Kev Rowland Coldspell were formed in 2005 by guitarist and songwriter Michael Larsson, and this is their third album since then. It is the first that I have heard, but I see that the artwork on all three are similar in approach, they all reference the fact that they live in a cold country (Sweden) and they have all been produced with Tommy Hansen (Helloween, TNT, Pretty Maids, Jorn etc) so at least they are consistent. The consistency has obviously stood them in good stead, as if the other albums are like this then I really ought to seek them out. As one would expect from seeing that they are signed to Escape Music, this is melodic rock. The main difference between this and many of the other acts on that label is that these guys are also very much a metal band, bringing in power metal and symphonic metal influences as well as melodic hard rock and metal to create something that has plenty of balls and punch, but with plenty of balls to boot.

I found myself being reminded of classic Journey, but a lot heavier, as these guys really know how to take a tune and run with it. They may be from the cold of Sweden and play with it, but in many ways this is a perfect summer’s album with this just blasting into the night as the party just keeps getting more raucous. Every element is in harmony, with great tunes and vocals combining with the guitars to create something that is reminiscent of Seventies AOR before it became sappy, but with plenty of additional crunching guitars to boot.

Well worth investigating for anyone who enjoys melodic metal, I promise you won’t be disappointed. www.Escape-Music.com