Country Germany          Style Hard Rock

Rating 84/100

Band Members
Alex Beyrodt – Guitars, David Readman – Vocals, Jimmy Kresic – Keyboards, Markus Kullmann – Drums, Mat Sinner – Bass

Tracks
01. No Solution Blues, 02. King Of Your Dreams, 03. Devil’s Daughter, 04. This Could Be Paradise, 05. Broken Heart Syndrome, 06. When Destiny Calls, 07. Blind Man, 08. Heal My Pain, 09. The Heavens Are Burning, 10. Don’t Take My Heart, 11. I’m In Heaven, 12. Wings Of The Fury

PROFILE

“Broken heart Syndrome” is the second brand new album by German-British hard/heavy rock band “Voodoo Circle”. The vision behind the band’s formation is to deliver 70’s oriented hard/heavy rock with a rather vintage twist.

“Broken heart syndrome” indeed draws heavily upon mid/late 70s hard rock, integrating early-“Whitesnake”-like riffs, “Rainbow”-like melodies while the ballads have a very “Deep Purple” feel to them. The line up is built around guitar prodigy Alex Beyrodt (“Sinner”, “Primal Fear”) long-time band mate, bassist Mat Sinner (“Sinner”, “Primal Fear”), key-player Jimi Kresic (“Kiske-Somerville”), new entry drummer Markus Kullmann and great lead singer David Readman (“Pink Cream 69”). All members contribute to the unique sound of “Voodoo Circle” yet Alex and David could be considered to stand out. Beyrodt’s ability is perfectly uncovered on “Broken heart…” where he puts forward a Blackmore/Bolin guitar style, without excluding his characteristic shredding solos. Readman, on the other hand, comes very close to the style of David Coverdale, particularly on the blues-ier material while at other times he resembles the great Ronnie James Dio.

As the band has established a unique style and sound that combines vintage and contemporary there is not much reason to talk about favorite songs on “Broken…” as every track on the album is an experience on its own. Regarding its sonic qualities, while the recording and production of the album delivers the vintage rock vibe, the mixing and mastering is state of the art; So both the song-writing and production serve the artistic vision of “Voodoo Circle” in delivering back-to-the-roots hard rock.

Through this second album it becomes clear that “Voodoo Circle” is a hard rock band with a rather unique style and sound clearly differentiating themselves from other leading bands including members’ other projects/bands. A great buy for any fan of old school hard rock particularly for fans of classic groups like “Rainbow”, “Whitesnake” and “Deep Purple”.

Nikiforos V. Skoumas