German hard and classic rock act Voodoo Circle’s seventh studio album, Hail To The King, is out now via AFM Records, as is their latest single ‘On The Edge‘, that followed in the wake of previous single ‘Let It Rock’.
Band mastermind and guitarist Alex Beyrodt commented: “With our new album, we have taken a step forward musically. I tried to add a more modern touch here and there without damaging or losing the classic rock roots. It was a lot of fun, but also a lot of work in parts.”
Every album has its own history, and this one not only tells Voodoo Circle’s and its musicians, but also – indirectly, of course – of Whitesnake, Deep Purple, Rainbow and Led Zeppelin. Without trying to disguise their influences, this band consciously follow in the footsteps of these iconic acts and their international status. Their upcoming album Hail To The King doesn’t even try to hide the obvious source of inspiration that spawned the twelve tracks on the recording, but presents with pride, bravura and impressive stylistic confidence the brand of timeless hard rock coined by those groups. Beyrodt stateing: “Our aim is to continue in the great tradition of this music and translate it into a contemporary context.”
The story behind Hail To The King includes an interesting anecdote: Two of the twelve new album tracks were penned by former Rainbow keyboardist Tony Carey. Beyrodt remembered, looking back almost 25 years: “At the beginning of the 1990s, we were in Tony’s studio to record material for a Sinner album, including the two Carey compositions, ‘All For One’ and ‘Billy’s Song’, which were only released in Japan at the time. I still remember how, in my mid-twenties, I couldn’t believe that I was standing in a recording studio with a legend such as Carey, watching him play the Hammond organ for us, headbanging away. Both songs have been at the back of my mind ever since, just waiting for the right moment to record them again. And since I also wanted to listen to the Rainbow side of me for Hail To The King, that perfect moment seemed to have arrived.”
At the same time, the new album contains not only the usual Whitesnake reminiscences but also a powerful dose from the Led Zeppelin direction, with Beyrodt commenting: “Ultimately, each song decides which guitar I play. The days when musicians stood for one specific type of guitar are long gone. Nowadays, it’s all about doing justice to the song and its story.”
Mixed by Achim Köhler, tracks featured on Hail To The King are:‘Lay Down Your Lovin’’, ‘Let It Rock’, ‘On The Edge’, ‘Sweet Little Sister’, ‘Castles Made Of Glass’, ‘Stand Your Ground’, ‘Black Country’, ‘Billy’s Song’, ‘Strangers In The Night’, ‘All For One’, ‘The Sound Of The Eagles’ and ‘Hail To The King’. It can be ordered here.
The singles are out now on all digital streaming services here and you can check out the videos here at RAMzine.
