Maybe my memory is fading, but, I think this is one of Eurorock’s first visits to Germany, which is more than a little surprising when you consider the quality rock that has emerged from there over the last few years - decades.
Alev are from Munich and this self titled album is, in fact, their second full length release. 2005’s We Live In Paradise caused quite a stir and built the band a reputation that has seen them performing at Europe’s largest festivals. The band’s website tells me that the word Alev means ‘fire’ in Turkish – and a quick listen to them shows why they are perfectly named as there is a definite passion, a fire, at work in their music and their lyrics.
Being fronted by a female vocalist, Alexandra Janzen, draws inevitable comparisons to Nightwish and Evanescence but Alev are very much their own band with their own distinctive style and sound. Alex is a truly exceptional talent seemingly able to sing every conceivable emotion. She has a gift of range that allows to her sing atmospheric, melodically soft tracks to full on power with an uncanny ease. Alongside her are guitarist Patrick Fleischer, keyboard player/guitarist Saner Ariduru, bass player Martin Fahrnholz and drummer Niki Brockt.
“Where Are You” opens the album with Alex proving within a line or two exactly why she is so highly regarded. The powerful riffs produced by the band are nicely down in the mix, allowing Alex the space to give the lyrics their full attention. This track really deserves attention and could be a single without any doubt. The dark vibe of “Crawling Under” contains a great stadium sized hook before “My Cover” takes us into a very different atmosphere. A gentle opening belies its surprising power and it again possesses a hook that is amazingly effective. Alex’s voice is bewilderingly good drawing every possible emotion from every well written line. The track is, without doubt, a highlight.
“Unique” continues with a similar strength and has the whole band performing superbly with a huge maturity and understanding. Alev have the ability to write these incredibly strong choruses and you just know that with their image and this kind of material that they must go down a storm live. These two songs are a triumph.
“Stained Lies” and “Devotion” show the band’s power credentials while “On My Own” and “At The Right Time” take us into the melodic. All three of which are superbly delivered. Meanwhile “Disconnected” successfully explores both, as does the rather over crowded “Institutionalized”. The album also has an additional track a re-working of the 2004 single “Cause and Effect”.
Alev have certainly tapped into a sound that fully utilises their many strengths. The lovely Alex, without doubt, is one of those undoubted strengths and will no doubt attract the most attention. She has a superb rock voice capable of switching from soft to rock in a breath. None of it would be possible without the band of course and as a collective they are strong indeed. Alev the album should propel Alev the band to an even higher level.
Visit the Alev Website for all the up to date news.
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