Good things have been forecast for UK rockers Neonfly for a fair old while now, and whilst the band have certainly secured some high profile gig action in their time, they don’t seem to have been able to make the step up in class that’s been expected of them amongst those in the know…

That could be about to change in 2021 with new album – their first in seven years, a hiatus that might have something to do with their failure to progress as expected – The Future, Tonight. An up-and-coming band needs an enthusiastic label to partner with, and German imprint Noble Demon might just fit that particular bill for Neonfly.

If the label bungles it won’t be through any fault of the material, as the band have comfortably surpassed their collected output thus far with this scorcher of an album. Songs like Flesh and Blood, a gorgeously anthemic piece of hair-raising melodic metal, are built for the biggest stages available to the post-COVID musician, and it would be a crime for them not to be heard by a massive audience. Much of the material fits this stadium metal mould, though within those terms there is plenty of variety to keep the listener engaged and interested. The title track mixes guest vocals from Soilwork‘s Björn Strid with a strident piece of pop metal that otherwise wouldn’t seem out of place on one of the Black Veil Brides‘ old albums. Strid is in danger of becoming metal’s most over-exposed vocals with the amount of bank balance-enhancing guest appearances he’s been making of late – on top of his own endeavours with Soilwork and the Night Flight Orchestra – but here his contribution is on point and adds welcome edge to the smoothness of the rest of the track.

In fact vocally this album doesn’t really need much enhancement, as in Irishmen Willy Norton the band have one of the best voices currently doing the rounds in modern metal. An appealing mix of American Idol alumnus James Durbin, and, at times, Talk Talk‘s Mark Hollis (I’m not joking!), he bestrides the album with effortless ease, bringing a high class veneer to guitarist Frederick Thunder‘s superb bombast at every turn. The key change on the titanic Beating Hearts is particularly splendid, big gang vocals driving the track into the stratosphere as the band ramp up the drama via some fine orchestration. This really is top-drawer stuff.

Norton could indeed sing the phone book of myth and legend and make it a fist-punching classic, but luckily the quality of Thunder’s compositions means he’s given a lot more to get his teeth into, and, if Neonfly’s moment is indeed at hand, it’s going to be a lot of fun seeing what this pair of mercurial talents have up their sleeves next – just don’t make us wait seven years next time, please…

The Future, Tonight releases on June 18th.