Tuesday, May 31, 2011

REECE/KRONLUND: "Solid"




Rating: 8/10

Label: AOR Heaven 2011

Review by Alan Holloway

Reuniting the former (and future) Gypsy Rose pairing of David Reece and Martin Kronlund, “Solid” is a great surprise package that equals Reece’s best work with Bangalore Choir. Mind you, what’s wrong with band names these days? We’ve had the uninspiring “Williams/Friestedt” and now this! I know there’s probably marketing reasons, but I will remain miffed at this sort of thing. Bloody good job the music’s kick ass enough to cheer me up, is all I can say…


Powerful yet melodic, the dynamic duo deliver some intense tunes that benefit from the inclusion of some outside songwriting help. There’s real power here, with gloriously catchy tracks like “Samurai” and “Animals & Cannibals”, along with a couple of ballads that don’t make you reach for the skip button. As well as the powerful guitar of Kronlund, it’s nice to hear keyboards used sparingly yet effectively, with everything combining well to back up some of David Reece’s best vocals yet. No moulds are broken, yet the whole thing has an in your face feel about it and simply demands to be played over and over again.


By no means fluffy melodic rock, “Solid “will be a real treat for fans of Reece’s earlier work, even if it’s only the debut Bangalore Choir platter , and definitely wins the award for most apt album title so far this year.

Website

No comments:

Post a Comment