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Wild Souls: Queen Of My Heart

Melodic Hard Rock/AOR

4.0/5.0

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Lions Pride Music
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 27.05.2020 | Released: 29.05.2020

Returning from a nearly four year studio absence is Wild Souls from the northern Grecian port city of Kavala. The band already has two albums under their belts and, in the past, have shared the stage with Axxis, Pretty Maids, and Doug Aldrich's Steam Roller. (Aldrich also helped compose and provide the guitar solo On The Road, the title cut for their first album.) Now the quintet returns with their third long player, Queen Of My Heart, still signed to Denmark's Lions Pride Music.

Wild Souls

Essentially, Wild Souls rock out like it's Eighties deja vu, playing melodic hard rock with something of a metal edge, yet still rolled in an AOR wrapper. The usual musical suspects return in their songs: twin guitar harmony with soaring solos, a strong and rhythm section delivering true rock groove, and clean, melodic, and harmonious vocal arrangements. In this sense, Queen Of My Heart is simply a follow up to 2016's Game Of Love, which was a pretty superb rockin' album. So what about this one? I'd say it's about the same, yet possibly heavier, with sharper riffs and a deeper rhythm section.

You'll find some heavy riff rockers with Snakebite, Ready To Rock, the speedy, drum leading Sexcellent, and Nothing But Loving You, complete with some Seventies cow bell. With songs like Love Ain't No Lie and I Remember You, Wild Souls turns on the synths for an AOR Toto-like vibe. The speed really picks up with Beyond The Stars, a fast-paced riff rocker with plenty of fine rock groove and an equally brisk guitar solo. For Set Me Free, you'll find a strong, straight up rocker flavored with some Hammond-like synth texture and a solo from guest keyboardist Tasos Kalafatis. In the end, with Queen Of My Heart, Wild Souls stays their ten year course, delivering another fine album of Eighties-style melodic hard rock with AOR accessibility.

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

With Queen Of My Heart, Wild Souls stays their ten year course, delivering another fine album of Eighties-style melodic hard rock with AOR accessibility.

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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 ]