Mini review

Elettra Storm is a new powermetal band from Italy. ‘Powerlords’ is their debut album, which will be released 16 February. The two vocalists sing about archangels, moon goddesses and underground civilisations. Daily exhaustion, plus the good and bad things about humans are also mentioned. Singer Crystal Emiliani seems to hit the high notes easily. Her … Read more, available in English and Dutch

‘Can We Leave The Light On Longer?” is the third (acoustic) album by Damian Wilson and Adam Wakeman. Damian sings and plays acoustic guitar. Adam sings, plays piano, Hammond, guitars, bass and percussion. The personal lyrics are, among other things, about how people are connected. This twosome knows how to convey emotion. Adam voices this … Read more, available in English and Dutch

German art/hard rock Polis is influenced by such band as Uriah Heep and Epitaph. The live album ‘Unterwegs I’ was recorded at two different concerts. ‘Tropfen’ has pleasant, extended instrumental pieces. The sound is a little too dull, but well spread over the headset. Both the minimalist parts, and the tempo and volume changes are … Read more, available in English and Dutch

Young American Evan Nicole Bell is a songwriter, singer multi-instrumentalist and producer. She plays a mix of (timeless) blues, rock, funk, soul and pop.’Runaway Girl’ is her (digital) debut EP. Jimi Hendrix was one of her sources of inspiration. This can be heard in ‘Catfish Blues’, among others. Evan’s guitar playing is cool, the rough … Read more, available in English and Dutch

Apogee is a German two-man formation. The new ‘Through the Gate’ is even more diverse than its previous albums. The tracks contain a mix of styles, such as classical, folk-heavy rock and jazz. There are also unusual twists, rhythms and details. At times, the tempo is quite fast. You sometimes need the spherical and/or minimalist … Read more, available in English and Dutch

On debut album ‘Monochrome’ (2022), multi-instrumentalist Sammy Wahlandt played everything himself. For the new album ‘The Dream’, he handed over everything except the drums. The metal start of the album sounds a bit dingy. The turn to a smaller played part is unexpected. Vocals and music are balanced: Stella Inderwiesen has a rather soft (sometimes … Read more, available in English and Dutch

‘Here to Stay’ is the new album by multi-instrumentalist Ron Coolen. The 13 tracks are full of delicious and very varied guitar playing, frequently you can hear several guitars at once. This comes from Ron, and from seven guest guitarists who play the wonderful solos. Ron plays the other instruments, his dynamic drumming positively stands … Read more, available in English and Dutch

New melodic prog-metal band Temic consists of known members: Fredrik Bergersen, Eric Gillette, Simen Sandnes, and Diego Tejeida. Their debut album is called: ‘Terror Management Theory’. Apart from a few musical rests, there are plenty of twists, details and change of styles in the music. Not all twists and outros are sublime. The contrasts between … Read more, available in English and Dutch

Singer/multi-instrumentalist Dave Kerzner plays in several prog rock bands. He also releases solo albums. His new album ‘Heart Land Mines Vol. 1′ is autobiographical. After and bad relationship, Dave drove away, without a plan; but with suitcase and guitar. He doesn’t only speak about her behaviour, and its consequences, but also about self-reflection. Not everything … Read more, available in English and Dutch