Bourbon Souls is a monster, a compilation of instant hits that marry broadband alternative metal you'd usually hear from North America with equal panache and self-confidence to the melancholy tradition of latter-day SENTENCED. As such, the album is set to bedazzle a wide audience that appreciates familiar tropes and fresh energy alike. Which is just what the sextet delivers. Mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren with Linus Corneliusson in Swedish Fascination Street Studios and graced by a stylish artwork from Roberto Toderico (Asphyx, Sinister et al), songs such as the beefy highlight 'Wasted' , power ballad 'Where Everything Disappears' with its warm string fundament or the wistfully tinkering 'Faithless' hit home immediately, yet refuse to wear off even after multiple spins. This is music you simply have to kick your feet up to while listening, constantly alternating between propulsive and gentle parts without losing a beat. It's so easy to imagine singer Alarik crooning like Ville Vallo on steroids during a big arena show - something the band will surely experience rather sooner than later with its larger-than-life choruses after conquering both single and album charts; it's simply that good as a whole, this stunner of a record.
