Spiritual Beggars: sturdy retro rock made for real men and women with balls, already nine albums by now. So again on Sunrise to Sundown you can expect catchy choruses – which will of course invite you to sing along – completed by beautiful melodies and alternated by heavenly guitar riffs.

Because that’s Spiritual Beggars as well: music made on a high level. Opening song Sunrise to Sundown is immediately bullseye: a constant smile is put on my face by the Swedish group; the feeling is just right. Besides Michael Amott‘s heavenly guitar playing and Apollo Papathanasio‘s strong voice, drummer Ludwig Witt is outstanding too: the lovely play by the man is just irresistible during the whole album. The percussion on this record is very organic in the mix, which is definitely a nice thing as well.

Although the Swedish group keeps the quality on a high level during the whole record, there is sometimes a little lack of variety, which makes me lose a bit of attention near the end. Whereas the band did peak during a few songs on previous records, like Dreamer on Earth Blues or Believe in Me, which is featured on Return to Zero, this is sadly not the case on Sunrise to Sundown.

Yet, this doesn’t mean that Sunrise to Sundown hasn’t become an excellent album. As said before: in terms of music, the retro rockers keep their level really high during the whole record and it is a huge pleasure to enjoy their musical workmanship. To those who could enjoy their previous albums even the slightest bit, it’s highly recommended to buy this ninth album by Spiritual Beggars. 8/10

Release Date: March 25, 2016
Label: InsideOut Music
Tracklist:
1. Sunrise to Sundown
2. Diamond Under Pressure
3. What Doesn’t Kill You
4. Hard Road
5. Still Hunter
6. No Man’s Land
7. I Turn to Stone
8. Dark Light Child
9. Lonely Freedom
10.You’ve Been Fooled
11. Southern Star

Guest author: Daniël Vos
Original: Ashladan review (Dutch).