It’s a testament to the quality of Alter Bridge as musicians and songwriters that they’ve crept, stealth-like, up the echelons of the rock ladder and above many much more hyped and hip outfits with a minimum of fuss. Now, though, with Fortress, the secret is about to be let out of the box.
Within a minute, opening track Cry Of Achilles gives you the feeling that this is going to be something special; a delicate acoustic riff gives way to fat, Black Album-era Metallica groove before Myles Kennedy pours his luscious, honey-coated croon over the top. His voice is a force of nature and although the whole band play a blinder and Mark Tremonti’s guitar has never been captured with such an expressive tone as it is on here, it is Myles who owns the album. His performance on Lover veers from the beautiful to flamboyant in a way that actually makes your hairs stand up on the back of your neck.
With a glut of bands playing the post-grunge/hard rock game, to varying degrees of success, it’s about time that one of them pulled away from the pack. With Fortress, Alter Bridge have made the best album of their career; in fact, they’ve not just moved to the front – they’re lapping the opposition. They’ll be household names this time next year.
