My love for Swedish melodic rockers Degreed should be well established by now. Such is their consistency across 7 previous studio albums, there was never any doubt they would deliver again on ‘Curtain Calls’, their 8th all-new full album.
This album is packed with another 10 cracking tracks in their usual modern meets classic meets Swedish melodic hard rock sound.
Opening with a flurry with ‘One Helluva Ride’ and ‘Holding On To Yesterday’, the band then slide into one of their very best pure melodic bliss anthems ‘Believe’. It really should be on radio everywhere.
For the rest of the album it is the band’s usual mix of swirling keyboards meshed with big guitars and a pulsating rhythms driving some classic melodic rock and slightly heavier moments.
After all these years the lads aren’t beyond throwing in a couple of curve balls. The haunting and largely acoustic driven ‘The Rambler’ is just brilliant. As is the lush AOR of ‘Matter Of The Heart’.
Degreed are one of melodic rock’s finest portrayers of Swedish melody and while I might rate a few of the earlier albums slightly above this; there really isn’t much in it. Just another great Degreed album.
