Fate - Reconnect N Ignite
(Frontiers Music SRL – 2024)
(Genre: Hard Rock)
Fate began their quest to find their musical destiny in the mid to late 80s and over the subsequent decades are still on that journey. Now in 2024 they look to ‘Reconnect ‘N’ Ignite said quest and fulfil their musical fate…
Patrik Törnblom (Keyboards). Torben Enevoldsen (Guitars). Peter Steincke (Bass) Peer Johansson (Vocals) and Søren Ryan (Drums) make up Fate on this the bands 8th studio album. ‘Around the Sun’ opens the album with plenty of gusto. A good chugging groove drives the song along which has plenty of keyboard parts interspersed throughout. Enevoldsen showcases his guitar playing chops with a good solo too, a solid start.
‘Reason For Everything’ follows and maintains the energy of the opener. Musically the band have a lot of quality at their disposal. ‘This Won’t Last’ is a solid hard rock track that Steincke and Ryan hold down with its strong rhythm parts. Enevoldsen is able to treat us to some fine guitar work again as well.
‘I’m On Fire’ is my least favourite track so far although still has some moments where the band shine. I am finding that Johansson’s vocals can be quite jarring at times as he doesn’t quite have the range these songs require. Enevoldsen’s guitar playing and Ryan’s drum work give ‘Running’ plenty of energy and swagger. It might be the my favourite track so far.
About halfway through the album now and ‘Hold On’ offers lots of great guitar and keyboard throughout. It’s a good song but also highlights my earlier comment about Johansson’s vocal ability. I just find he doesn’t land when in the higher register when singing. ‘Nowhere to Run’ doesn’t really offer anything to the album and wouldn’t be missed to be honest. The main riff for ‘When it’s Over’ tries to power the track along but its another middling effort. Enevoldsen is certainly doing the heavy lifting on it.
After the slight dip in form on the previous couple of tracks ‘Children of a Lesser God’ raises the bar again. A good driving riff and locked in drum and bass work make this arguably the best song so far on the album. Johansson produces his best vocal here as well as it stays within the pocket that his range works best in.
Plenty of guitar hooks and groove from Enevoldsen are all over penultimate track ‘Feel The Burn’. Powerful drums from Ryan and more impressive work from Enevoldsen bring the album to a close with ‘Under the Gun’. It’s a strong finish for a solid 50 plus minutes of hard rock action.
‘Reconnect ‘N’ Ignite’ is a very decent album overall and Fate certainly show they have some very good musicianship in their ranks. Torben Enevoldsen is the standout man throughout the album, wielding his guitar work for Fate since joining in 2011.
Worth a listen if you like melodic hard rock or are already familiar with earlier Fate work.
6.5/10
By Carl Mace