FRANCESCO MARRAS [Tygers Of Pan Tang] – Out Of The Fire (2025) *HQ*

Guitarist FRANCESCO MARRAS, a sought-after session musician on the European hard rock scene and current member of Tygers Of Pan Tang and Screaming Shadows, is a skilled songwriter & producer and carries a solid solo career as well.
A complete musician, he knows all about versatility, and he uses that broad breadth of experience to good effect on latest solo effort “Out Of The Fire“. Marras understands that a solo album shouldn’t be all about guitar wankery. It is about using his guitar skills as a foundation to create good melodic hard rock songs.
Francesco plays all the guitar and bass parts on the album. Additionally, he sings (and does so very well) on six of the songs. The other four tracks are graced by guest outstanding vocalists: David Readman (Pink Cream 69), Iacopo Meille (Tygers Of Pan Tang), Gianni Pontillo (Victory) and Daniele Ledda (Twilight Zone). The album also features drummer Pavel Ljubicic, keyboardist Marco Cossu and bouzouki player Marco Garrucciu.
The style & sound (finely produced) here is ranging from current day Europe, Whitesnake to Crystal Ball, Pretty Maids, etc – timeless classic melodic hard with a vibrant feeling.

This record is a bit more hard rocking than Marras’ last offering It’s Me!, with the guitar-slinging protagonist stamping his credentials also in melodic metal stakes for anyone to see (or, more importantly hear). Cyber Lust, for instance, which features his Tygers pal Iacopo Meille on vocals, is a prog metal masterpiece, all brooding, hulking riffage and leather-lunged bellow, and it’s an absolute ripper.
Elsewhere Francesco proves he still hasn’t got those Whitesnake grooves out of his system with the title track being a serpentine romp helmed by – you guessed it – David Readman. It’s a fun four minutes also recalling Burning Rain.
“Rise from the Ashes” is a riffy ’80s song with a pedal to the metal, however it sounds very modern thanks to the huge multi-track production.

Among the highlights there’s Code Red, wherein Marras fuses all his many influences and interests into one very easy to digest gobbet of sleek power rock; the soloing is on point, natch, but you also find yourself marveling at what an adept creator of earworm riffs Francesco is; you’re never far away from ironclad whistleability, which has to be a good thing, and when Marras teams up with throats slightly more accomplished than his own (Victory man Gianni Pontillo gives a great performance on stirring opening track Carnival of Darkness) you get the feeling that we’re within touching distance of greatness at times.
That’s not to say Francesco can’t sing – he can, pretty well it has to be said – but when he sticks to riffing and lets the pros do the singing, you can be pretty sure that all hell’s gonna break loose pretty much immediately…

“Out Of The Fire” is a strong melodic hard rock album – great stuff in places – and well worth running an ear over if you love the classic European sound from the genre, spiced with melodic metal. And it’s always a pleasure to hear Readman, Pontillo and Meille singing good songs.
Highly Recommended

01 – Carnival of Darkness (Gianni Pontillo vocals)
02 – Out of the Fire
03 – Lost Souls (David Readman vocals)
04 – Through my Veins
05 – Rise from the Ashes
06 – Cyber Lust (Jack Meille vocals)
07 – Code Red
08 – Soldiers of the Light (Daniele Ledda vocals)
09 – Here and Now
10 – More than Life

Francesco Marras – guitars, bass, vocals
Pavel Ljubicic – drums
Marco Cossu – keyboards
Marco Garrucciu – bouzouki
Guest lead vocals:
David Readman (Pink Cream 69)
Iacopo Meille (Tygers Of Pan Tang)
Gianni Pontillo (Victory)
Daniele Ledda (Twilight Zone)

BUY
francescomarras.com/