Sons of Sounds – Seven (El Puerto Records)
Wednesday, 15th November 2023
Rare is the day where you have a trio of brothers who make music together since childhood to form a progressive metal/rock outfit with Sons of Sounds, adding a fourth ‘brother’ (loose term intended) with bassist Marc Maurer in 2021 to arrive at the current incarnation of the group. Beginning in 2006, they’ve released six previous albums, of which this scribe became familiar to their style when on Fastball Music for the third album In the Circle of the Universe back in 2016. Becoming a part of the El Puerto Records roster since early 2020, this seventh studio record Seven showcases a melodic, refined attack chock full of interesting, outside the box genre-twists that should exhilarate those who love fantastic musicianship contained in sensible songwriting structures.
Former bassist Roman ‘Morales’ Beselt hasn’t lost any aspect of his vibrant vocal melodies – soothing in lower registers, able to belt out some higher notes, a German force that contains a lot of qualities similar to Ralf Scheepers and Andi Deris. Check out his versatility during two specific tracks – the moody “Ghost” or the ease of his bluesy to metal switch-ups for the mesmerizing, progressive meets modern hard rock follow-up “My Name”. The staccato, driving rhythm guitars against the pulsating bass pushes “Alive” into instantly memorable territory, the reggae-like instrumental transition between 2:50-3:12 a dynamic moody surprise that works. Brighter piano passages signal a theatrical-style arrangement for “Diamond”, the vocal harmonies rich in King’s X / Psychotic Waltz-like charm, guitarist Johann ‘Wayne’ Beselt ripping out a sophisticated, measured lead break with the right melodic qualities as to not overstep the reflective, heavy chord progressions and equally dramatic ups and downs required vocally from beginning to end. The acoustic-oriented ender “End of the Road” features some killer progressive guitar/bass interplay as well as a soothing background vocal harmony that will have most humming along even in the dead of night.
Sons of Sounds may not necessarily run circles around those in the melodic progressive metal meets modern hard rock styles – but with Seven they prove to be a competent, talented act that keeps the focus on lean songwriting plus standout performances. Worth a look if you feel burnt out on acts who deliver more on flash with less overall substance to walk away from the table satisfied with the offerings.
