Pulver hail from Basle / Basel in Switzerland. They are a metal band, comprising Inga Pulver on vocals, V. O Pulver and Sandro Pelligrini on guitars, ably supported by the rhythm section of Franky Winkelman on bass and Mauro Casciero on drums.
The opening track, ‘Broken’, sets the tone nicely, with some feedback and sustain. The basic guitar and bass riff are down-tuned and quite grungy. There’s hints of very early Black Sabbath too, especially with the quickening of the tempo and a simple guitar solo, which needed to be higher in the mix for me. There’s some atmospheric, moody vocals by Inga and solid drumming too. ‘When My Time has come’ has a catchy opening guitar riff, energetic drumming and a nice chuggy riff. It’s an enjoyable track. The third track, ‘Racing Queen’, has a catchy opening riff and a quick tempo change that leads into a nice simple guitar riff, complimented by solid bass, good drumming and well performed vocals. There’s quite a good variety of pace and riffs so far. Next up is ‘Bleeding Skies’. It kicks off with another exciting catchy, rough guitar riff and taut bass runs, with yet more evidence of a good vocal range from Inga Pulver emerging. The drums and guitars bring about some clever tempo changes. Again, though, the decent solo is a bit buried in the mix!
The title track is a faster rocker, with another catchy, but more technical riff and energetic drumming. This is quickly followed by ‘Train’s a Rollin’. There’s a chunky, stop-start riff, with a few tempo changes and moody vocals. I like the guitar sound on the riffs throughout the cd so far. The track speeds up to a dramatic ending. The opening riff of track 8 sounds a little like Deep Purple. There’s another quick tempo change with some lively drumming. There’s some nice melodies here and a short wah-wah peddle solo. ‘Juju Man’ quickens the pace, before it’s time for a change. ‘The Ocean’ gives Inga a chance to show her more tender side. It’s an atmospheric and moody track, with a bluesy guitar part, which adds to the mood well. ‘Enemies collide’ comes next. There’s some well worked harmony guitar parts, with the usual catchy riff, atmospheric vocals and good drumming and bass playing. ‘Collide’ starts with another crunching riff, which leads into a tempo change, with good interplay of drama in the vocals. The quicker riff is very enjoyable. There is a sort of sense of collision in the track. The penultimate track, ‘The Man’ has a good rough feel to it. A great chunky guitar riff, with subtle pinched harmonics, lively drumming and vocals with a hint of desperation. The closing track ‘Mexico’ has a lighter, bluesy more mainstream rock feel, with harmony vocals. There’s still a catchy riff though and it’s a surprise finish to proceedings.
‘Let it shine’ is a really enjoyable CD. I would have liked more and longer, better mixed solos, but, other than that, it’s an enjoyable CD, with some great guitar riffs. It goes well with a bottle of Henry Weston’s vintage cider. Cheers!
By Chris Greenwood
