There are moments when our hearts become full of hope and love when we hear some kinds of music. Yes, because even Metalheads have feelings, and due our musical background (that has no boundaries of genres, because we all start to hear and like music since our earlier and tender childhood), some bands and albums can touch our souls deeply, and remind us a lot from the past feelings that sometimes are buried on us all due the daily difficulties. So ASHBURY's latest album, "Eye of the Stygian Witches", is one of them, and let me tell you: it's one of the best albums I have heard on the past 10-15 years!

As a veteran from Tucson, Arizona, they are here to unleash a heavy Hard Rock with clear influences from Blues Rock, Southern Rock and Country. It's a form of music in the same vein of ZZ TOP, WISHBONE ASH, BLUE OYSTER CULT and LYNYRD SKYNYRD, but filled with a strong personality, and done with excellent musical arrangements. And the album's music is a travel to the end of the 70's and earlier years of the 80s that can touch deeper those that are almost 50 years old, of that already passed this age. But it's actual and alive, and you'll be hooked to it in the first hearing! This form of music is not so technically hard to record, because they have that organic "plug 'n' play" feeling from the past, but to manage its sound quality to sound as strong in the present as it was in the past is very difficult. But the studio work on "Eye of the Stygian Witches" was done in such calm and long way that it reached its goal: organic, clean and actual at the same time.

If you're looking for some fast and furious stuff played at the speed of light, stay away. It's melodic, tender and amazingly catchy, but if you have a good musical taste, this album was made for you. And songs as the charming "End of All Time" (lovely melodies and great work on vocals and keyboards), the strong Southern/Country Rock scent of "Good Guitar" (this song deserves its name, for the guitars are excellent), the deeper and melancholic feeling that fills the acoustic ballad "Summer Fades Away" (the acoustic guitars are creating amazing easy arrangements), the mix between a silk aggressive touch with tender melodies of "Waited So Long" and on "Out of the Blue", the Blues Rock/Jazz touches on "Searchin'", the Old North American melodies from the 80s on "Amber Glass" and on "Eye of the Stygian Witches" can be pointed as the best moments of the album, if you really can think of such thing on it!

They're not too old for Rock 'n' Roll, and you're not too young to hear "Eye of the Stygian Witches". So let ASHBURY guide you into a different and lovely musical world.