Label: Escape Music
Review by Kimmo Toivonen
Apollo Papathanasio is one of the great travelling vocalists of our era, lending his voice to several bands and projects. Some of the bands he’s sung with include Firewind (4 albums), Majestic, Time Requiem, Meduza, Sandalinas, and Evil Masquerade. Currently he’s fronting Spritual Beggars. Over the last few years he’s been putting together this album, his first solo effort.
”Waterdevils” is a hard rock/heavy metal album that reminds me of classic bands such as Dio and Deep Purple. It’s a varied album with some songs going to a more melodic direction, but it’s all rooted in classic rock and metal. Apollo’s testosterone-filled vocals tend to keep every song rather metal-sounding, even the softer ones. The production seems to vary a lot, some songs sound more muffled than others, but maybe that’s what they’ve been after - a raw, retro 70ies sound.
A few songs that stand out - the melodic ”Crossing The Lines” and ”Through The Fire” are probably my favourites. I can’t say that I’m particularly impressed by Apollo’s cover of Phenomena’s ”Stop” though - a great song for sure but this version doesn’t have the flow of the original and Apollo’s vocals are way too over the top.
If you’re a fan of Apollo’s voice, I guess this album is an essential purchase. Firewind and classic metal fans could check it out too.
https://www.facebook.com/ApolloPapathanasio/
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