Rock from Germany: on 17th June, the German rock band April Art releases their second album, P.O.K.E.R.F.A.C.E.. I ran into the release on a promotion platform and just felt that their sound could be an interesting one for Flyctory.com. Here is my album review.
April Art – About The Artist
April Art are a rock band from Gießen, Germany. The band consists of four members. Lisa-Marie Watz is the lead singer of the band, Chris Bunnell plays the guitar, Julian Schütze is April Art’s bassists and Ben Juelg is the drummer of the band. The band is active since 2019. In 2019, they released their debut album Rise & Fall.
April Art – P.O.K.E.R.F.A.C.E. – Track by Track
The twelve track album lasts 34 minutes.
1. Pokerface
After a short introduction by Lisa-Marie Weitz, the title track aims for full rock power. The song has a certain metalcore touch. I love Lisa-Marie’s voice – maybe also as I feel a certain Doro Pesch timbre in it. No reference to Lady Gaga, by the way. Am I the only one who feels that the verses have the same rhythm as Funky Cold Medina by Tone Löc?
2. Change
The song opens with some sort of metal-rap: the verses come with a mixture of screamed and spoken words. Overall, Change nicely works with different rhythms and moods. I like the vibe, which makes you keep on moving to the rhythm. Good one
Do me a favor, don’t bother
Cause it’s absolutely strange
The only constant is change
3. Interlude: Manifest
Three of the twelve tracks of the albums are interludes. Manifest is the first one, which reminds a bit of club sounds and synth pop. I wouldn’t really need these ones.
4. Rising High
I am rising high
Into the falling sky
I won’t get off this ride
I will fight until I die
Rising High has been a single release by April Art. If I confused you with my Doro Pesch reference above – maybe this one is convincing you. The band is playing a bunch of festivals this summer – I am sure, the crowds will love this one.
5. Sky Is The Limit
Is the sky really the limit in this one? The song is making extensive use of spoken words in the verses again. Cool blend of rock and alternative elements. The short and simple chorus again creates an easy to remember musical reference. April Art simply forces you to keep the lines in your mind. Well done!
6. Warrior
Warrior is the rock ballad on this album. Interesting to see how gentle the lead singer’s voice is sounding in here. Not an absolute blast, but a really solid listen.
7. My Way
My VIew is simply a good alternative rocker with synth elements. The song does not feel too much like metalcore, though. It is very melodic rocker, which stays in your mind. Cool.
8. Interlude: Leave It Behind
This interlude just features 28 seconds of a demo-alike demo recording.
9. See The Light
These 2:41 minutes don’t come with a lot of lyrics, but to me, it is one of the most favorite listens. Nice rock vibes.
10. Start Over
Start Over comes with a very slow and quiet beginning and then turns into a rather energetic midtempo alternative rock song. Good one.
11. Interlude: Letters
Two songs… and an interlude. No more words
12. Superhero
If you start the closing songs of your second album with the lyrics I am a Superhero, that at least does not feel like a lack of self-confidence. The song is coming with strong contrasts, very hard and rocking part and also very quiet and melodic elements. I however feel that this track does not deserve the Superhero status.
April Art – P.O.K.E.R.F.A.C.E. – Spotify
Here is P.O.K.E.R.F.A.C.E. on Spotify:
April Art – P.O.K.E.R.F.A.C.E. – My View
April Art is an interesting and talented band, which is able to show a nice range of musical facets. The album comes with some ups and downs, but overall, it is a really good listen. If you like alternative rock and are not too afraid of metalcore elements, you should dare a listen
2022 Rock Music Reviews
Here are all my Media Reviews related to rock music in 2022:

Nevena – Nevena
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Sündflut – Basta! EP
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Neufundland – Grind
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Isafjord – Hjartsatjaki
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The Moon City Masters – The Famous Moon City Masters
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Fireside – Bin Juice
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The Backseat Lovers – Waiting To Spill
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Chez Kane – Powerzone
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Orianthi – Rock Candy
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Magical Heart – Heartsonic
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Monster Truck – Warriors
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Melissa Naschenweng – Glück
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Richard Marx – Songwriter
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Kill Strings – Limbo
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Starcrawler – She Said
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The Afghan Whigs – How Do You Burn?
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Lindsay Ell (with Kyle Daniel & Shy Carter, 23rd August 2022, Cologne)
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Björn Heuser (28th May 2020, Drive-In Show, Bonn)
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Noah Guthrie (9th December 2019, Cologne)
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James Barker Band (20th November 2019, Zurich)
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Mrs. Greenbird (Frankfurt, 7th November 2019)
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Ben Zucker & Van De Forst (6th November 2019, Cologne)
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Willie Jones & Tyler Rich (29th October 2019, Cologne)
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Logan Mize (26th October 2019, Cologne)
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