Nita Strauss – The Call Of The Void

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Nita Strauss released her second album 'Call of the Void' on July 7th 2023. The title might sound rather depressing, but Nita explains that that is not its intention. It's not about jumping in a dark void, or being afraid of the dark or nothingness. It's about the feeling to be alive, and to take a jump to something new, even if you're scared. With that in mind, let's take a jump into Nita's new record.

The sound of rain opens this album. Thunder follows. A clean guitar is next, followed by a distorted guitar. ‘Summer Storm’ welcomes you to the album with a calm and collective, yet firm pace. It’s the rage of a storm, but also the peace you feel when it finally rains after a hot day. On ‘The Wolf You Feed’, Nita is joined by Alissa White-Gluz, vocalist for Arch Enemy. Alissa gives this track extra power, using her scream as well as her clean vocals. Nita’s precision in her playing gives this track the final touch.

On ‘Digital Bullets’, Nita is joined by Chris Motionless from Motionless in White. This track has more melody to it. Chris‘ vocals match the vibe of the guitar: smooth and collective. Then Nita’s killer guitar solo comes in and gives the song an extra dimension. ‘Through the Noise’ has Lzzy Hale on it from Halestorm. Lzzy is known for her powerful and raw vocals, and that’s exactly what she delivers here. Nita’s guitar changes in mood depending on the pace of the vocals. Lzzy hits this really high note that fades out and gives the torch to Nita’s guitar. After that, the song does its thing one more time and finishes in style.

‘Consume the Fire’ is another instrumental track. It takes your thoughts away from the moment it begins. It’s fast, it’s fierce. The guitar consumes you and speaks to you through all these guitar effects that create special sounds. Then, the track ends and you are left wanting more.
‘Dead Inside’ has David Draiman on it from Disturbed. The track fits his vocal style perfectly. Short and fast verses and longer, slower choruses. In between, there are these powerful riffs announcing the next part of the song each time. Top that off with a very powerful part at the end were David uses all his vocal strength on top of short, vicious guitar strums.
‘Victorious’ has Dorothy on it, creating a more melodic, feelgood track with balls. A song about never giving up and saving yourself. The song is very catchy and uplifting. It’s ready to battle.

‘Scorched’ starts with the sound of police sirens and a helicopter, followed by a clean electric guitar. For a moment you think it would be a ballad, but it is not. Seconds later, a slower electric guitar comes in. The guitar takes you on a beautiful journey throughout the next few minutes. Just sit back and relax and let the guitar lead you the way. ‘Momentum’ is much heavier and blasts out of your speakers straight from the start. Short strums on the single notes and the chords characterise this song. Put a heavy and steady beat below that and you get this killer track.

On ‘The Golden Trail’, Nita is joined by Anders Fridén from In Flames. Nita states she has been an In Flames fan for ages and the band had a huge influence on her guitar playing. She was more than happy that Anders would join her on this track. It starts slow and eerie, letting loose little by little until the electric guitar comes in. Anders uses his harsh vocals for the verses and his clean vocals for the chorus, creating a perfect harmony with Nita’s guitar. A truly beautiful song.

‘Winner Takes It All’ has Alice Cooper on it. Nita Strauss had been a guitarist for Alice Cooper for a long time now, so it’s fun to see him joining Nita on this song. The song is less powerful, calmer, but steady and strong. It does have another great guitar solo in it that seems to not quite fit the song. It fades out again when Alice comes in to sing the chorus one more time.
Lilith Czar joins on ‘Monster’. Her clean, but raw vocals give the song a poppy, yet powerful vibe. The solo gives the song an extra dimension. It fades out nicely and builds back up again for the final chorus.

‘Kintsugi’ is the final instrumental track on this album, performed by Nita herself. It starts of with slow chords and a fast soloing electric guitar. The clean guitar creates a base for the electric guitar to follow. Both flow into each other and create this beautiful calm, but steady track.
‘Surfacing’ has Marty Friedman on it, a great guitarist that used to play in Megadeath but left the band to pursue other dreams. The song starts of slow and calm, then it turns into a kind of duel. Although duel wouldn’t be the right word. Maybe duet fits better, since both guitars complement each other. At the end, the solo ends abruptly into a calm ending that fades away.

REVIEW SCORE

  • Music / Songwriting 7/10
  • Vocals / Lyrics 7/10
  • Mix / Production 8/10
  • Artwork & Packaging 8/10
  • Originality 9/10
7.8

This album takes you on a journey. Is it Nita’s journey? Is it yours? Maybe both. ‘Call of the Void’ contains beautiful songs that give power and emotion. Yet I feel like the album is not one story, but several short ones. Maybe different emotions or different moments in life. For me it’s lacking unity of some sort. Even so the individual songs contain enough power to stand on their own. Maybe it’s a reflection of different parts in Nita’s life, different stories to be told.

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