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Tania Kikidi – Rock & Roll Paradise (CD)

Greece has presented some good stuff now and then, unfortunately not that often. However, there have been many good things in the last 6-7 years, with a friendly 70s vibe coming out with bands like Universal Hippies, King Mountain, Hard Driver, Freerock Saints, and Super Vintage. One guy has a finger in each pies, guitarist, singer, producer Stavros Papadopoulos. So also here, meaning my expectations are pretty high. Tania kicks off the opening track and immediately shows how things are done! Power-rock, hard rock, riff rock – classic hard rock with great melodies, fat guitars, and Tania’s rocking voice as the icing on the cake. Starts well!

“Queen Rider” continues in the same vein. It’s somewhat hard to describe the style more than saying it’s 100 % rocking classic and quite timeless hard rock in the same musical territory as classic Dio and Victory, but with Tania’s voice as a new element putting them in a lane of their own. “Freedom Highway” invites you to some serious riffing with a nudge to the old Zep school but a chorus closer to southern rock. “Night Burner” fills up the riff account again, and this one brings classic 70s bands like Teaze, Moxy, and Riot to mind, and a riff that made me think of Whitesnake’s “Still of the Night.” Without going through every track on the album, I’ll say that the overall quality is high. The song material is relatively uniform but still varied enough to make it an exciting album. The fact is that the album rocks my world in every track! This album is a must if you like classic hard rock with great riffs and a singer with the right rock edge. As Stavros’ productions usually are, the production is dynamic yet fat and powerful with kick-ass guitars and drums that sound natural. High scores there as well!

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By Janne Stark

I'm a Swedish guitarist, writer, and record collector. I've recorded a bunch of albums/C.D.s with bands like OVERDRIVE, LOCOMOTIVE BREATH, BALLS, MOUNTAIN OF POWER, ZELLO, PLANET ALLIANCE, plus made guest appearances on stuff by NARNIA, AUDIOVISION, CHRIS CATENA, FAITH, BLINDED COLONY, THALAMUS, M.O.B., TOWER OF STONE, VII GATES, etc. I'm currently involved in the following bands/projects: GRAND DESIGN, MOUNTAIN OF POWER, OVERDRIVE, ZOOM CLUB, and CONSTANCIA. I've been writing for magazines like FUZZ, Backstage, Kool Kat News, Hard Roxx, Sweden Rock Magazine, etc. I still write for metalcentral.net, BallBusterMusic.com and metalcovenant.com, plus I'm the author of the three volumes of "The Encyclopedia of Swedish Hard Rock And Heavy Metal"! I have a lovely wife, two crazy cats and two beautiful daughters.