Some musicians are going through solo albums these days. Maybe it's best to do this when you are trying to make a musical work, because a band has many complications that are beyond human patience sometimes. Being honest with the readers: "Dare to Be Happy" is a great album, the first from the talented Swedish singer AMMOURI.

Her main musical style can be labeled simply as modern Hard Rock. It's melodic and heavy, with some aggressive parts and catchy melodies. But her songs have an inspiring sound, and high spirits (as the songs' titles make clear, obviously), and that nasty and strong energy flow that Metal music must bear. Although this musical format was used many times before, in her hands (and voice), it comes to life again.

The modern feelings that permeates "Dare to Be Happy" comes from the sound quality, because the tunes used on the musical instruments are aggressive and clean, and the producer created something heavy and bitter, but without tearing apart the melodies that fill the songs. It could be better on some parts, but it is fine as it is presented here.

On "Dare to Be Happy", you'll find a great team of special guests: Pontus Egberg (THE POODLES, KING DIAMOND) plays bass guitar on all of the songs, Staffan Österlind (from PAUL DI'ANNO) played guitar on "Monster of your Own Creation", "More than Everything", "Bad Illusion", "Not Anymore", and "Starlight"; Tony Borg (from ALIEN) play some guitar solos on "Bad Illusion", and Johan Kullberg (drummer from THERION and HAMMERFALL), John Berg (guitars) on "Manipulation" and "Dare to Be Happy", and others. But the aggressive voice of Marina Ammouri fits perfectly on the songs, because she is versatile and rich.

So we can say that the melodic energy of "Fill Your Heart with Love", the introspective and modern arrangements of "Monster of your Own Creation", the charming and heavy "Dare to Be Happy", the powerful and catchy harmonies of "Manipulation" (excellent chorus, indeed), and the darkened melancholy that fills "Not Anymore" are the best songs of the album.

AMMOURI is a great work indeed, but I truly recommend Marina to use only one or two songs that seems like ballads on the next album.