The name Coldspell is a name that has been floating around me since their debut album Infinite Stargaze back in 2009, but for some reason I haven’t taken any interest in the band – until now. Why that is, I’m not sure, but maybe it has something to do with their name. I mean, it kind of sounds like the name of a death metal band or something like that and death metal isn’t really my case of beer. This is what happens when you don’t check your info properly. That’s why I missed that the band once held bass player Anders Lindmark, once of 80’s AOR band Dalton – a band I listened a lot to as a young hardrocker (now replaced by Chris Goldsmith) and that their second album Out From The Cold was mixed by Tommy Hansen who had previously worked with favourite bands of mine such as Pretty Maids, TNT and Helloween. So when the info about them releasing a new album was all around communities such as Facebook I decided to check them out and see if they maybe was worth a go. First of all, this is as far removed from any death metal you can get. This is a hard rock band that borders to both heavy metal and melodic rock with a progressive twist and I hear influences here and there from acts such as Dokken, Queensrÿche, Lynch Mob and the heavier side of melodic acts such as House Of Lords. Hey, what a great idea to not check them out because of their name! Don’t judge the book by its cover, huh? Stupid me…
First out is the band’s first single and video “Paradise” and if that one doesn’t catch your ears then you probably don’t like this kind of music at all, because the song is a killer – a real killer. It’s catchy and melodic, but at the same time leans on a heavy foundation – brilliant! In “Angel Of The World”, a very good song, I hear some cool George Lynch influenced riffing, “Life Has Just Begun” is awesome – again heavy and melodic and I hear some borrowings from Dio’s “Sacred Heart” song, not that it matters much and “Alive” has some good, meat n’ potatoes good riffing, a killer hook and a melody to die for – brilliant! “Life 2 Live” really should be single #2, it’s catchy as hell both in the verses and the chorus and it sticks like glue to your brain, “Fallin'” kicks in with a heavy groove and a great melody, “Legacy” is a heavy melodic rock killer and if you get the de-luxe edition, you’ll get a bonus track in “Rise And Fall”, which feels like a bit of a waste because the song is great, better than some of the original album tracks.
I’m really glad I got my ass off the couch and checked out this album, because it is a great album. I really like the production – it’s really heavy, but at the same time kind of slick and it sounds really professional. Tommy Hansen mixed this album as well and he has done a great job, I really like the mix of heavy metal and melodic hard rock. Also the band themselves does a brilliant performance on this record. Singer Niklas Swedentorp really has a great voice, that runs deep and can still be light whenever necessary, guitar player Michael Larsson plays very tastefully and still has a great technique and drummer Perra Johansson keeps a steady beat and builds a tight foundation together with Goldsmith’s bass. I would recommend this to everybody into melodic hard rock and metal. I guess this calls for me checking out their earlier albums.
Jon Wilmenius (8/10)
Tracklist:
1. Paradise
2. Angel of the World
3. Life Has Just Begun
4. Goin’ All the Way
5. Alive
6. Life 2 Live
7. On the Run
8. Soldiers
9. Fallin’
10. Dark Reflections
11. Legacy
12. Rise And Fall (Bonus Track)
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