Band:
John Steen AKA Vocalo AKA The King - Guitar, Vocals
Ulrik Bostedt AKA Animalizer AKA Speedo - Bass
Ulrik Bostedt AKA The Aviator - Bass
Ulrik Bostedt AKA The Burgher - Bass
Tony Samuelsson AKA Ambassador AKA The Vicar - Drums
Discography:
Five Smell City (2005)
Thunderblood Heart (2007)
Guests:
Robert Dahlqvist aka Strängen
Dregen
Info
Released 5/2-2011
Reviewed 29/3-2011
Links:
marveltheband.com
myspace
killer cobra
Märvel is a trio consisting of a group of alter-egos that outnumber the trio of bandmembers that make up the band. The whole thing is a bit confusing at first but if you look at the names of the members to the left a little more carefully, then you will know what I am on about. Musically is is like sweaty group sex with The Hellacopters, Turbonegro and Electric Six at a KISS-themed childrens party. Throw some 60s soul and 80s metal (the good kind) in the mix and you are getting pretty close to the truth. This description is of course the one that derives from the press information, I would say that it is good old rock’n’metal.
This album starts like a phone call, with which I of course mean that the first song is named Hello, which is fitting for a starting song. I think that song is quite illustrative of what we are to expect from this album, it is in style a good representation of the album (not a summary of it). It is also a decent track with an okay chorus and a melody that works quite alright, it is a good starting track I would say. It is then followed by the second track (logically) which feels mainly like a continuation of the first, like a sequel or similar. It is slightly better and it is called Bank of Lights.
In the third track that is called simply T.N.H. and don’t ask what that abbreviation stands for, I have no idea and frankly do not care - is a faster track with more energy than what any of the tracks before have shown and it is a good feat even if the singer seem to struggle a little in this track, the chorus is simple enough and catchy enough, a good track. Fourth track is like a copy of the second, not much to write home about to be honest. When we get to track number five though it is another matter. This track is one of the better on this album, it has a good chorus and a nice simple flow and melody throughout the song which works really well. What I can complain a bit about with this song is the lyrics as they are really stupid, who would throw a million he/she won away? I would definitely not do that.
“It has never been easy, those who say so are lying” is the starting line of track number six which is called the effort. It is a line that clearly has a point for most of us and certainly for those of us who are reviewing music, it has never been easy, at least not for me. This is an okay track but it is just that line that you remember from it. I also remember now that the press info spoke of the band playing live masked which I think is a bit ridiculous but that is just me. Back to the seventh track which is called Beaten Path and is quite solid but there is nothing that grabs you with it and it is forgotten in the same moment as it ends.
Blood Harmony, track eight is another of those track that is a bit more than the rest on the album, it stands towering a slight portion above the average of the album. With a slightly better melody, a slightly better chorus and just a slightly better overall it stands a slight bit above most of the album’s songs.
Track nine and ten are both songs to forget, I think at this moment I start longing for the end of the album when we are circling around and above the 40 minute mark. Maybe I feel like these songs are slightly average thanks to the fact that I am starting to loose interest when it starts to go on a bit too far. Still, there is still another highlight in the album’s best track in the one that is called Tiger by the Tail, it is a song with a good melody and chorus and in the end there is also some female vocal parts that spice it up to be a great song, at least a very good one.
Ending track Preaching to the Choir is not that interesting, it ends it all well but it does not do anything for me. I would call it a good track that has nothing that grabs me as a listener.
If I were to sum this album up I would start by saying that it is a good album with mainly good songs, that is my general opinion of it. Still, there are some things that does not go down as easy for me, the vocals for instance, they do not work. In most cases it sounds like the vocalist has something down his throat which makes him sing strange and in some songs he really struggles just to be able to keep up and that is not fantastic. I sure would not say that he is awful since he still fits quite well even though I feel that the vocals is a part where the band should try to improve themselves since that it could lift their music a lot with a vocalist that could better carry their music with his vocals. I must also state that this album is too long, 35 minutes would have been ideal but this one is 49 minutes and that is just too long for making an album work. There is one more thing and that is that the songs are a bit too uniform, there should be a bit more variation especially in the tempo region, the songs are quite similarly paced with just one or two songs really breaking this, it would have needed to be a bit more varied than that I think.
I do still think though that this is a good and solid album without any major flaw (there are a few small ones which I have pointed out) but also without any real highlight making it feel quite average in the end. I can also state that after listening to this album for fifteen times I hold the record cover as the most memorable, unfortunately it feels like it does not represent what Märvel is doing with Warhawks of War.
I wonder if the cover can be bought as a big canvas or poster without the logo and title.
HHHHHHH
