Review by Richard Henry for MPM
Having saw Michael on tour recently supporting his UFO Days album, the man was certainly playing with a real sense of urgency and precision, and while still on that tour in question, there came the announcement of a new album, he has been battering out albums at some pace in the last decade, so let’s see what this new one has to offer!
Don’t Sell Your Soul – Straight off you can hear that sort of 70s gallop rhythm and a lovely little guitar melody following the riff, the vocals sounds great, more a middle register on this one, that little melody part though is just class, Barend, Bodo and Steve just holding down that rhythm section hard, pure groove, solo is unison bend melody with the Wah pedal to kick off, and Michael just plays so melodically, some absolutely screaming notes in there but nothing too flashy just really carrying the solo, this really reminds me of early 70’s UFO for sure, the chorus and everything, what a great opener!
Danger Zone – Some open string pull offs on the guitar kick this one off, before the band comes in proper, real low and dirty floor tom groove to kick this off, really a nearly Dokken sort of feel, then as the verse comes in you can hear a little keys part coming in to lift it up before the pre chorus the vocals climb up a bit as the band shift into a proper head nodding chorus with the organ sound driving behind the riff, definitely more 80s sounding from the first track, the vocals getting to climb up in range, back into that first groove for the muddle section and that solo is just a major key sublime piece of work again it’s all about that melody with little flashes of notes, which Michael is a master of, short and to the point!
Eye of the Storm – Bodo kicking this off with a drum fill and into a “Into the Arena” feel on the drums, love that sliding octave melody over the static chord, there is some lovely scale/arpeggio riff that goes along with the verse riff and the vocal fly’s on this it’s hard to describe, like a more up-tempo Rainbow feel, eastern mystery over a double bass groove, lovely harmony double vocal over the chorus section, the drumming though is just so driving and solid from Bodo, nice change in dynamics, coming right down for the start of the solo before the band kicks in again, and there is some absolutely sublime lead work, lovely note choice and phrasing, bluesy parts and arpeggio runs, before slipping back into the verse double bass groove and the chorus again, absolutely loved this track!
Janey the Fox – Opening with a bass and synth intro and a sliding guitar part then some very cool surf sounding guitar chords, this one feels nasty, just grooves along feeling sort of slimy, you need to hear it to know what I mean, really low vocal it sort of feels creepy in a very cool way, for those muso’s out there it seems to be in 7/8, then it sort of straightens out into the chorus refrain, almost clean guitar in there arpeggiating the chorus, then goes into the groove again for the solo section which has loads of unusual noises, it’s almost like a textural part before that gorgeous Schenker melodic solo shines through, his playing is absolutely on point, it’s an odd song in many ways but it is definitely a very cool song!
I Can’t Stand Waiting – Quick riff and a wall of vocals come in for the song title, you can tell this one hits more the 80s vibe again, and it seems to be a pattern as almost you go between decades with this album, some songs from one era and some from another, it just drives away and again I had to stop myself cause I thought of this sounds a bit like Europe, but then Europe sounds like UFO and Schenker, that chorus is absolutely huge and you will definitely be singing along with it after the first listen, again there is so much little parts going on, that little line in the verse on the guitar along with that main riff, the chorus just opens up and gets huge, that’s a dirty little solo, lovely slurring on the phrasing and then a little flourish, short but sweet and absolutely perfect before the verse and chorus hit again, like a lot of the songs, less than 4 mins, and straight to the point, no fluff and no nonsense, another belter of a track!
Sign of the Times – Head down driving riff and feel to this one, almost like a Judas Priest sort of feel to it, when the verse comes in the drums just go to a count on the hi hat and there is a really nice arpeggiated chordal part that comes in with a lower vocal, with the other guitar playing straight chords, lovely organization of the parts, rhythmically it’s just straight ahead but so much going on in the guitar, then on the pre chorus there are some lovely vocal harmonies, lovely fast run into the solo and then some gritty blues phrasing with some nice scale runs in there, then back into the verse again, quick break and into the chorus, this might be my favorite song so far, lovely outro solo as well some nice counterpoint and harmonies!
