Tracks like “The Moment” and “The Way you Haunt Me” remind the Kansas aficionado of the band in their prime. The epic scope of the songs remind you just how good this lot can be when they are firing on all cylinders. Fans will eat this up as will anyone who likes atmospheric AOR without the cliché’ and over compensation so prevalent in some releases. Clearly a candidate for AOR release of the year.
White Wizzard: High Speed GTO
With a name like White Wizzard you would expect them to be a bunch of Black Sabbath worshiping, stoner groove merchants. Well the country for inspiration is right, but wrong band. This lot are clearly heavily influenced by the mid-80s period of Iron Maiden with a touch of other NWOBHM bands such as Tigers of Pan Tang and even Saxon. If you are a fan of those types of bands, you will find something refreshingly familiar on here without being just imitation.
There is a hard rock sensibility that is lacking in so many modern metal bands. It may be heavy, but there is still a sense of fun and mischievousness about. The CD has only seven tracks, but that is all it really needs. There is not one turkey on this release from the high octane of “High Speed GTO” to the dry good-bye of “Red Desert Skies”. Needless to say the band are doing gigs in Germany land of the trad heavy metal clad hordes.
Given the right push this lot could be huge. If you have had your fill of screamo vocals in your heavy metal, this band is the perfect antidote. The bloke on the vocals can actually sing.
Tantric: Mind Control
This lot were formed after the break-up of Days of the New who reached platinum status before their implosion. This band clearly have taken up where DotN left-off and continue to produce hook-heavy poppy rock which makes it very difficult not to like it. Now I am not saying this is the annoying punk-pop that abounds today, but more a new century pop-rock. It's catchy, clever and fresh, which works great on disc.
This is a mature and well put together album that reflects the fact the band have been together for a while honing their craft. There is enough meat on the bones to please most hard rock fans while not losing that sensibility that attracts non traditional rock fans. There is quite an arena-rock sensibility on here with occasional nods to the 80s and even stadium bands of the 70s. Tantric describe this as their heaviest record to date and that is clearly the case. The album is full of great stuff, to select one song would be unfair to the others. Bloody good album from a bloody good band.
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