• New Music Reviews
• |
• Archives
• |
• News
• |
• Submissions
• |
• About
• |
• 
• |
• 

December 2024

• After Lapse: Pathways
• Illusion Force: Halfana
• Powell-Payne: Voilá

November 2024

• Sunstorm: Restless Fight
• Storace: Crossfire
• Voodoo Circle: Hail To The King
• Lionville: Supernatural
• Starchaser: Into The Great Unkown
• Empires Of Eden: Guardians Of Time
• Lonerider: Down In The Dust
• Seventh Crystal: Entity
• Neal Morse & The Resonance: No Hill For A Climber
• Beardfish: Songs For Beating Hearts
• Impellitteri: War Machine
• Brothers Of Metal: Fimbulvinter

October 2024

• Casandra's Crossing: Garden Of Earthly Delights
• DGM: Endless
• Daytona: Garder la Flamme
• Fate: Reconnect 'N Ignite
• Frost*: Life In The Wires
• Aries Descendant: From The Ashes Of Deceit
• Fans Of The Dark: Video
• Radioactive: Reset
• House Of Lords: Full Tilt Overdrive
• Cleanbreak: We Are The Fire

September 2024

• Sinner's Blood: Dark Horizons
• Serious Black: Rise Of Akhenaton
• Eclipse: Megalomanium II
• SteelCity: Reverence
• Hydra: ReHydrated
• Heartwind: III
• Gabrielle De Val and the Dragonlords: Tiger
• Find Me: Nightbound
• The Nail: The Nail
• Timeless Fairytale: A Story To Tell
• Stryper: When We Were Kings
• Phil Mogg: Moggs Motel
• Pure Reason Revolution: Coming Up To Consciousness
• Jordan Rudess: Permission To Fly

August 2024

• Siege Perilous: Creation's Call EP
• Paralydium: Universe Calls
• Mike Tramp: Songs Of White Lion Vol. II
• Bite The Bullet: Looking For Paradise
• All For Metal: Gods Of Metal (Year Of The Dragon)
• Hammerfall: Avenge The Fallen
• Jim Peterik & World Stage: Roots & Shoots Vol. 2

[ More Music Reviews ]

Stamina: Perseverance

Melodic/Progressive Rock/Metal

4.5/5.0

Website Facebook
Power Prog Records (digital only) / My Kingdom Music
by Craig Hartranft,  08.01.2014

Coming as a surprise, and one of the better releases from Power Prog Records in recent months, is the third album from Italy's Stamina, Perseverance. The surprise comes from Stamina's ability offer some rather genre bending and crossing music.

Stamina: they may need it.

It's not that the music is eclectic or odd, simply a good mix classic hard rock with heavy metal, bits of fusion and jazz, in a obvious progressive wrapper. Sometimes the musical texture is more defined, clear as it were. For instance, the title track moves as swift melodic rocker with distinct metal edge. Alternatively, Just Before Dawn develops into more epic symphonic metal, with loose prog nuances and, at the end, finishes with a most delicate and moving orchestral conclusion accented by piano and acoustic guitar.

Then there's Breaking Another String offering something more akin to progressive power metal, again with some symphonic notes throughout, and a clever fusion breakdown just before four minutes accenting both the bass and guitar line. Naked Eye returns the band to more melodic hard rock, albeit a bit heavier, and once more with some jazz rock groove around the half way point, and thrilling lead guitar to wrap things up. It's like some hybrid AOR melodic rock fusion. After this, Unbreakable finds the band traversing the path of more straight heavy metal, with few nuances. Ultimately, what Perseverance is, is music worth listening to, simply because Stamina writes and plays some creative and interesting music, which keeps your interest and so, keeps you listening. Quite recommended.

Stamina - Higher (Single)

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

What Perseverance is, is music worth listening to, simply because Stamina writes and plays some creative and interesting music, which keeps your interest and so, keeps you listening.

Alphabetical Index

The Powell Payne project, created in 2022 is the collaboration of Mark "Penfold Powell (ex-drummer of Psycho Kiss) and Adam Payne (former vocalist of Airrace). With guitarist Adam Davies and keyboard player ... [ Read More ]