NITERAIN – Vendetta (Album Review)

NiteRain Vendetta CoverNiteRain. Sounds cool, eh? And no we’re not talking about “Mr. Brownstone” here, it’s not “Night Train”. A popular misconception for those uneducated. This Norwegian outfit originally entered my crosshairs with their 2013 issue Crossfire. A tasty hard rock helping, dripping with just the right amount of sleaze. But unlike that hooker on the corner, you won’t be needing a tetanus shot (or other) after the playtime is over!

2016 presented me the opportunity to witness these four young men on stage. Not once but three times! During my attendance at my first ever Rocklahoma Festival, I was surprised to hear a recorded announcer say “This is NiteRain” on the camp stage late the first night. Fantastic! It was my little band of sleazers from Norway here in the US! The next day of Rocklahoma offered an earlier stage time on the Retrospect Records stage for a second live set.

Then about 2 weeks later during my annual excursion to Sweden and the Sweden Rock Festival, I again saw NiteRain. This time they opened the last day of the festival at 11am. The park was not yet jammed but a good contingent of sleepy-eyed (or hungover) concert goers were ready to rock. By their second song, they had amassed a huge crowd. Later in the day, by complete chance, I ran into guitarist Adrian Persen and bassist Frank Karlsen at the VIP area, stopping to say hi and thanks for the gigs. They were visibly taken aback to learn that I had just witnessed them at Rocklahoma as well. After chatting for a few minutes and a quick snapshot photo we carried on with our day. NiteRain Rocklahoma/Sweden Rock Spotlight Review

Sometime later bassist Frank Karlsen reached out to me via Facebook. The band wanted to know if they could use Decibel Geek‘s little point and shoot camera filmed video footage of their Rocklahoma gig. Turns out they were making a tour diary video and they liked my footage they’d seen on youtube (also I think the only filmed footage of the events). What a thrill to watch the video and know that I helped create it and hopefully helped expand the exposure of this awesome hard rock sleaze band. Even cooler to see the DBG logo and name as well as my own in the credited thank-yous. US Tour Video.

I knew that NiteRain‘s newest album offering was coming down the pipe. For starters, the guys told me in Sweden! But also following the band and individual members on Facebook supplied the info. While Vendetta originally became available in November, it was several weeks later before I would get my hot little hands on it. Instantly affected does not even begin to accurately describe things. Decibel Geek published our website contributors top ten best albums of the year lists on December 16th, 2016. Placing at #6 on my personal list was NiteRain‘s Vendetta and that was after only a few rotations! Now finally having had the chance to sit down and share with the world the greatness that is Norwegian band NiteRain.

NiteRain Vendetta

Vendetta vaults off at high speed with “Lost and Wasted”. A great lead-off track containing everything you’d expect from a sleaze rock track. From there Vendetta slams the throttle full open with the total fist pumper “Come Out”. I absolutely love this song! The pumping swagger and hooky catch will stay with you for days. Having heard this one live, it was nice to be able to crank it on my stereo at home. Fuck the neighbors, let them call the cops to “Come Out”!

“The Threat” is next in line, another that I was able to preview live, which at that time came with a section of the Deep Purple classic “Highway Star” sandwiched in the middle. A complete balls to the wall rocker. The first single and video NiteRain released off Vendetta was “Rock n’ Roll” quite a bit in advance of the album. We find the sleaze anthem in the fourth position of Vendetta. Next up, “Romeo” is a total sing-along definition of radio friendly earworm. The tracks on Vendetta fly by quickly, most at well under a four-minute runtime. One of the two over that mark is “One More Time”. The track leads out with a Karlsen bass riff before exploding into a chugging groove designed to incite headbanging.

“Something Ain’t Right” doesn’t grab me as tightly as the other tracks but it still rolls along nicely bringing the listener to “Don’t Fade Away”. Showing their softer side with this ballady style track, NiteRain prove they have more in the tank than sleaze anthems. Another concert staple of the shows I saw is “#1 Bad Boy”, a real barn burning punk infused thumper to get the blood racing once again.

The four and a half minute “Electric” pounds out of the gates and doesn’t let up. The eleventh and final composition is the title track, another tasty little rocker.

Conclusion

As I said earlier, Vendetta made #6 on my top albums of 2016, so there’s a good indication of the enjoyment I get from listening to this record. I highly recommend that you check out Norway’s NiteRain if you are a hard rock/sleaze fan. These guys have it all, ready to carry on the torch set down by Motley Crue.

BUY: Vendetta

Official Website / Facebook

icon_001Cheers,

The Meister

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