Volbeat are back with their 8th studio album and probably their most dominant one so far (if only Metallica could listen to some riffs to rethink of their old glorious days). Well, Volbeat is not your ordinary band, they have a great variety in their music influences and that’s the basic ingredient which makes them quite exceptional in a music world where copycats rule.
“Servant of the Mind” is a groovy and heavy album but very melodic and diverse at the same time. I do fancy that there are heavy tracks which will make you headbang and songs that will make you wanna do the rock & roll dance. Just add rock, rockabilly, psychobilly, punk rock, hard rock and heavy metal to a music blender and the result is “Servant of the Mind”… it’s nice on the ears but not so easy to get it done.
The production is full & powerful… simply perfect in a way, as everything (recordings, mixing, production, mastering) was taken care of by the renowned producer Jacob Hansen (Avantasia, Arch Enemy, Epica, Evergrey, Dynazty, etc.). The album also features music appearances from Stine Bramsen (Alphabeat) on vocals (“Dagen før”), Mia Maja on backing vocals, Raynier Jacildo on piano (“Wait a Minute My Girl”), Doug Corcoran on saxophone (“Wait a Minute My Girl”) and Martin Pagaard Wolff on guitars (“Dagen før”).
The album is full of great songs for all the tastes and it will surely make your day, cuz it also exhales a positive vibe in general. The standard edition features 13 songs and the deluxe one has 17! Possibly it’s a bit too long for a band of this kind, but I do think that this ain’t a reason to nag about.
“Servant of the Mind” is not only the band’s heaviest album, but also one of the best they have released throughout their career. It features all the elements from their previous albums and that heavier factor is what makes it truly amazing. Whether you are a fan of the band or not, you should check this album out without ado.
