Niva
Atmospherical

Niva is back with a new album, they have been rather diligent releasing many albums the last few years and they have all been pretty ordinary with a few brilliant highlights. This one is called Atmosphere and they have been looking to broaden their horizons with different production with a heavier sound, according to Niva. I don’t really hear that, it sounds like what they have done before, Atmosphere offers no surprises and their fans will most likely think that this is another one to love.

It is AOR according to the format, great melodic sounds, high-pitched vocals of good quality and of course catchy choruses. It sounds like it often does and we get the typical style of songs that we get from this genre and if I say AOR I am sure that you think of something similar to this. Niva is a great vocalist but the majority of the songs they offer on this new album can be described as quite ordinary, with some extremely strong highlights.

It is a solid album, it pushes the right buttons and typical AOR fans can probably think that it is a good thing but as a critic I have higher demands than the ordinary stuff if I am to give a good rating. The second track called Déjà Vu is a great track and the best one of the album, but it is also a telling title as that is what it is – déjà vu. Other than I can’t say that there is many things that can be described as outstanding, it is typical tired standard AOR tracks we mainly get with this album and I can’t help thinking that maybe they should slow down a little. You hear that they have the capacity to make something much better than this and maybe taking longer time to create more songs will give the possibility to be more selective.

They sing of déjà vu and that is the prevailing sensation I feel when listening to this album. It is not a very inspiring album to write about or listen to, it works and presses the right buttons but in the end it is with some exceptions a rather forgetful album. I just can’t shake the feeling that they should be able to make something more than a decent AOR album.

HHHHHHH