Stratosphere - Fire Flight (2010)

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Stratosphere - Fire Flight (2010)

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The band is the brainchild of keyboard virtuoso Jeppe Lund, himself a huge fan of symphonic rock and he has dreamed of making a record such as Fire Flight. With Goran Edman on lead vocals; his clean, yet powerful voice is one of a kind. Goran blends perfectly in a loud music setting and excels on the neo-classical twist. Both his lead and backing vocal qualities are state of art. He has become a household name singing with bands such as Kharma, Vindictiv and, of course, with Yngwie Malmsteen. To complete the line up we have guitarist Jonas Larsen, whose nifty fretwork reminds us of Yngwie himself and Richie Blackmore. The solid rhythm section is provided by Jim McCarty on drums and Anders Borre Mathieson on bass, both of whom have had a seasoned career in the rock music industry. Stratosphere is like a breath of fresh air and boasts a big sound with plenty of cat and mouse guitar / keyboard antics that roll along just effortlessly. They seem to capture the elements of symphonic progressive rock and mix them with melodic overtones with a sprinkle of originality just for good measure. Opener Russian Summer is a huge song with soaring melodies, whilst The Battle Within echoes the halcyon days of Rainbow. The band seem at home and play together so masterfully, one track that is worthy of extra attention is the instrumental Rendezvous which is one of those songs that has loads of layered keyboards that intertwine with sumptuous guitar playing. The Haunting song Shining Star is a pleasure to listen to and gives a chance for Goran to show off his vocal prowess to maximum effect. The ballad Princess of the night is a beautifully executed piece; in fact the whole album is just a complete pleasure to listen to.