Astrakhan – A Slow Ride Towards Death
Release Date: 23rd April 2021
Label: Black Lodge
Pre-Order/Pre-Save
Genre: Rock, Prog Rock, AOR.
FFO: Pain of Salvation, Evergrey, Fates Warning.
Review By: Ben Harris-Hayes
Not to be confused with the now-defunct Canadian band of the same name, this ASTRAKHAN hail from Sweden and feature members previously in bands such as Pain Of Salvation, Evergrey, Royal Hunt and they deliver a robust take on modern rock.
There is no messing about with the usual obligatory lengthy intro that most Prog bands like to employ at the very start of their albums. This record kicks straight in with the lead single, ‘Lonesome Cry’; a mid-paced straight-forward rock tune with some clear nods to the newer material from OPETH, with it’s synth-soaked chords and lead lines.
The nice choir-style group vocals at the end of the 3rd track, ‘What You Resist Will Remain’ was something I quite enjoyed and the riff at about 2:37 in ‘Never Let You Go’ had some big King Crimson vibes, which cannot be sniffed at.
But these moments were all too infrequent and inconsistent, which led me to feel somewhat unimpressed to the overall product here.
Sure, it’s well played and I cannot fault the performances…it’s just the lack of something to affect me on a deeper level that stayed with me more than the music itself.
Vocalist Alexander Lycke is clearly a fine warbler, laying down some solid ‘power metal’-style vocals, with the band behind their frontman being no slouches either…but after a few playthroughs of the album I was just not grabbed by anything in the songs that would make me return for further listens.
Overall, it’s very much a non-threatening album that you’d be happy to share with a non-rock/metal fan and they’d not be scared off. I know a lot of AOR and straight-ahead rock fans will love the heck out of this record, and that’s just fine.
It has some twiddly-keyboard parts, solid drumming and guitar riffery that your average Prog rock fan would lap up and that I hear on all the Prog/Rock radio stations.
I would never dissuade anyone from listening to anything at least once because what I may find somewhat beige may be a kaleidoscopic journey for another person, so do give this a listen if you’re into bands like POS, later-era Evergrey and Fates Warning as that would be the rough ballpark here.
The positive and supportive musician in me would give this a solid 3/5, because I cannot fault the playing.
But the honest music lover who desires something more fulfilling and emotionally-grabbing would only give this 1/5 because it really did nothing for me.
Thusly, mathematically…it’s a…
(2 / 5)
