CD/DVD Releases: Stratosphere's ''Fire Fight'' Debuts Oct 22 From Escape Music
Make way for a new Scandinavian Band! Enter Stratosphere, a tight knit quintet that mixes symphonic progressive and melodic rock in a manner that will leave you speechless. The band is the brainchild of keyboard virtuoso Jeppe Lund, himself a huge fan of symphonic rock and he has dreamed of making a record such as Fire Flight. With G?ran Edman on lead vocals; his clean, yet powerful voice is one of a kind. G?ran blends perfectly in a loud music setting and excels on the neo-classical twist. Both his lead and backing vocal qualities are state of art. He has become a household name singing with bands such as Kharma, Vindictiv[, Karmakanic], and, of course, with Yngwie Malmsteen. To complete the line up we have guitarist Jonas Larsen, whose nifty fretwork reminds us of Yngwie himself and Richie Blackmore. The solid rhythm section is provided by Jim McCarty (Yardbirds, Renaissance) on drums and Anders Borre Mathieson on bass, both of whom have had a seasoned career in the rock music industry.
Stratosphere is like a breath of fresh air and boasts a big sound with plenty of cat and mouse guitar / keyboard antics that roll along just effortlessly. They seem to capture the elements of symphonic progressive rock and mix them with melodic overtones with a sprinkle of originality just for good measure. Opener "Russian Summer" is a huge song with soaring melodies, whilst "The Battle Within" echoes the halcyon days of Rainbow. The band seem at home and play together so masterfully, one track that is worthy of extra attention is the instrumental "Rendezvous" which is one of those songs that has loads of layered keyboards that intertwine with sumptuous guitar playing. The Haunting song "Shining Star" is a pleasure to listen to and gives a chance for Goran to show off his vocal prowess to maximum effect. The ballad "Princess Of The night" is a beautifully executed piece; in fact the whole album is just a complete pleasure to listen to.
Stratosphere is a new beginning; this is Scandinavian rock music of the highest order.
Released by Escape Music on October 22.
Tracklist:
01- Russian Summer
02- The Battle Within
03- Enemy Of My Soul
04- Street Of Moscow
05- Rendezvous
06- Shining Star
07- China Girl
08- Princess Of The Night
09- VIP
10- Fire Flight
[Source: Connecting Music]
