VICTORY - Don't Talk Science (2011)

VICTORY was one of the most interesting German bands of the '80s releasing such melodic hard rock gems as 'Culture Killed The Native (1989)' and 'Temples Of Gold (1990)'.
The group remained active during the nineties, but after 'Voiceprint (1996)', they somehow fell into oblivion quite a while and even dissolved.
For many years it was quiet around Victory's camp until 2003, when the comeback album 'Instinct' was released featuring the new vocalist Charlie Huhn (ex Ted Nugent).

Now, Victory is back stronger than ever, with a new CD entitled "Don't Talk Science".
With new singer Jioti Parcharidis on the mic, the band proves once again that they are still one of the most competent bands of the German hard rock scene.
After listen this new album entirely, I'm pretty sure this is one of the best albums in this genre in recent years.
While Victory has been always very melodic (and they still are), on many tracks of "Don't Talk Science" the approach is quite hard 'n heavy, but in a good way, displaying a great variety of arrangements, very good songwriting with no song sounding the same.

The powerful hard 'n heavy rocker "Restless" blows the listener right from the start with an unexpectedly large amount of in-your-face energy. The has a fantastic driving groove, razor yet polished electric guitars and great vocals from new singer Jioti Parcharidis. Everything sounds fat and big as you would expect from a hard rock album.
Follower "Speak Up" has the same vibe as the opener: golden '80s uptempo rocker with crunchy riffs and a monster rhythm section. This track reminds me the most commercial Accept (maybe 'cos guitarist Herman Frank used to play on that band) but much more accessible and catchy.
"Rockstar" is another melting hardrocker, this time with some american influences and a nice guitar duel at the end.

"Love Kills Love" slows downs the pace a little, sounding a lot like late '80s Whitesnake, specially on the vocals. Jioti Parcharidis was a great find, this is a serious singer with an incredible range and volume, he has the ability to change his vocal expression between each track. The chorus on this track is really infectious.
"Burn Down The City" has an intense hard bluesy groove, while "Down Load Down" puts the pedal to the metal again (Accept), rocking in you face with class.
"Right Between The Eyes" is absolutely american, with multi-layered backing vocals and a muscular riff. This track is one of the highlights, this band knows how to write a good song!

The anthemic "Blinded By Darkness" offers again more variation on this very good album, both guitars have a different sound than on the previous tracks, and Jioti sings his heart out here. This guy is a terrific singer. Excellent guitar solo here as well.
"Victim Of Lies" is another strong song, an emotional trip back to the eighties glory. This is some kind of a midtempo but powerful and meaty.
"Waiting For The Wind" was originally written by a band called Spooky Tooth, this is a retro rocker with a very, very original guitar work by the duo Tommy Newton / Herman Frank.
Last track is a cover of disco/pop band Pointer Sisters. Victory has added adrenaline and guitars to the song and what we have is a killer melodic rock extremely catchy. This is the only track including keyboards (nice touch) that increases the melody. Big backing vocals and hot guitar solo makes this tune another winner.


VICTORY has returned with one of the best albums of their entire career.
The band has managed to unite the magical moments of the golden '80s with modern sounds but faithful to their pedigree.
There's no weak track on this disc, varied and always entertaining.
The band sounds powerful, fresh, plenty of ideas and with an astonishing musicianship. Both axe-men offer a monster wall of guitars and vocalist Jioti is one of the best I heard in recent years.
Production is first rate, crisp and big, I mean; BIG.
Think the last TREAT album in terms of quality and energy. Yes, it's that good.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.


01 - Restless
02 - Speak Up
03 - Rockstar
04 - Love Kills Love
05 - Burn Down The City
06 - Down Load Down
07 - Right Between The Eyes
08 - Blinded By Darkness
09 - No Return
10 - Victim Of Lies
11 - Go To Hell
12 - Waiting For The Wind
13 - I'm So Excited (Pointer Sisters cover)


Jioti Parcharidis - Vocals
Tommy Newton - Guitars
Herman Frank - Guitars
Peter Knorr - Bass
Achim Keller - Drums



http://tinyurl.com/VICTORY-BUY
www.victory-music.com
IF YOU LIKE IT, BUY IT!