CELLAR STONE – Rise & Fall (2022)
In recent years, Greece has turned out to be a real treasure trove especially for classic rock bands, with very good exponents inspired by the 70s / 80s / 90s ranging from metal and hard rock to AOR. CELLAR STONE also come from Greece and with their upcoming new album “Rise & Fall” they establish themselves into the international scene as a quality act.
“Rise & Fall” is classic hard / melodic metal with a groovy modern sound, according to the band their style is influenced from Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, UFO, to Iron Maiden and Metallica. I can see why CELLAR STONE has been chosen as opener act for UFO on their special farewell dates on July and October.
On top of that the frontman of Black Stone Cherry, Chris Robertson, guests on the album with a fiery guitar solo on track “War We Can Win”.
Written in a small Greek island village for four months during the 2020 lockdown, guitarist George Maroulees took the isolation seriously, crafting a lively record that also reflects in the lyrics the anger, frustration, and helplessness going on globally through this unique time.
This quartet delivers a bluesy-based heavy rock/metal cocktail that contains the right balance of strong hooks, memorable songs, and versatility track to track to stack well against many of the bigger bands in the genre.
In the pocket interplay from bassist Akis Rooster and drummer George Karlis galvanizes the driving power chords as well as uplifting, catchy transitions – nifty accents allowing “Borrowed Time” and swanky, seductive “War We Can Win” to cement easily into the brain upon initial exposure.
When the band wants to be a bit more jagged in terms of aggression and attitude, a song like “Going Under” displays some of their modern metal affinities – although the chorus has a clear, distinct AOR harmony sheen to counterbalance the main proceedings.
Intertwining influences from North America and Europe across the board of the 80’s, 90’s and 2000’s – the band pull from darker vibes for a ballad like “Save Me” while reaching back into classic heavy rock inspiration for specific riffs, pacing, and tasteful leads/bends during “Storm Is Coming”.
It’s also helpful to have a strong set of pipes behind the microphone which Cellar Stone possess through Aris Pirris – he has that connective nature through his range, pitch control, and proper melody placement that rivals a lot of potent American voices.
Mixed & mastered in the USA by skilled Jordan Westfall, on this album these gentlemen deliver a solid catalog of songs that encourage toe-tapping, fist waving, singing in unison action to all the key parts again and again with ‘Rise & Fall’.
Highly Recommended
01 – Borrowed Time
02 – Going Under
03 – Time To Fall
04 – War We Can Win (feat. Chris Robertson)
05 – To The Core
06 – Through My Veins
07 – Demons
08 – Save Me
09 – Rise & Fall
10 – Storm Is Coming
11 – Run Away
Aris Pirris (vocals, guitar)
George Maroulees (guitar)
Akis Rooster (bass)
George Karlis (drums)
Pre order:
www.amazon.co.uk/Rise-Fall-Cellar-Stone/dp/B0B17TVBK1
