Andy And The Rockets are a Swedish four piece who were formed in 2012.Since the early days they have come a long way when their sound originally leaned towards retro rock n' roll and rockabilly influences.But over the last few years Andy And The Rockets have had a massive transformation reinventing their sound which blends vintage soul which with a combination of punchy modern rock, which has drawn comparisons to bands such as Foo Fighters,Volbeat and Eclipse.The 2023 album "Incognito" was a breakout moment for the band earning them strong streaming numbers,chart placements and massive airplay on Swedish radio with one of their singles becoming one of the most played of the decade.The band will be joining Eclipse on their German tour in November.Eric Martensson coincidentally had a hand in writing the album along with Filip Westgards & Andreas Nystrom (Katatonia)  with Eric also handling the production and mixing of the album.

I got introduced to Andy And The Rockets ,when I saw a reaction video to "Wild Ones" courtesy of Leigh Spencer of Iridium Reviews earlier this year. Since then I have been hooked on this band, eagerly awaiting the release of "Casino". From the first note of the lively punchy melodic tones of "Im Alive" the opening track is a monstrous opening, it's catchy,the chorus is anthemic and the energy is off the scale.Followed by another killer track "Your Touch Is Too Much" which has such a cool bassline,great guitar touches and another massive hooky chorus."I'll Die If Your Done" is an anthemic,emotive modern power ballad with Andreas Forslund delivering soaring vocals over a superb melody,live this will appeal to the crowd for sure."The Other Side" is a return to that fast paced full of fire and energy Scandinavian rock with a powerful riff with an explosive solo.its punchy,addictive and gets you hooked instantly. "Cyanide" and "Wild Ones" , another two of the singles from this album showing the bands expertise for writing superb melodies,with great lyrics and big ear worm choruses.The latter has a feelgood,joyous anthemic feel that lifts your spirits instantly."Creatures Of The Night" is,another  full octane melodic rock anthem which pounds out of my speakers with more feel good upbeat feelings..

Next up "Dirty Love" has more of an attitude & swagger to that melodic sound which sounds so cool.One of the biggest choruses on this record comes in the track "Seven Years Of Bleeding" which soars from start to finish the bassline is so catchy,the lyrics are full of emotion and hurt."Ride Or Die" has a western feel with the opening riffs before bursting into a galloping full on stadium rock anthem.The second ballad of the album,the penultimate track "In From The Cold"  is semi acoustic led,with a sophisticated guitar solo which compliments the track."Heartbreak City" is a powerful energetic final blast of superb melodic rock to end the album on a high."Casino" is a Modern Rock masterpiece.The album has twelve strong tracks full of energy,emotion,feel good factor and sincerity.This  is perfectly blended together through in their music with  Eric Martenssons  touches in their sound and production superb.If  like me you love bands like H.E.A.T. and Eclipse with also touches of Modern Rock you will absolutely love this album,infact anybody who loves music will love this album too.Just when I thought I had my albums of the year list sorted I hear "Casino" and its back to the drawing board! An absolutely fantastic record.