Another group that has nothing left to prove but which continues, after more than 50 years of good and loyal service, to release albums and make the music they have always loved, I have named the Germans of 'Scorpions' whose two oldest members singer 'Klaus Meine' and guitarist 'Rudolf Schenker' are about 74 years old. And, after 'Return To Forever' in 2016 which did not make the headlines, listening to the opening bars of 'Gas In The Tank, I feel like I've stepped into the time machine of the early 80's with the band's must-have albums and the woman's scream on the cover has some similarities with the iconic album'Blackout' from 1982.
So it looks very good and listening to the sequel with 'Roots in my Boots' and 'Knock 'em Dead', it continues with a muscular and effective hard rock that gives an irresistible desire to headbang, d especially since we have a p... of sound, close to a live, this being explained by the fact that the recording was done as we did in the 70s/80s and which consisted in recording the whole group at the same time (which clearly shows that the latest technologies have often distorted this kind of music because, what better for artists than to share the interpretation of their compositions together). After these 3 missiles stuffed with dynamite, the shivers come naturally to me with the first 'Scorpionian' hymn of the title song (see video above) with a melody that never leaves us and with the guitar solo as we like them from 'Rudolf Schenker', then, this so obvious signature of the Germans with 'Shining Of Your Soul' sends us back directly, with a touch of nostalgia, to the end of the 70s with this swaying rhythmic so familiar. And we stay in the same decade with 'Seventh Sun' which, on a heavy and marked tempo, sends us a fabulous energy throughout the body with each bass kick, energy that we only encounter in these live atmospheres. And the melodic and well-tempered jewels continue with an energetic 'Hot And Cold', a very crazy 'When I Lay My Bones To Rest', then, 'Peacemaker' (see the video here) drives the point home by sending us a hit with the same punch as they used to lay us 40 years younger!! Fortunately for our osteoarthritis, we then welcome 'Call of the Wild' which is much more moderate while keeping this melodic hard rock spirit which takes a little more vigor at the end with a new guitar solo by Mr. 'Schenker ' remarkable, then, don't tell me you didn't expect it, the ballad that gives us all the shivers and that the Germans know how to do so well with 'When You Know (Where You Come From)' ending this first CD admirably . And yes, there is a second one with the Deluxe version, shorter than the first, but which offers us more with 4 other titles which have nothing to envy to the previous ones with a special mention for the mid-tempo 'Crossing Borders' and its rhythm to make an entire audience headbang, the album ending with a magnificent acoustic cover of the ballad 'When You Know (Where You Come From)'.
In summary, the Germans of 'Scorpions' offer us a new studio recording that would not have been out of place in the series of albums from the 70s/80s, except that our two friends are a few decades older but they still have this pleasure of playing together and pleasing their fans which will undoubtedly make 'Rock Believer', which was recorded the old way, one of the best hard rock albums of 2022... | |