Released by: 7 Hard Germany
Release date: Out Now
Genre: Melodic Rock
Links: Facebook , felinemelinda.com
Line-up:
Chris Platzer – Drums
Rob Irbiz – Vocals, Guitar
Headmatt – Lead Guitar
Gschnell – Bass
Track Listing:
1. Blue Diamond
2. Morning Dew
3. Woman Without Compromises
4. Phantom of the Opera (Feat. Doris Allenberger)
5. Love of My Life
6. Angel Eyes (Piano Version)
7. Heart of Stone
8. Mary Magdalene
9. Headmatt’s Guitar Solo
10. The West Side
11. Forever
12. Dance On Fire And Rain
13. Luna (My Love)
14. Dangerzone
15. It’s My Life (Feat. Doris Allenberger)
16. Skydiver
17. Angel Eyes
What’s in a band name? A lot when you get down to it. Sometimes that is our first link to them, seeing the name in a publication or hearing about them from friends. Other times you’ve just heard a song and you find out the name and it connects with you. Or should. How important is a name? I can tell you, it is one of the toughest things to come up with, especially a good one. There are some classic band names out there that just adds to their great catalog of music. Sometimes a band can have a bad name yet still make great music. I don’t know if this is a bad name or not, but when I first saw it I laughed a little. Feline Melinda doesn’t give any indication of what to expect. Is it some weird Industrial band? Weird Hipster Alt Rock? Some kind of J-Pop Dance music? The answer is: none of the above. It’s actually pretty decent melodic Power Metal. This is yet another band I’ve never heard off entering into my life, and this one has been around for 30 years and made a handful of albums, if you can believe that.
30 years is a long time for anything. Being married for 30 years, working a job for 30 years; oddly enough being in a band isn’t dissimilar to working and being married. It produces money (some very little, some a whole lot,) and you spend so much time with your band mates that you begin to interact like a married couple, having squabbles along with the good times. The fact that Feline Melinda has been doing this for 30 years is a feat unto itself. Hailing from Italy they’ve etched their own little corner of the Metal world. Their latest, Three Decades (Live At Kuturssal Theatre), is a live recording featuring some of the bands best known songs along with some surprising covers like Queens “Love of My Life,” “Phantom of the Opera” taken from the musical, and Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life.” Truthfully, outside of their oddball name, there isn’t much unique about the band, but they’re really pretty talented and though most of the between song stuff is in a foreign language it sounds like they have a deep appreciation for their music and their fans.
If you can get past the name Feline Melinda, you’ll learn that it’s a pretty good, if standard melodic Power Metal band. I may have to try and seek out some of their other stuff, but for now Three Decades (Live At Kuturssal Theatre) will suffice me for now. Besides, any band daring enough to tackle one of my all-time favorite Queen songs and do a good job deserves some, respect for sure. I’m not going to say I loved this album, but I enjoyed it way more than I anticipated. And to think, the silly name almost made me skip it.
Written by: Chris Martin
Ratings: 7/10