NIVA – Incremental IV
- Posted on 03-09-2014
Swedish melodic rock act Niva returns for their fourth studio album "Incremental IV". Hot on the heels of one of my favorite melodic rock albums of last year "Magnitude", the quintet put another 11 songs of soaring vocals, energetic chord combinations, and easy on the ears hooks for those who love 80’s era Survivor, Toto, and Rick Springfield. Ardent fans of the genre will have little trouble singing away to the mid-tempo harmony filled "Tell Me Why", the Europe-oriented power ballad "Travel Back in Time", and peppy rocker "Lost and Found" – Tony Niva’s confident upper range puts him in rarified territory, combined with guitarist Roger Ljunggren’s smoldering guitar breaks and Marcus Persson’s pure keyboard parts keep the music alive and kicking.
The best acts in melodic rock/ AOR understand that you can’t stay stagnant in one style of song – that you need to vary tempos, explore emotional elements, and key in on the best hook combinations from a musical and vocal perspective. At times some of the guitar parts can be familiar if you’ve taken in Andy Taylor’s solo material like the opening riff to "Better Just Forgotten" – but then the cruising groove and bright keyboard passages take Niva’s song into a different direction. Roger really rips out all the speed and neo-classical tricks for the lead break in "Magnitude", hopefully encourage other guitarists to seek out this genre for additional freedom and flexibility.
Shimmering production values, careful attention to keeping the songs lean and tight (10 of 11 are under 4 minutes), overall Niva have created another blockbuster album in "Incremental IV". Do not let this genre of music die melodic rock fans. There’s more to it than what was delivered in the 1980’s – so check out Niva if you desire songs that deserve to be blazing across radio stations coast to coast, or played in front of arena size audiences.