Well, this was a nice little find… Idly leafing through a list of new releases thoughtfully provided to me by the C-I-C, the odd-looking name Stonemiller Inc stood out and drew me in – and boy am I glad it did!
Although hailing from Germany – veteran bassist Ingmar Viertel added backing vox on a couple of U.D.O. albums a few years back – the band sport a pleasingly mid-Atlantic sound for the most part; However their Euro lineage is proudly on display on tracks like Rain Song, which actually sounds like something Herr Dirkschneider might have come up with himself at some point.
The band’s real strength is the intelligent, melodic hard rock of Broken, wherein guest keyboarder Corvin Bahn burnishes the tough guitars of Tilen Sapac and Olli Fuhlhage in delightful fashion. Similarly We Stay United and Revolution both know their way around the intricacies of a decent chorus, and both marry this to some genuinely catchy riffwork that’s pretty irrisisitible.
Stonemiller Inc have a genuine knack for penning classic, no-holds-barred old school hard rock that doesn’t require a degree in irony to appreciate, welcoming any and all who want to wallow in it’s simply-forged yet skillfully executed charms. On the semi-balladic Sad Wings of An Angel vocalist Francis Soto is augmented by guest vocalist Mennana Ennaoui with spectacular results; the resultant sound, topped-off by some delicious guitar work, is a sound the likes of established heroes in this arena like Sinner and Bonfire would kill to be able to capture. In other words, top draw stuff…
It’s rare to come across a band – even one composed of industry old timers like this – that sounds so perfectly-formed so early in their career. However, that’s the case here, so if you’re a fan of high class hard rock you can snap up this little beauty with absolute confidence. Enjoyment awaits!
Welcome To The Show releases on October 6th.
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