Tainted Lady @ When Copenhell Freezes Over (Vega, 26-01-2019)

Gaia Micatovich — Sun, 03 Feb 2019 20:51:58 +0000

The Night Flight Orchestra – Amber Galactic

Wade Reitz — Thu, 25 May 2017 14:01:22 +0000

I think I can speak for many of you visitors to Power of Metal when I say metal is not the only music I listen to. I feel like I have a pretty wide range of musical tastes, especially if you more than glance at my musical library. Sure, metal is the most dominant, but it’s not all that’s there. One of my new found guilty pleasures is yacht rock, with its smooth beats and cheesy lyrics. My love of late 70’s/early, 80’s arena rock probably drove me there. Björn “Speed” Strid and David Andersson of Soilwork also have proclaimed their love for this genre, which is how The Night Flight Orchestra came about. They have just released their third album, Amber Galactic, through Nuclear Blast Records on May 19, 2017.

Amber Galactic is as groovy as ever, with each song’s lyrics reading like the plot of an 80’s porn. Perfect, right? Damn near, as each track has its own identity, but the album still flows very well. Opening track ‘Midnight Flyer’ shuffles in with a triplet filled kick drum. It and ‘Space Whisperer’ are two of the heavier tracks on the record. We always knew Strid had one of the best voices in the melo-death world, but it is most clear in TNFO. The combination of keyboards and backing vocals really highlights its soulfulness on tracks like ‘Star of Rio,’ ‘Josephine,’ and ‘Something Mysterious.’ Using different modulations and synths also adds just the right amount of “spaceyness” to tracks like ‘Gemini’ and ‘Saturn in Velvet.’ In addition, the omission of Hammond organs brings the tunes out of the 70’s and firmly into the early 80’s. None more so than the extra groovy ‘Domino’ or the tambourine tinged ‘Sad State of Affairs.’

Amber Galactic might not be The Night Flight Orchestra’s heaviest record, but it is definitely their most complete. The orchestra’s sound has slowly changed since their first album, but it seems to have more to do with the production than the style. Between the outstanding musicianship and an obvious love for the music of the period, they have the recipe for this flavor of AOR tuned to perfection. I suppose that is what TNFO is really about: a love for something that once was, and the need to make it again. It’s been fun listening to the “evolution” of TNFO, and I can bet their next step will once again take us on an incredible journey.

Classic Rock – Power Of Metal.dk

Tainted Lady @ When Copenhell Freezes Over (Vega, 26-01-2019)

The Night Flight Orchestra – Amber Galactic