Magical Heart: Heartsonic

From Munich, Germany, comes the self-proclaimed melodic rock band Magical Heart with their sophomore studio album, Heartsonic. The band is comprised of main composer and songwriter Christian Urner on lead vocals and guitars, Patrick Schuster also on guitars, Robert Frenz on bass, and Giuliano-Pepe Müller on drums.

My brief review will start by pointing out that I consider this album heavier and grungier than a traditional melodic rock album, it has a lot of heavy metal on it, and to me it sounds like a band that has all the hooks of a House of Lords but with the sourness and sharpness of a Saxon, like an early to mid 80’s heavy hair metal band (like a darker and heavier Bon Jovi) without the hair but with all the metal, with a crystal clear production and unique intensity to their sound. There’s nothing new under the sun on this album, no complexity at all, just simple straight forward heavy melodic rock that instead of trying to be impressive the efforts go towards putting together an excellent album… I love this record, I like it more and more with every listen, and after almost ten to twelve listens I know the lyrics by heart and hum constantly to all the melodies, is that infectious and catchy.

The rocker opener “Bad Habits� sets the tempo that will predominate throughout the record and immediately gives a glimpse of the great guitar work that will be found in every single song further on, an album mainly composed by a guitar player who also happens to have a tremendous voice, rough and powerful. The title track “Heartsonic� and the hypnotic “My Own Way� follow in the rocker steps of the first song but introducing deeper hooks, shredding guitar soloing and tremendous drumming… the band’s rhythmic section is tightly locked as hell… the infinite hook-fest commences and will never stop, the listener is guaranteed to stay latched until the end. “Waiting For So Long�, alongside “Magical Heart� present the mellower side of the band’s music, more truthful to the melodic rock adjective they brag so much about, anthemic choruses that will be future concert staples for sure, but without taking the foot off the gas by any means, the intensity still roams around all they do, and “Daydream� is a perfect example of that, a song that looks and feels less heavy than any of its predecessors but that also rejects that same feeling adding punching vocals and backing them up with great guitar riffing… both Urner and Schuster are great guitar players, they both do rhythmic and lead guitars, so it’s hard to pinpoint who’s doing what here or there, but that’s also why they sound so good together, a great guitar duo. I forgot to mention the cool and unexpected wawa arrangement on “Magical Heart� … a curious enhancer…

Perhaps my favorite trio of songs on this album are “How Will the Story End� with its cool metallic riffing and memorable melodies, “Free of Pain� with its anthemic sounding choruses and the superficial grungy approach when the bridge hits, and the amazing “It Could Go ON (Forever)� with its heavy guitars and fast drumming, the darkness of its vocals and that rocking wawa once again, both in the guitar riffing and soloing. “Take your Time� and “Raise� pull the album back to pure melodic rock and hard rock territory, a place to find the shyest of pianos and drilling guitar solos at the same time. A well-crafted album, highly recommended for rockers who love the genre, they won’t be disappointed at all! Cheers…

Track Listing:

1. Bad Habits (4:10)
2. Heartsonic (3:32)
3. My Own Way (3:31)
4. Waiting for so Long (3:11)
5. Daydream (4:17)
6. Magical Star (3:29)
7. How Will the Story End (3:58)
8. Free of Pain (3:14)
9. It Could Go On (Forever) (4:19)
10. Take Your Time (4:09)
11. Rise (3:34)

Added: January 23rd 2023
Reviewer: Jose Antonio Marmol
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 706
Language: english

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