PRETTY MAIDS : ‘Undress Your Madness’ – new album by iconic Danish rock act out 08.11.19 (Frontiers)

Undress Your Madness’ is the highly anticipated follow up to the critically and commercially successful Pretty Maids album ‘Kingmaker’, released in 2016 and a record that continued along the revitalised path that the band set out on with their classic albums ‘Pandemonium’ and ‘Motherland’.

It is always difficult to Follow a successful and inspired record, but ‘Undress Your Madness’ shows again that Pretty Maids are still in the freshest and most vital phase of their career since the early 90’s.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsBz33HAoh0&w=560&h=315]

I think the new album is a kind of continuation of what we’ve done over the last ten years,” says singer Ronnie Atkins. “I’m really happy about the way it turned out because in my humble opinion there are a  lot of good songs on it and it is probably even more melodic than our previous efforts.

As always, the production is absolutely stellar thanks to Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Amaranthe, Kobra And The Lotus), who has given the band a sound that not only reinvigorates them, but also incorporates the beloved soundscapes of the past to make it simultaneously modern and classic. “I think it’s a match made in heaven,” continues Atkins. “There’s a great chemistry between us, we share the same sense of humour and thoughts about what a good song is, so there’s a lot in common. Quite simply, Jacob is the most gentle and easy going guy I’ve ever worked with.

What then can be said about Atkins and his band partner Ken Hammer? Hands down one of the best songwriting teams in the genre, Atkins’ voice gets better and better as the years go by, menacing and vicious one minute, melodic and soothing the next. Meanwhile, guitarist Hammer is on fire here and lays down some of his heaviest riffs in recent memory.

Accompanying this dream team, the bass playing of Rene Shades is as thunderous as ever, propelling the incredible rhythms of the songs along with the superb drumming of Allan Sørensen.

The keyboards of Chris Laney also add a wonderful texture and nuance to the band’s brilliant new compositions, tying everything together into a perfect package.

Every song on offer is worthy of attention, whether it be in your face barn burners such as the storming opener ‘Serpentine’, the title track or ‘Black Thunder’, timeless melodic metal anthems like ‘Firesoul Fly’ and ‘Will You Still Kiss Me (If I See You In Heaven)’, or even a superb power ballad like ‘Shadowlands’.

Concludes Atkins: “The album was written in a very short period of time. Basically, it was written in January this year, just prior to recording it in February, so everything was very fresh when we entered the studio. So fresh, in fact, that some of the songs were hardly finished when we started, but it all fell into place as we proceeded with the recordings.

The final result is ‘Undress Your Madness’, a record that has everything a Pretty Maids fan could possibly ask for

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