Almanac

Almanac was formed by longtime Rage guitarist Victor Smolski, shortly after his departure from said band in 2015. He recruited a pair of big-name vocalists in David Readman (Pink Cream 69 and others) and Andy Franck (Brainstorm, Symphorce), and he also brought along Jennette Marchewka, who'd he'd worked with in the Rage side project Lingua Moris Orchestra, thus constructing the quite rare triple-lead-vocalist lineup. Musically, the 2016 debut Tsar is a symphonic Euro power metal album, with several nods to Smolski-era Rage as one might expect. The vocalist aspect is somewhat overstated -- the vocals are quite good, but while Readman and Franck are both individually excellent, they don't really distinguish themselves from each other, and Marchewka seems relegated to backup status most of the time, so the possibilities of incorporating three distinct voices doesn't quite materialize. That's a minor nitpick when assessing the album as a whole, however, as Smolski's songwriting proves quite adept and the musicianship and presentation is solid across the board. Too soon to tell if this band progresses beyond project status, but Tsar is a worthy debut.

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Discography

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