DAN WANDE – Highway 45 (2023)
A well-travelled musician making his mark on the industry, Swedish vocalist/guitarist DAN WANDE has been carving out his musical legacy for the better part of four decades. After playing and composing music for the majority of his life, and cutting his teeth in bands like Myopic Void, Grave, Vandee, Unit-X, Stella and Smile, to name just a few, Dan is finally ready to unveil his solo aspirations, stepping out of his home studio and away from his quiet life in the North of Sweden to bring us a sharp melodic hard rock album in “Highway 45″.
After two EP’s released a couple years ago which already become something of a Spotify sensation earning over 300,000 cumulative streams already, along with coverage on several national radio stations, Wande has written, produced and arranged ”Highway 45” solely himself with stupendous results, and brought to life with the help of a talented roster of studio musicians.
While diverse and always interesting, DAN WANDE’s music is classic Scandi melodic hard rock with occasional metal edge – think Gypsy Rose, Amaze Me, Madison, Angeline, etc – driving by his wailing electric guitar work and very solid vocals, sharp ‘80s style stuff brought kicking and screaming into the modern age.
While Dan Wande was lately focused in producing / recording other artists in his own studio, the successful streaming singles spark the recording of “Highway 45”. Many of these songs were written in the ’80s / 90s, now re-arranged and updated to current times yet retaining that era’s feeling.
Through a process of deconstruction, assimilation, and metabolization that he has cultivated throughout his 40-year career, Wande has managed to breathe new life into something recognizable in the foundations, now elevated to an ecstatic perspective with a refreshing livery.
It’s solid, strong, and definitely worth listening to material. A colourful introduction to another capable musician from the impressive Scandinavian pit.
Highly Recommended
01 – Highway 45
02 – Tommyknockers
03 – Out of the dark
04 – Searching
05 – Born on the bad side
06 – Life on the line
07 – Brake free
08 – Falling of the end of the world
09 – Memories of pain
10 – Walking on water
11 – Dragonforce
Dan Wande – lead and backing vocals, guitars
Mark Brown – keyboards
Marcin Palider – bass
Daniel Trogen, Maurizio Antonini – drums
Giacomo Pasquali – guitar
Eugenio Paludi – backing vocals
BUY
www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BV3Y2WXK
