Venrez - American Illusion

(CD Album Review)

*****

Sometimes bringing American Rock back to the beginning works!

Venrez is an American Rock band that have taken influence from bands like Stone temple Pilots, Velvet Revolver, Hinder to legends like Aerosmith. When I started listening to this I thought it would be like every other band that takes influences from these bands, but this is not this is so much better. I would say this is my "Album of the Month" it is that good and I have so many good things I could say about it.

On opener 'Unforseen' you can see why Slash famous for being the top hat wearing guitarist in Guns 'n' Roses would want this band on tour with him, the guitar work on this track is incendiary and really takes me back to when I had tapes in the car when I was a kid. Then again the sound was never as polished as it is on 'American Illusion', where all the songs sound really big and well produced. The vocals on this album by Venrez are amazing, no Pro-Tools used here!!! just pure vocal talent reminding me of a more commercial Scott Weiland if he got singing lessons from Perry Farrell.

Second track 'Sanctity' won't break any songwriting awards! it's just ballzy Rock 'n' Roll put it a clugging a long track that is very repetitive and catchy, you just want to clap your hands a long to this song it really has that vibe to it. While 'Hot Air' has big lifts and makes you feel like you are listening to it at a top of a mountain. This song is really big and has the sound and you wonder how this can be a new band, because this is a track that any of the big names in Rock and Metal would have killed to have written. It just has everything you would want from a Hard Rock song to the amazing solo near the end of it. Actually all the guitar work on this album is second to none and Jason Womack and Alex Kane should be very proud of themselves indeed.

'Free Will' sound like an Audrey Horne track and I am talking when this band where good not the rubbish they bring out now. I'm talking 'Threshold' era and this is not a band thing this is great Melodic Hard Rock that has emotion in it and I am so surprised that this band have come out with a track like this, going by some of the more commercially appealing songs on the album.

Like 'Silver and Gold' which sounds like it mixes up Grunge with Southern Rock with a hint of Queens of the stone Age. If your a fan of the later band you will really dig this track, they do mix up the genres on this album but no song seems out of place. All the songs seem like they are just made to be their like the spacey 'Intellectual Drool' which has killer drumming in it and 'Vultures' which you can't ignore the riff to it and they way it kicks in and out which just makes you want to f**k sh*t up!.

'Hunger' drives in and is a great song to listen to in your car, while 'The Beat goes On' is a more sing-a-long track if you are a little drunk. Last song 'Temptress of the Moon' is the perfect song to end the album on because it's chilled vibe and soothing vocals really brings proceedings to a close.This is an album I will run out and buy and one of the best Rock albums I have heard in a while and I just wonder why I have not heard of Venrez before. This is Hard Rock how it is meant to be and one you have to buy you won't be disappointed.

Review by Dan Devour

Catch the band supporting Buckcherry / Hardcore Superstar on the dates Below: