THE BLACK RAIN – Night Tales (2021)
THE BLACK RAIN was born in Bologna, Italy, almost two decades ago but had to wait several years to attain its final line-up. “Night Tales” is their first full-length album, which in fact was recorded many years ago.
The Black Rain’s style on this album is deeply rooted in the Eighties & Seventies with a sound that smell ‘retro’ from all angles; 10 songs in a vintage LP fashion, Eighties-like artwork, the album’s title, traditional analog-based recording, and a sound mixing Classic Rock with traditional Hard Rock.
“Lake Trip” opens the CD with a one minute introduction sounding as like the band is warming-up to go to the stage. The song is a classic rocker with an American bluesy vibe and a jammin’ all over, followed by “Won’t Let Go”, a much more commercial and melodious track solid in instrumentation and with a fine chorus.
But I think the real potential of The Black Rain explodes in “Plastic Love”, a sweaty hard rocker with a hot riff and tap-footing chorus. Here is where the lead vocals really gets loose and rocks the place.
The band goes for a ballad in “Sugar In Poison”, an effective midtempo with a melancholic melodic line. The strong riffs return with “Hot For A Night”, perhaps the more Euro hard rock sounding track of the album, “Mama Let Me Be” adds a calmer yet groovy vibe to the tracklist, and then “My Sweet Mistake” rocks a again in a very US way.
The almost title track “The Black Rain Motel” has a quite melodic development, strangely absent of chorus but the song is so driving that it doesn’t need it. Cool guitar solo here.
The recording ends with the only real ballad, and one of the best tracks on the album; “As I Lie” is very classic, the first half only supported by a piano and the good lead vocals by Mirko Greco.
The Black Rain is a well assembled Classic Rock / Hard Rock act from a country that does not stop to produce bands with a sound from an era when rock ‘n roll used to be ‘rock’. This quartet is more focused in melody than a melting attack, guitar riff-based but not metallic, all sounding really early ’80s, Classic Rock oriented.
“Night Tales” delivers an agreeable set of classic rocking songs performed in a warm, organic manner, as it used to be in the good old times.
01. Lake Trip
02. Won’t Let Go
03. Plastic Love
04. Sugar In Poison
05. Hot For A Night
06. Mama Let Me Be
07. My Sweet Mistake
08. The Black Rain Motel
09. Coming Home
10. As I Lie
Mirko Greco – Vocals
Eugenio Bonifazi – Guitars
Marco Molteni – Bass
Raffaele Marchesini – Drums
BUY
www.amazon.com/Black-Rain/dp/B099691S1V
