{"id":34826,"date":"2015-08-12T00:01:52","date_gmt":"2015-08-12T00:01:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=34826"},"modified":"2015-08-12T22:57:34","modified_gmt":"2015-08-12T22:57:34","slug":"album-review-mike-tramp-nomad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-mike-tramp-nomad\/","title":{"rendered":"MIKE TRAMP – Nomad (2015) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

MIKE TRAMP
Nomad<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nTarget (2015)<\/span>
Rating: 9\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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If a poll was conducted amongst heavy metal and hard rock fans to ask who were the most underrated song writing partnerships in the 1980s, then it\u2019s very likely that alongside Enuff Z\u2019 Nuff\u2019s Chip Z\u2019Nuff and Donnie Vie, White Lion\u2019s Mike Tramp and Vito Bratta would probably be top of my list… and yet they\u2019d probably be ignored by many.<\/p>\n

In my opinion, White Lion were one of the finest heavy rock bands of their time, yet sadly shackled with the derogatory \u201chair metal\u201d tag simply because like many musicians within the genre at the time they had rather fluffed up hair and pretty looks.<\/p>\n

Tramp \/ Bratta crafted some wonderful songs, but sadly White Lion would eventually split in 1992 after carving a career spanning a handful of fine records; Bratta becoming a rather elusive character while Tramp marched on, somehow evolving through the trends and fads to create the grunge-tinged glories of Freak Of Nature and then an impressive solo career.<\/p>\n

The ten-track Nomad<\/em> is Mike Tramp\u2019s ninth studio solo outing emerging hot on the heels of 2014\u2019s Museum<\/em>, and it\u2019s testament to the prolific songwriting prowess of this Danish composer who has made a career \u2013 unlike so many musicians from the 80s metal era \u2013 of actually writing songs fuelled by emotion and personal experiences. It\u2019s no different with Nomad<\/em>; the Copenhagen-born rocker completing a trilogy of sorts in regards to his journey through life beginning with the 2013 opus Cobblestone Street<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Nomad<\/em> begins with \u2018Give It All You Got\u2019; an upbeat stomper featuring an immediately catchy lick and nice, soft drum prod. \u201cHave you ever been beaten and broken, and you could not find your way?\u201d<\/em> asks Tramp with that ever recognisable silky tone, and straight away there\u2019s that injection of hope as the track builds to a soulful and above all positive chorus as Tramp beams, \u201cYou can\u2019t give up, you don\u2019t give up \u2013 you give it all you got\u201d<\/em>. It\u2019s all so simple by design yet bright and breezy on the ears; Tramp offering up the same sort of nifty, reflective and optimistic vibe as John Corabi (ex-M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce) except with less grit.<\/p>\n

\u2018Wait Till Forever\u2019 follows and provides that extra edge; a killer organ buzzes along with another instant lick. Of course, due to Tramp\u2019s moving tones the track is brought down to a comfortable level as the drum plods amidst the airy trickles of the guitar. But you know that with Tramp there\u2019s always that high level of quality; the songs getting the head nodding, the heart fluttering and at times, the tears flowing.<\/p>\n

\u2018Counting The Hours\u2019 is equally edgy; the distorted guitar fluff and organ ooze brings in Tramp\u2019s questioning. \u201cI\u2019ve been searching for something that I don\u2019t understand,\u201d<\/em> he claims. \u201cI\u2019ve been looking for answers in the palm of my hand\u201d<\/em>, the music reflecting another of Mike Tramp\u2019s heartfelt emotions but again providing heaps of positivity.<\/p>\n

In a sense Nomad<\/em>, like so much of Tramp\u2019s solo stuff, is very much pop-edged and on the very lighter side of rock music; \u2018Bow And Obey\u2019 has a hint of melancholy with its initial nod, but the words are of a journeyman who\u2019s seen and done a lot and yet learnt so much from his experiences.<\/p>\n

The fantastic \u2018High Like A Mountain\u2019 and \u2018No More\u2019 prop up an impressive mid-section of the album. The former is another plodding vibe, Tramp\u2019s vocals warm, tender and floating from the members of that simple acoustic brush, while the latter tune brings a catchy twang and infectious chorus. Again that effective sleepy drum remains persistent throughout, but of all the songs to really make their mark with immediate passion, it\u2019s \u2018Stay\u2019 which for some unknown reason reminds me of country alt-rock star Ryan Adams with its countrified tinge. The organ is again subtle as Tramp brings us to that joyous chorus, and the same can also be said for the harder groove of \u2018Who Can Believe\u2019 which is the album\u2019s most electrified track; the guitar fizzing with intent and yet the chorus is unpredictably soulful, but again magical.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s something rustic and well-travelled about the whole sound of the album, as if the tracks on offer have been written in varying places all over the world, but I could be wrong. However, with the emotionally-charged \u2018Live To Tell\u2019 it\u2019s clear that Tramp still has the ability to add a darkness to his material. Indeed, it\u2019s the sort of track that seems reflective of his younger days, such is its stirring nature, but it\u2019s also evidence of Tramps\u2019 knack of writing deep, sensual tracks very much out of the mould as they were when with White Lion.<\/p>\n

Album closer \u2018Moving On\u2019 has a Procol Harum-styled late 60s nod to it; again this is down to the lazy drum and organ flow. \u201cIf there was a way I could change everything, I\u2019d do it again,<\/em>\u201d sings Tramp. \u201cEvery mistake that I made in my life, all of the things that I didn\u2019t realise, I\u2019d never let in through this door\u201d<\/em> \u2013 each subtle beat seems to accompany the fall of each tear; Mike Tramp again providing those silky, harmonies to pull on the heartstrings.<\/p>\n

Nomad<\/em> is the album I expected; a simple, almost stark but soulful journey down the tracks of Tramp\u2019s tears and avenues of all emotion and places he\u2019s experienced. Here\u2019s a man so dedicated to his music that one can only sit back and become engulfed by such a tranquil opus where the beats caress the ears; the guitars jangle effortlessly and Mike Tramp\u2019s voice does what it\u2019s always done.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MIKE TRAMPNomad Target (2015)Rating: 9\/10 If a poll was conducted amongst heavy metal and hard rock fans to ask who were the most underrated song writing partnerships in the 1980s, then it\u2019s very likely that alongside Enuff Z\u2019 Nuff\u2019s Chip Z\u2019Nuff and Donnie Vie, White Lion\u2019s Mike Tramp and Vito Bratta would probably be top […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,2399],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-mike-tramp"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34826"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34838,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34826\/revisions\/34838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}