Last Updated on 08:58 AM by Giorgos Tsekas
Genre: Rock/Prog Rock
Country: Iceland
Label: Nuclear Blast
Year: 2015
Lately there has been a creative revival of the ‘70s hard rock sound through the rise of bands like Graveyard, Orchid, Rival Sons, Blues Pills and so on. Nuclear Blast is the pioneer of such releases and is now presenting The Vintage Caravan’s new album, titled Arrival.
The young trio’s skills and technical expertise are obvious throughout the album and it really is an understatement to say that they are talented and skillful despite their age. The fact is that they are talented and skillful, period. So the real bet on them is to stand out and forge an identifiable sound of their own.
The first single to be released and a very wise choice indeed is Babylon. It kind of reminded me of Led Zeppelin’s Immigrant Song, not in that they sound alike but in the rush and overwhelming energy it gives out. The aggressive intro, the feverishly pounding drums, the massive guitar solos all add up to 5,5 minutes that are purely intimidating.
My personal favorite is the album’s opening track, Last Day Of Light. The first two minutes’ groovy intro builds up to a multidimensional composition with diverse tempos and contantly alternating styles, a pandemonic outrage that best represents the band’s evolving sound.
The album’s production combines crisp tunes with the expected vintage vibe. The editing of back-up vocals and the use of echoing effects ups the ante on tracks such as Eclipsed, Innerverse, Shaken Beliefs that are already remarkable to begin with. The massive improvement in Oskar’s vocals is also worth mentioning.
Eclipsed opens with a doomy intro and a slow flow that lasts for 3.5 minutes before things get really wild… The same with Innerverse, where the opening 3-minute-long bluesy vibe turns into a frenzy of guitar/bass/drums with the addition of matching keyboards. It also features the band’s most interesting attempt lyrics-whise.
Shaken Beliefs is likely to be a concert favorite, with its catchy rhythm sections and frantic guitars. And so is Winter Queen, a nearly 9-minute-long genuine anthem that climaxes to an epic sing-along opportunity.
All twelve tracks have a certain quality and the band is gradually creating a distinctive and recognizable sound. Also kudos for the nice artwork, and let’s hope for psychedelic Voyage-like videos to come along! My personal suggestion is that they make an attempt to explore slower rhythms and heavy blues. I certainly look forward to their live performances where I hope they make justice to their influences. Overall The Vintage Caravan’s potential is truly promising and their steps are solid to stand up to it.
4,5/6