DEEP TOWN DIVA is an Italian Hard Rock band formed in 2018. The Modena-based quartet are firmly entrenched in Guitar Rock, bringing back the sound and feel of old-school Arena Rock. They write anthemic tracks with killer lyrics and awesome rhythms. The vocals are clean and often in a lower register, but do jump into a belted head voice when the song calls for it. Royal Flush was independently released on November 4, 2022. The EP opens with "Jager Of Jager." After a few measures of drums and a couple of bass/guitar tones, Andrea gives us a killer belted "Ohhh, come on baby!, All right." Right off the bat we hear his control over his instrument. That will be a theme throughout this record as each of the members demonstrate they also can make their instruments do exactly what they want, whether that is changing tempos, playing leads, or just holding a rock steady beat.

"Rising" has a bluesy feel to it, We get a quick, distorted intro, followed by a heavy bluesy riff and a nice moderate rhythm. I love the fade out of the guitar that allows the bass to take the lead and dictate the tempo from the front, rather than underneath. This is the longest song on the record and it has a number of cool shifts to it. Layered and backing vocals add extra power to the voices, giving the song a feeling of gaining strength, and yes, rising up to meet full potential. Marco's opening guitar work on "Miles And Bullets," paired for a few bars with a harmonica, are slow and sultry. There is a ballad-like feel to this song. The vocals are lower and delivered with a bit of pain and passion. Giacomo sets a beautiful rhythm on the drums and Matteo mirrors the bass drum for the most part. The middle section hits Power Ballad status and DEEP TOWN DIVA established themselves as a major played in this area. The song is moody, and everything you want from this style of music.

"Snake Bite" is heavier. The guitars and the bass are faster and darker, playing on the deeper end of the register. The cymbal crashes act like punctuation marks that are echoed by the bass and guitar both, giving the whole thing a lot of emphasis, almost like taking a hit to the face. The song does not go "full-on metal," but it is heavier than the rest of the record. The guitar solo is melodic and measured. The fade-in for "Wind Back" is quick and leads to a pretty aggressive riff, but still not as heavy as "Snake Bite." The verses are more melodic with the guitars dropping down to play a more ambient tune. The chorus has plenty of power with Andrea getting into his killer belting voice. The harmonized layers of vocals added in give this track a lot of character and texture.

Overall, this is a really good EP from a fairly new band. I particularly enjoyed "Snake Bite" and "Miles And Bullets." Both of those songs, completely different from each other, have something I like in them. This EP is only five songs and 23 minutes long, but DEEP TOWN DIVA pack plenty of sonic goodness into that short amount of time. I'll be humming those two songs for weeks to come.