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The Ferrymen: The Ferrymen

Melodic Heavy Metal

4.0/5.0

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Frontiers Music
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 31.05.2017

Whatever the project may be, if it involves guitarist, composer, and producer Magnus Karlsson (Primal Fear, Magnus Karlsson's Free Fall, et al), then I'm on board and all in. Besides being a significant fret wizard, Karlsson is an exceptional writer of melodic heavy metal tunes. In his latest project, The Ferrymen, he's joined by vocalist Ronnie Romero (Lords Of Black, Rainbow) and drummer Mike Terrana (Rage, Axel Rudi Pell, et al).

The Ferrymen

Largely, with any Karlsson project the focus is upon both his song composition and guitar play. That's not to reduce the other players to cameo appearances. It's just a fact. The songs within this self-titled debut revolve around Karlsson's guitar riffs in harmony and melody, then his leads follow. Vocals serve to carry the melody of the song. Romero has a clean and melodic style, yet also very assertive to the point of seeming strained. Terrana on drums, being the heavy hitter as always, provides the essential rock groove. After these things, there's Karlsson's significant use of keyboards for things as simple as carrying the melody in a piano line to adding the embellishment of synth orchestration. Wrap these things together, mostly Karlsson's riffs and synths, and The Ferrymen songs has depth and breadth of character that's both lush and bombastic. Then there's his large and fiesty guitar solos that soar like so many bottle rockets throughout. If there is any slight downside to all this, it was Romero's voice, which seemed unvarying, nearly monotone, in style. I quickly tired of it. Nevertheless, overall, Magnus Karlsson's The Ferrymen is another strong project, an album filled with bristling and entertaining melodic heavy metal. Top song picks: Fool You All, Still Standing Up, How The Story Ends, and the metal ballad, One Heart.

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Magnus Karlsson's The Ferrymen is another strong project, an album filled with bristling and entertaining melodic heavy metal. Recommended.

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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 ]