UMUR
"Monsters" is the second EP release by Danish rock/metal act Vola. The EP was independently released in October 2011. It follows the release of the band´s November 2008 debut EP "Homesick Machinery", although the two EPs are bridged by the March 2010 one-track digital single "Glasswork". The EP features four tracks and a playing time around the 20 minutes.
Vola pretty much continues the electronic/keyboard tinged mellow rock/metal style, which is occasionally spiced up by heavier chugging metal sections, which they initiated on "Homesick Machinery", but they´ve become both heavier and more hard hitting while also becoming more pop/rock mainstream oriented, which is a bit of a feat really. I´m not sure how they do that, but it works pretty well with the heavy riffs and rhythms and the melodic and melancholic atmospheric pop/rock oriented sections. Some tracks work better than others, but when Vola strike the right balance between the mellow/melodic and the heavy, they strike gold (like they do on "Controllable"). I´m sometimes reminded of a less progressive oriented Caligula´s Horse, because of the balance and dynamics of the music.
"Monsters" features a high quality production job. Powerful, detailed, and dynamic. A professional sound production like this one is needed for Vola´s music to be given the best conditions to shine. This kind of music wouldn´t work with gritty and murky sounding production values. Compared to the otherwise good quality of "Homesick Machinery", Vola have taken a good step forward on "Monsters". Some of the immaturity of the songwriting and the production techniques of the debut EP have been weeded out here, and the added heaviness suits Vola well. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.