The Chosen One – Really sinister riff comes in on its own, again with the clean guitar round it, and another odd time signature, low nearly spoken word vocal, then a tempo change and a military snare part as the vocal climbs for the pre chorus, before it flattens out into the chorus, the song has gone from low to high, love that little break in the middle of the chorus, unexpected, before that creepy riff hits again, then bang, almost Metalica rhythm, think Through the Never, then a very shredding solo comes in before the song sort of crashes out!
It’s You – Ok so I have no notes for this album, and I can’t find nothing online, but that doesn’t sound like Erik, much more Coverdale in feel, a different feel its sleazier in a way, but it’s a great vocal really gritty, much more Whitesnake in feel for sure, the riff is just driving as are the drums but the chorus is just a massive singalong part, really soaring solo on this one, some nice runs at the end before it slides into the verse and the chorus again, this is an absolute banger of a track, I just wish I knew who it was singing, but Wiki, Ear music do not have any details!
Six String Shotgun – Thats just a dirty riff and a lovely groove to kick this one in, again you sort of here that UFO sort of feel in the riff, before it breaks down to a slow groove in the verse with a cleaner guitar, lovely doubled vocal in there as well, it almost reminds me of Tesla for some reason, then it builds up into that chorus and the whole thing opens up and really grooves hard, I love that chorus, then a really nice key change into the middle eight section of the song, Micheal then launches into a very cool very bluesy solo that is so tasteful, before we slip feels again into the verse and back into the chorus, the one thing i have noticed is nothing outstays its welcome, every song is exactly to the point, no fluff, no parts that are excess to the song, just great song after great song! (That outro solo sublime!!)
Flesh and Bone – Now that is rock and roll, like a hyped up ACDC riff, driving drum beat just right from the off this is a rocker, yeah this has a sort of California feel and a little bit of sort of punkish feel, then it starts to drive along with a soaring vocal in the pre-chorus and a massive singalong I the main chorus, it’s a really interesting mix of feels, really quick solo break before we hit the verse again, love the half time breakdown in the second chorus, great touch to split up the feels, then it straightens out again as the solo comes in, very Hendrix with the unison bends before the Schenker feel hits, tasteful, flashy where he needs to be, but ultimately like always, absolutely perfect for the song, absolute banger of a track!
Surrender – I cannot write what I said when I heard this, Jesus that’s a fast little guitar part to kick that off over the static chord, then boom the double kicks come thrashing in for the verse as the song propels along, the vocals sort of take center stage as the guitar is less busy and the drums are flying, interesting arrangement, a double verse instead of hitting a chorus, it doesn’t stop, the chorus has the vocals soaring more and this is almost like a power metal song when I think about it, that is a very neo classical lead break with the harmony guitars and then a little scale run part, sounds absolutely like Michael but it also sounds so different in a way, another absolutely solid track, heaviest on the album and fastest, what a way to close it out!
10 out of 10
No Fluff, No Filler, it’s straight to the point, every song is just exactly the right length, it covers so much ground from 70s/80s rock to more modern power metal in feel in the last track the playing is just absolutely perfect, every solo is flawless, just the right amount of melody and flash and just like the album, straight to the point and urgent, absolutely recommended! Right Mr. Schenker, let’s get back to Belfast!!!
Don’t Sell Your Soul will be available on CD, LP, and limited transparent red vinyl.
Pre-order the album here.
DON’T SELL YOUR SOUL TRACK LISTING:
CD:
“Don’t Sell Your Soul”
“Danger Zone”
“Eye of the Storm”
“Janey the Fox”
“Can’t Stand Waiting”
“Sign of the Times”
“The Chosen”
“It’s You”
“Sixstring Shotgun”
“Flesh & Bone”
“Surrender”
LP:
SIDE A:
“Don’t Sell Your Soul”
“Danger Zone”
“Eye of the Storm”
“Janey the Fox”
“Can’t Stand Waiting”
SIDE B:
“Sign of the Times”
“The Chosen”
“It’s You”
“Sixstring Shotgun”
“Flesh & Bone”
“Surrender”
