“Vargtimmar” which in Swedish means ‘hour of the wolf’ is the new album of the Italian artist Christian Ryder aka TourdeForce. The album also is the last chapter from the “Anger”-trilogy; which took off with “Jedem Das Seine” (2014) and moved on with “Very Industrial People” (2018). Content: TourdeForce holds on Electro-Pop influences, but you rapidly will notice the writing moves a step further and explores other genres as well. There’s a twist between pure, melodic Electro-Pop songs and heavier cuts featuring heavy guitar playing. It sometimes sounds a bit Punk-styled while refined with Electronic melodies. The work sounds a bit like opposite styles that have been mixed. And that’s not all as I also noticed a kind of John Lennon inspired short track (cf. “Too Many Words”) while other songs are featuring a Psychedelic touch on top of the work. The vocals have something fragile. TourdeForce is a solo-project although a few female singers and guitarists contributed to the work as well. Notice the album also features a surprising cover version of Death In June’s “Nowhere Street” while the lyrics feature words from very famous writers like William Blake, H.P. Lovecraft ao. It’s not easy to catch this work, which has something versatile. I personally prefer the Electro-Pop style and especially when it becomes melancholic like on “Nemo Propheta In Patria”. But I can also enjoy some harder passages with guitar play, creating a Punk-Pop offspring. “A Hero For His Son” is a noticeable song in the genre. Christian Ryder has for sure a talent to compose great melody lines, which sound like the common thread of the album. The production of the vocals is sometimes missing a little bit power. I’m sometimes missing bit cohesion between the songs because of the album’s diversity.
Conclusion: TourdeForce is clearly a band with a very own approach and spirit. The entire album is not convincing although features noticeable cuts.