BEST DEBUT ALBUM OF THE YEAR : VIOLET JANINE – Between Red And Blue (2016)
Near the end of the year, it’s time to recap about the best 2016 releases, by category.
For 0dayrox, the Best Debut Album of the year is “Between Red And Blue”, by VIOLET JANINE.
We already posted here the advanced single from Swedish melodic rockers VIOLET JANINE featuring legendary former Black Sabbath vocalist Tony Martin. “Between Red And Blue” is the debut CD from Violet Janine, based around lead singer Janine Nyman and lead guitarist / songwriter / producer Daniel Palmquist, a guy that sure has been around the block of melodic rock.
Palmquist have contributed to AOR bands such as Find Me, Norwegian singer Issa and melodic metal band The Murder Of My Sweet among others, so it’s an experienced musician. The rest of the band consists of lead guitarist Mano Lewys, bass player Basse Blyberg (House Of Shakira) and drummer Ian Brunnberg.
Apart of the guest appearance by Tony Martin (who also co-wrote the track where he duets with Janine), there’s Pontus Snibb of Bonafide on the track ‘Down On My Knees’ as well.
‘Heat Of The Highway’ kicks off the album and the title really mirrors the music – yes, this is true American “on-the-road” music. It’s a melodic hard rock song with an ’80s US vibe, guitar driven with a melodic but pretty kick-ass beat and both, verses & chorus are very catchy.
‘Devil In Me’ is a raunchy rocker, then in ‘Tell Me’ we get a more melodic oriented tune with a sticky chorus and a midtempo melody where Janine’s lead vocal takes the central role.
‘Everyday’s A Fight’ is the kind of power ballad that writers like Desmond Child and Diane Warren would sell their mothers to write, a total hit in my book.
Returning to hard rockin’ sounds, ‘Shut Up’ is in your face with a fistful of attitude and fits Janine’s raspy voice like a glove. A killer track that I bet will go down like a storm live.
Next there’s ‘So Much More’ where Tony Martin guests and duets with Janine on this bluesy ballad. Martin and Nyman work together brilliantly and the song it’s big on emotion and feel. Even though the melody isn’t the usual radio friendly “don’t bore us get to the chorus” thing, the whole tune is really solid where the verses / chorus works together at making the song a stand-out track.
‘Better This Than Nothing’ comes with a big groove, still with some major melodic rock ’80s bound on top and great guitar work. Again, this is really damn good.
‘Story Of Your Life’ is a midtempo ballad with some Robin Beck on it. The groove makes it a mover and the melody is quite addictive.
Violet Janine close the album with ‘Down On My Knees’, a great Euro melodic rocker. Singer Pontus Snibb, originally with Swedish rockers Bonafide, duets with Janine on the track and the guy does a phenomenal job. It’s a killer song, he chorus is really bulls-eye and the whole tune kicks up some dust and really rocks – what a great way to end this record.
The 9 tracks on Violet Janine’s “Between Red And Blue” leaves you hungry for more. But I prefer quality over quantity, and all these are really solid melodic hard rock big on catchiness.
This band has attitude, heart, soul and a big love for the music they play and they do it with all the conviction in the world. Also, all musicians are top notch and Janine is such an amazing singer with a wide range, a brilliant vibrato and a sexy raspiness which makes her one of the best female rock vocalists recently appeared.
How to sum this album and it’s music is easy – one word easy – WOW!
Very, Highly Recommended.
01 – Heat Of The Highway
02 – Devil In Me
03 – Tell Me
04 – Everyday’s A Fight
05 – Shut Up
06 – So Much More (feat. Tony Martin)
07 – Better This Than Nothing
08 – Story Of Your Life
09 – Down On My Knees (feat. Pontus Snibb)
Janine Nyman – Vocals
Daniel Palmqvist – Guitar
Tony Jonsson – Guitar
Basse Blyberg – Bass
Ian Brunnberg – Drums
BUY IT !
www.amazon.de/Between-Red-Blue-Violet-Janine/dp/B01FRGIBKW
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