Swedish outfit Shiva released two very fine female-fronted melodic hard rock albums in the early 2000’s, then after a 2006 third effort, the band folded. Now after 17 years the group is back with a slightly new name; ZHIVA, and a fresh new album titled “Into The Eye Of The Storm“, released via reputed label Pride & Joy Music.
Still with powerhouse vocalist Anette Johansson and guitarist Mats Edström at the helm, ZHIVA 2023 stilld delivers melodic rocking songs with layers of sound, now updated with a modern approach. Anette’s vocal timbre is unique, clean, and easily identifiable. Nobody else sounds like her.
Opening track ‘Breaking The Chains’ is a strong start to the album, with the band performing a faster melody over whispered and pointed vocals from Anette before slowing things down a tad while keeping the heaviness intact and providing the song a distinctive atmosphere.
‘Step into the Fire’ also goes the alternative two melody route, throwing a slower groove predominantly at the end of the main melody line. That melody line is a basic E string muted pick, but it’s effective with a solid rhythm accompanying it. There’s just enough variation to make the song interesting.
‘Broken’ has keys pushed prominently to the front and a chorus that uses them to great effect. The melody line of the chorus along with Anette’s perceived pain in her delivery make this a favorite.
In terms of ranking, a close second goes to midtempo ‘Autumn Sky’, another track with keys that stand out and another winner of a chorus, quite AORish. Anette’s approach to gliding over the melody with her vocal fluctuations is perfect.
‘Nothing Will Ever Remain’ is a slow and moody track that a places brings to mind Delain, which gets more intensity during the chorus. Closing track ‘Undeniable’ is a song that builds up from a piano-based composition to a full-blown power ballad. The track gets to a big, powerhouse chorus at the end. It’s a song dedicated to the war in Ukraine.
Regarding the production, the album sounds fresh, polished, very well mixed benefiting the vocals and the overall band delivery. ZHIVA / Shiva is comprised of talented musicians, and while they modernized their style the taste for a good melody is all over “Into The Eye Of The Storm”.
Highly Recommended
1. Breaking The Chains
2. Step Into The Fire
3. Evelyn
4. Into The Eye Of The Storm
5. Autumn Sky
6. Broken
7. Beyond Forever
8. Nothing Will Ever Remain
9. Last Tears
10. Undeniable
Anette Johansson - Vocals
Mats Edström - Guitar (Arrow)
Patrik Svärd - Guitar (Cloudscape, Sapphire Eyes, Alyson Avenue)
Nilo Kovacic - Bass (Hellspray)
Thomas Olsén - Keyboard
Fredrik Eriksson - Drums (Sapphire Eyes, Alyson Avenue)
Zhiva – Into The Eye Of The Storm 2023, MP3+FLAC
 |
