REDSTACKS – Revival Of The Fittest (2022)
“Revival Of The Fittest” is the debut album of the Dutch Classic / Hard Rock band REDSTACKS, founded by masterminds and songwriters Jouke Westerhof (guitars) and Jeffrey Revet (keyboardist) in 2018.
Packed with classic riffs and Hammond B3 atmospheres “Revival Of The Fittest” is imbued in a Seventies aura of traditional hard rock as performed by RAINBOW, URIAH HEEP, DEEP PURPLE, etc.
Mixing the melodic and magical essence of the genre with a modern production and a decent amount of talent, the release also has a slight tint of AOR and even Melodic Rock in certain ballads, although the that ‘classic sound’ is the main influence here.
The band enlisted international top-class singers for the lead vocals, such as Laura Guldemond from BURNING WITCHES, Jan Willem Ketelaers from AYREON, and lots of others.
The fast paced Blackmore-esque riffs synchronized with flamboyant keyboard performances gives an exciting undertone to the tracks. Five seconds after hearing first cut “Overture 1848”, the word KANSAS popped into my head. This track has many of the trademarks of that legendary band, minus the violin.
With that, we are on a sonic journey through the 70’s FM radio lineup. “Jealousy” brings to mind RAINBOW after DIO’s departure with its mix of crunchy riffing and keyboard melody. The fast and edgy sounding “Dreamworld Junkie” is like something URIAH HEEP might have done, while the heavy blues of “Mercy” has a WHITESNAKE feel.
You get the picture. Every track brings a 70s or early 80s great rock to mind. There are several vocalists at work here, including Laura from BURNING WITCHES and Jan Willem from AYREON, which keeps things constantly shifting. But the classic hard rock and AOR influences are constant.
Fans of straightforward and slightly bluesy late ’70s Hard Rock will enjoy “Revival Of The Fittest”, a very well written and produced record done like in the good ‘ole times.
Highly Recommended
01 – Overture 1848
02 – Oceans
03 – Jealousy
04 – Dreamworld Junkie
05 – Mercy
06 – Cold
07 – Mind’s Eye
08 – Dystopia Now
09 – Money
10 – Vortex
11 – Angels in Crime
Keyboards, Hammond – Jeffrey Revet
Guitars – Jouke Westerhof
Bass – Rob van der Loo
Drums – Tim Beudel
Lead Vocals:
Jan Willem Ketelaers
Laura Guldemond
Paul Adrian Villarreal
Martin van der Starre
Nick Holleman
Timothy Drake
Thomas Meeuwis
BUY
shop.season-of-mist.com/cd/redstacks-revival-of-the-fittest-cd
