drag us again to its own musical universe, where each song is important, compositions well worked, anything complex, but neither simple, elegant riffs, a good base rhythmic and big vocal melodies is the ingredients that have used capture us again, this it is maybe one of those Cds that listen to it of the tug and when finishes you are thinking of putting it again, because fortunately it doesn't become repetitive at all, the songs, still inside a defined style, they don't become heavy to listens to it, they have gotten an almost perfect balance in the compositions, from temes with the most classic sound in the band like "Breakaway", "Skydiving", "Can´t stop loving you" or "Change of Direction" until topics with a more modern sound, "Communicate", "Heaven Tonight", without forgetting to introduce two mid times "Maryanne" and "Storyline", but if I had to assume the difficult task of choosing a topic, I would not keep one, good I would keep all, but maybe for me ""Whole Lotta Feeling" for the immense unfolding of voice of Mills and the one that closes the Cd "No Other Way" with a part of incredible guitar, they are maybe those that I would stay if forces me to only choose a couple of them.
IMPRESSIVE, I reiterate myself, return of SHY, in my opinion one of the best albums in the year or maybe of what we take of XXI century. If you already liked them, you don't doubt it, if you have not had the pleasure to listen their previous albums you can take advantage now to begin to know one of the best bands in Hard Melodic Rock of all the times.

One year ago, Michael Voss´ project were presented (CASSANOVA, MAD MAX, DEMON RUBBER) that in all the bands in the one that had put the voice, had left their personal stamp, but for this new adventure, he decided to give us to know their instrumentalist facet, composer, producer, everything in one. To give continuity to the project, it has just published the second work of the band, always with musicians "practically unknown", Gary Barden (STATETROOPER, MSG) vocals, Bernie Torme (OZZY) to the guitar, Don Airey (1 PM, WHITESNAKE, MSG, TEN) with the keyboards and Marco Minnemann (H-BLOCKX) drums, besides the own Voss playing bass guitar and like we have already said producing the album. "Dream Machine" is the continuation of the Cd had published approximately one year before, following the same wave that that, this is, compositions created by Voss, and interpreted to the voice by Barden, the sound of the band is of a marked style, characteristic of the compound songs of the German boy, although in some of them, we can find the best Gary Barden like in "Forever" or "Silver Dream Machine." One of the toiled details in the disk is maybe the double voices, non duets, but a voice and for under the other one, of the two vocalists of the band, this is a good production detail, a good mixture, the torn voice in Gary Bardem, supplemented with the sharpest and mellow in Michael Voss creating a counterpoint that is fantastic in some of the topics. One of the best topics maybe "Lovin´ you", beautiful topic that is of the slowest in the album, without ending up being a ballad, but that their refrain is hit and it becomes difficult to take it out of the head. Personally I have difficult to choose some topic, but besides those before maybe pointed out "Far Below Zero" and "Found me Another One" they could be stressed, one for their force and another for their melody and vocal work of Barden.
In summary with SILVER Michael Voss continues ahead with its parallel project, with a good result, people that intervenes in the disk also have a lot to see, because although, to exception of Gary Barden, her work doesn't highlight in excess, it is noticed that they are some big players, being able to find details or shades in some of the topics that demonstrate it to us without any doubt.
If you liked the first work of the band, you don't doubt it, "Dream Machines" it has improved in the production and even in the elaboration of the topics (more worked), overcoming, in my modest opinion, to its predecessor.

This can be one of the important moments is also there taking place in the history of the spanish Hard Rock, from there new bands are coming out whose level is high. Good example of they are it SKYLINE whose album debut has finally seen the light.
Formed by, Ramón Grifé (vocals), Tolo Grimalt (guitar), José Sánchez (bass), Pedro González (keyboards) and Rafa Bohórquez (drums), they offer us their personal way to understand the music, not conforming to with being encased inside a single style, SKYLINE plays several sticks, from Soul with its choirs and accompaniments of wind until the more elaborated Hard Rock. or Blues with more feeling, not stopping to surprise us with each song of the ten that composes the Cd.
The production has run in charge of the own band and it sounds impressive, what demonstrates that the first album of a Spanish group can also sound well.
Since the Cd begins, you realize, this is not the work of some fans, the songs take an taken care elaboration, paying attention to all the details that take each song to have something special, they have not conformed to with any thing, lives they have paid special attention to the arrangements that it plows able to stuff each small hole and they endow each one of the compositions of to special charm.
Of course only with arrangements they don't become big songs, they plows also necessary ideas, and these guys have them very clear, they have put the whole meat in the spit being able to endow of to sound peculiar to their compositions, apart from being good musicians, each instrument sounds in its place, without saturating you, neither "guitar-alone" excessive, neither unnecessary decoration, that makes that the topics plows dynamic and be able to arrive to the listener to the first one.
To highlight some song becomes full difficult, because all have a similar level, but there goes, if you like middle times "Closed Mind" or "Better World" (with reminiscences to Clapton) they are the two quiet topics of the disk, if on the other hand you prefer the Hard Rock with rythm it proves "Walking the City", "I´ve Waited too Long" or the two songs that they close the album "Can´t get Enough" and "Full of Empty" and if you want to prove a mixture of Hard Rock-Soul of high quality ready attention to "Out of Control" and "Satisfaction."
Several styles, inside big songs, we could summarize this way this first album of SKYLINE, a mixture that you will be surprised, sure.

Following the rule of the original project, (MARK BOALS´ solo album), and acquiring like name, the title of the CD of the mentioned meeting, that is to say, RING OF FIRE, we meet with what is a meeting again of.... "virtuosos"?, yes and not ; on one hand we have the drop to TONY'S guitars MCALPINE for JORGE BELLAS, apart from this, MARK BOALS, (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN), the voices, VITALIJ KUPRIJ, (ARTENSION), the keyboards, VIRGIL DONATI, (PLANET X, SOUTHERN SONS), drums and bass PHILIP BYNOE. With all this, we meet with a CD of HEAVY METAL,(their label says), with some touches of progressive, I think.
Until here ffine, now, we have, 12 topics, all compounds instrumentally by KUPRIJ and vocally by BOALS, shamelessly influenced by their time with MALMSTEEN, like it demonstrates along the whole CD, quick songs, as CIRCLE OF CHEATS, CITY OF THE DEAD, (two of the best cuts in the disk), FACE THE FIRE or SHADOW IN THE DARK, (in the one that sometimes to BOALS is listened something forced), means times like the one that gives title to the CD,THE ORACLE or great songs, as SAMURAI or the power ballad TAKE ME HOME. All this, would be perfect, but it ends up being, for a "small" failure, (from my point of view), Mr. KUPRIJ, obtains so much protagonism that doesn't leave in diverse occasions that its guitarist, GEORGE BELLAS, no longer that shines, but rather he is heard for that the lad, is left the fingers and the only thing that one hears it is the CASIO PT 10 of VITALIJ, the problem, is that sometimes, the topics lose hook and it forces, like, for example in the refrains of the VENGEANCE FOR BLOOD.
Therefore, good CD of the company of the RING OF FIRE, (they will have been happened to them, or they will have had to appeal some magician, for example.... GANDALF??, but that with a little bit less protagonism and a production something more purified, it had been able to be one of the best CDs in heavy metal to end up the year.
Will reason sound so high and clean the sound of the keyboard and so low and out that of the guitar? LET US ASK TO THE ORACLE..............................................!!!