CD-Review: Covered Call - "Impact"

The Swedish Melodic Rockers of Covered Call released a quite streaky debut album, named "Money Never Sleeps" in 2009. The new record "Impact" is set to release in the beginning of April. Let's see if Covered Call made something different ... and better this time!








The debut definitely had its moments, but not much of them. In those four years in the making of "Impact" the band had enough time to do things better and to get straight to the point: Coverd Call improved on everything, whether if it comes to bandsound, songwriting or production!
We deal here with a really good production, which sounds clear and polished. Maybe some more edges would have made this even more enjoyable. Nevertheless it's fun to listen to it.
Mixing was handled by Lars Chriss of Lion's Share, who also performs a guest solo on the track "Hold On".

"Impact" starts with really strong song material: "Lorriane", "When The Lights Are Out" and "Think About Old Times" are amazing compositions, which should please every Melodic Rock fan with their catchiness, tight musicianship and beautiful harmonies. In these moments they don't need to hide from the "top dogs" W.E.T..
The following "Look Into Your Mind" and "Hold On" are also well-crafted Melodic Rock tracks with stunning choruses. Allthough there's no innovation here, everything sounds kind of fresh and not worn.
It's just fun to listen to those great guitar-lines and the beautiful keys in the backround, which don't sound too cheesy or pushy.

Any way tracks like "Make A Wish" and "Nothing Lasts Forever" can't keep up with the first half of the album. The melodies get a bit repetitive here, but tunes like "When I'm Gone" or "Wake Up" compensate this and take up where the band left off with "Hold On".
With "Live It Up" a really groovin' track made it on the record, which stands out from the rest of the songs.
By the way vocalist Göran Erdman is doing a good job on the whole album. He has a very clear voice and it's fun to listen to him, but I would have liked a bit more vocal range. His voice isn't very unique. Compared to other bands of the same genre other singers deliver more outstanding performances.
What surprises me is that you won't find a real ballad on "Impact". Even the last song "Last Goodbye" is a straight forward rocker. Maybe one big power ballad would have brought a bit more variety in the whole thing.

Under the bottom line Covered Call deliver a very good piece of Melodic Rock bliss with a tight production, pretty good instrumentation and partially stunning songs. Yes, you'll find on "Impact" also some little fillers, a good, but not remarkable voice and not really a unique style of music. But did I enjoy this album? Definitely! So I can recommand this one to all of you, who like typical Melodic Rock/AOR with tons of beautiful harmonies. It's worth the money!

8/10

 Track Listing:

01. Lorraine * 02. When The Lights Are Out *
03. Think About Old Times *
04. Look Into Your Mind *05. Hold On *
06. Make A Wish
07. Nothing Lasts Forever
08. Wake Up
09. When I’m Gone
10. Live It Up
11. Last Goodbye
* best tracks

Release-Date: April 1st, 2013!