Pretty Maids - Motherland

Published April 01 2013

*=Staff's pick	Mother Of All Lies* To Fool A Nation Confession The Iceman Sad To See You Suffer Hooligan* Infinity Why So Serious? Motherland* I See Ghosts* Bullet For You Who What Where When Why Wasted

Genre	Hard Rock/Heavy Metal	Ronnie Atkins	Vocals
Tracks	13	Ken Hammer	Guitar
Running time	52 Min.	-	Guitar
Label	Frontiers Records	Rene Shades	Bass
Release	22 March 2013	Allan Tschicaja	Drums
Country	Denmark	Morten Sandager	Keyboard
Producer	Jacob Hansen
Similar artists	Magnum

Danish experienced veterans Ronnie Atkins and Ken Hammer with their Pretty Maids release a new album, three years past the release of the critically acclaimed Pandemonium. This band never got that big break, even if they have been around and on many people's lips since like forever. Some bands just don't hit it big, even if they had their shorter moments of fame and glory in the past.

Like many Pretty Maids album this one too opens up with a spectacular track. This band truly knows how to kick-start an album. Mother Of All Lies is the perfect choice and an awesome track. Indeed one of the better they've ever recorded and it's the first single off Motherland as well. The only negative aspect with this grand opening is that I already know that there will be no chance in hell they'll top it further down the stretch.

With songs spanning all from melodic hard rock to heavy metal, this is a rather diverse release. It contains a bunch of good songs with solid riffs and neat leads. Most of them don't crush big time, but are still much to my joy and appreciation. Even the ballads have their moments as well, as they bring another dimension of emotion to the record. Lead vocalist Atkins also once again shows that he is a force to reckon with, as he perform his duties on an emotional level with great empathy.

Their stylish music feels up to date, with a slightly more modern production, as they haven't found themselves stuck in a corner they can't leave. Naturally there are a few songs that qualify in as just decent, but yet a very solid Pretty Maids album that will probably stand the test of time. 7 chalices to an album fully approved.

Performance	Originality	Production	Vocals	Songwriting
7	5	8	8	7

Summary
7 chalices of 10 - Tobbe