Time Signature Something to say...

Genre: hard rock / melodic metal

This has been an interesting experience. To be honest, the first thing I felt towards this band, before I heard the music, was antipathy because of their utilization of the physical attractiveness of a sexed up Julie Westlake in most of their visual material. Now, it is my impression that - at least in the world of pop - when an artist is promoted through the sexing up of his or her physical appearance, this is normally to compensate for a lack, or at least a very low degree, of musical talent or for the lack of anything interesting or attractive in the music itself.

Now, this is really not the case with Hydrogyn, because, once you listen to their music, you will realize that they have talent and they are skilled musicians who know how to write good and interesting rock music. So, their sex-driven imagery is not really necessary. The tracks on "Private Sessions" fall somewhere between melodic hard rock and melodic metal, with emphasis on incredibly catchy chorus lines, masterfully delivered by Julie Westlake's clear voice. Moreover, the guitar solos featured on this album are performed with finesse and, for a hard rock album, they are often quite technically advanced.

The songs are, as mentioned, well written and cleverly draw on both heavy, hardrocking elements and on mellow, melodic and, at times, poppy, elements. "Something to say", for instance, evolves around a metallic riff while the verse is of the classic "Holy Diver"-style pumping bass, and the chorus is extremely sing-along-friendly. A track like "Forbidden Kind" combines alternative metal with a Def Leppard sensibility, and also features a 90s era Depeche Mode feel. "I Don't Know How" balances between a mellow verse and a hard rocking chorus and features som classic metal riffage, while "Heated Nights" is more of an all out hardrocker, and "Creeper" features some groovy nu metal-like riffage and an old school metal chorus. "Roseline's Song" and "Alone" are more ballady tracks - and examples of how ballads can definitely be good ("Alone" also features an almost epic chorus with symphonic tendencies).

Classy hard rock, the tracks on "Private Sessions" should appeal broadly to anyone who loves hard rock and melodic metal. The choruses are memorable, the musicianship is impeccable, and the melodies are massive.