Wickman Road
After the Rain

After the rain along the Wickman Road we are treated to some melodic rock conceived of inside a forest one morning after the rain, something like that. It is a young Swedish quintet that with this album called After the Rain makes their debut album. The band from the small town of Rydaholm can be traced back to 2011 but the band was officially born in 2014 and now they are releasing their debut album that could be described as a sunshine story.

Melodic rock, a genre that is littered with band of all calibres and qualities and no surprises, that is what these guys offer. They may not quite fit in the largest mainstream but you still know more or less what you are getting with an album like this. Standard variation over eleven tracks and 47 minutes, decent vocalist that fortunately isn’t the typical one we usually hear within this genre. Good modern production, the tempo is usually not that high which suits their style pretty well I think. I also think it is good that they at least keep floating in the outside of the mainstream, that of course means that they at least stand out a little bit from everything else in the genre.

I like this album; I think it is one of the better melodic rock albums I have heard in a while. The band do what they do well, the album may be predictable but the good thing is that they at least doesn’t sound like a poor clone of Toto or Journey as way too many albums released in this genre does. Wickman Road is definitely an interesting new band that might be able to make some impressions and bring some new life to a genre that is growing more and more tired for each passing day. Good stuff, I recommend this album. I am sure that those who enjoy the genre will certainly enjoy this album.

The songs are generally good, although the slow ones can be pretty boring. Like the third track I Believe in You, it is a pretty dull track. No Matter the Distance is an exception to this rule and one of the most enjoyable tracks of the album; the best one is the opening title track that I thoroughly enjoy. It may not be any kind of reinvention of the genre or anything like that but it is really good and at least they do not sound exactly like everything else, that’s a great thing. Wickman Road makes a great debut, on of the best albums I have heard in this genre for quite a while.

HHHHHHH