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

November 2024

• 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 ]

The Ferrymen: The Ferrymen

Melodic Heavy Metal

4.0/5.0

Facebook
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.

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

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

Alphabetical Index

eviewing my archives, I was pleased to find that I have had the privilege to review every Lionville since their self-titled debut in 2011. Formed by Stefano Lionetti, a songwriter, singer and guitarist based in ... [ Read More ]