CD - Michael Schenker Group - Don't Sell Your Soul

1CD - Import 

Following up his tribute to the past through My Years With UFO, Don’t Sell Your Soul is the latest studio record of original material that features another stellar lineup to raise the bar in the catchy, melodic hard rock platform that’s been his heart and soul for decades.

Virtuoso lead breaks are a given – but the songwriting and performances contain this ideal balance of titanic main musical hooks beyond the smooth vocal melodies which match up seamlessly as Erik Grönwall (and special guests from Robin McAuley to ‘Lia’ Liapakis, and Michael Voss) brighten these compositions in heroic fashion. Schenker carefully crafts golden riffs that drive in mid-tempo landscapes, fleshed out by bluesy, classical-oriented licks/runs where you want to go along for the audio journey, no matter where he takes you.

The pounding drum backbeat of Bodo Schopf propels the circular-oriented runs throughout “Eye of the Storm”, Robin McAuley soaring in his mid-ranger to higher, powerful glory side by side with Schenker almost as if in their 80s prime the first go around. “I Can’t Stand Waiting” has that commercial-leaning vocal/guitar combination tailor made for rapturous applause, almost in that “Since You Been Gone”/Rainbow meets 90s Axel Rudi Pell context, Erik ideal in squeezing out those AOR infectious emotions during the verses to a tremendous arena-level chorus payoff. Lia of Mystic Prophecy hits all those melodic, bluesy hard rock nuances on the active “It’s You” – a spirited, upbeat effort that gets hearts thumping and fists pumping. The record has this ideal consistency from the opening title track that gets things off to a galloping start all the way to the high energy, double bass-fueled “Surrender”, the band elevating their game to keep listeners excited.