Velvet Two Stripes – No Spell For Moving Water LP

It’s been a while since we had proper rock music on our pages. It’s not like we haven’t listened to some excellent rock bands this year, but today’s pick goes beyond comprehension in so many ways. “No Spell For Moving Water” is a new full-length album by Velvet Two Stripes, an outstanding female rock group from Zurich, Switzerland. Their sound is so rich and luxurious, carrying all the fundamentals of modern rock music. However, Velvet Two Stripes fully stacked their latest album with some sonic ingredients borrowed from other complementary music genres like grunge or alternative, and you’ll even notice some stoner, southern, and blues elements. Of course, all these elements go together hand in hand, but the way this band incorporated all of them is nearly mindblowing. You’ll notice how Velvet Two Stripes used these additional ingredients as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details that uplift this material on an entirely new level, while the trio remains loyal to the primary sonic direction. These experimentations resulted in nine impressive songs that will suit even the pickiest listeners.

The way they did it is even more exciting. Maybe they lean towards modern rock, but you’ll hear how they sometimes levitate close to the retro sound. It’s more than crystal clear that late sixties garage rock, seventies and eighties hard rock, and nineties grunge inspired them during the writing, composing, recording, and producing process, so their music differs from the remainder of the scene. You’ll immediately notice how the outstanding lead vocalist shines from scratch to finish, skillfully balancing between low, mid, and high notes and emphasizing everything the remainder of the group tried to achieve with their music. She also guides the listeners through every song with her ultimately confident, sincere, and powerful voice. The cleverly assembled themes, leads, melodies, harmonies, chord progressions, and riffs serve as a perfect backdrop for her vocal performance, but they also shape a colossal ambiance.

Of course, this material wouldn’t sound so good without equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding low-end notes, wisely assembled and implemented into the core of every song. The bass guitar plays a big part in this sonic equation by offering heaviness, depth, and clarity, but also acting as a binding element between guitars and drums. Wait until you hear the drummer. Her jaw-dropping drumming performance is based upon energetic, dynamic, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics that provide groove and pace but also keep the remainder of the group in line. Everything sounds top-notch, and Velvet Two Stripes thoroughly planned even the tiniest details while writing, composing, recording, and producing this album.

The band also thought about visual identity. “No Spell For Moving Water” comes on a beautiful orange splatter vinyl housed in a high-quality, hefty, glossy jacket, accompanied by marvelous photos. You’ll also find a full-color protective record sleeve and three poster-sized photos inside. Velvet Two Stripes thought about audio and visual appeal, so “No Spell For Moving Water” will be such a treat for all die-hard rock fans and beyond. You can purchase the vinyl directly from their website.