Artist: Middleage 
   Title: Different Way
   Label: Hot Wheel Productions

Middleage are another band to come out of that hot bed of musical talent Stockholm Sweden.  The band all aged 21 bring forward the aspirations of youth and a sound that is definitely now with their debut ‘Different View’.

For me as a reviewer the opening track has to standout to really get my attention and get the creative juices flowing as regards to the review, and the opener on this album ‘Rewind’ is one of such example of how to get people sitting up and taking notice of your music!   As the distorted guitars lead into the vocals of Freddie Rein you know this is going to be something special.  As the rest of the song unfolds with the streaming guitars of Mike Szymanski then the angst filled vocals are taken over by the pounding rhythms of Johan Andersson on bass and Andre Andersson’s pulsating drums, you quickly begin to wonder just what the rest of the album might have to offer to beat this impressive opener.

Well things continue to impress with the darker tones of the first of the singles off the album ‘Different View’ and carrying on into ‘Separated’, the tempo soon picks up into a thumping, almost nu-metal angst filled assault on the senses.  I can really imagine this song going down a storm live.

The next track ‘Open Me’ is another mood driven song that has that definite Scandinavian dark feel about it, a bit like HIM in some respects, but unlike anything in others.  After a short interlude of a none descript vocal, which is so none descript that it doesn’t even appear on the track listing, then it's back to the tunes with the bass driven ‘Not Afraid’ and the deeply soul searching ‘Fire’.

The pace is once more picked up with ‘Hungry Needs’, a song that is very early Linkin Park-ish (their first album) before the final track and the second of the singles ‘Someone To Reach For’.  A more mellow affair and probably the finest song written by Andre Andersson on the entire album.  A real slow burner that rounds off a very impressive debut from a band that have the potential to go far if this album is anything to go by.

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