Album review: THE FERRYMEN – A New Evil

Frontiers Music [Release date 11.10.19]

Although the name may conjure up images of a Gerry & The Pacemakers tribute act playing package tours to provincial theatres, The Ferrymen are actually a European metal outfit fronted by Ronnie Romero on vocals who, of course, was chosen by Ritchie Blackmore to perform that same task when he embarked upon his return to the rock world and the resurrection of the iconic Rainbow brand.

A New Evil is the follow-up to The Ferrymen’s self-titled debut which was released in June 2017. Polished, well-produced melodic metal of the type that has become almost synonymous with the Frontiers label, the album makes its presence felt in dramatic but not entirely unpredictable fashion. Orchestral-style flourishes and spooky-sounding choral introductions lead us into thunderous hard rock. Romero’s Dio-esque vocals are well-suited to the material, all of which is written by Swedish guitarist, Magnus Karlsson (Primal Fear, Magnus Karlsson’s Free Fall), who delivers all the guitar, bass and keyboards parts on the album. The third member of the trio is drummer Mike Terrana (Rage, Axel Rudi Pell) whose furious drumming (deservedly high in the mix throughout the album) provides a perfect counterpoint to the lush but intensely powerful instrumentation delivered by Karlsson.

While the album can seem a tad predictable at times it does exactly what it says on the tin and delivers classy-sounding melodic metal, appealingly memorable song-writing and flawless vocals. Fans of classic-era Dio et al will really warm to A New Evil right down to the cover art – and won’t be at all disappointed by what’s inside. ****

Review by Darren Johnson

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

Next session: Sunday 1 December

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 November 2024.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 29 October 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024

ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)

Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)