Creye - II (2021)

Young Swedish outfit CREYE around founder Andreas Gullstrand (g) was able to stir up the AOR world with their magnificent debut in 2018. And also, the sophomore album “II“ is superb AOR although on a couple of songs (e.g. “Siberia“), the Swedes push the boundaries a bit further. Nevertheless, pure ear candy like “Face To Face“, “Find A Reason“ or “Broken Highway“ are unrivaled. This is the first album with new vocalist August Rauer, who takes over from Robin Jidhed, and who does nothing but a fantastic job. Essential stuff indeed for fans digging the likes of ONE DESIRE, WORK OF ART, ART NATION or (early) H.E.A.T., which means you got uptempo tracks, rather poppish tracks and lots of stellar anthems as well as a couple of ballads, too! “Lost Without You“, being one of the slower songs, creeps right into your heart. “Can’t Stop Where We Started“ or “Closer“ on the other hand, make you move your body, whether you like it or not. So that’s how you do AOR in 2021! An album you’ll play over and over and over…. And yes, there’s definitely something in the Swedish drinking water!