"VII" is the seventh album by At Vance. The album is in the musical line of the previous albums. The question rises whether the band has copied itself or are there things on this album that we have not heard before? There are some changes! To start off, singer Mats Leven has left the band, he has been replaced by Rick Altzi. His voice shows a lot of similarities with Levens, yet I think that somehow Altzi’s sound fits even better with the music. This is the most important difference between “VII” and the previous album “Changed”. My personal At Vance favorite is “The Evil in You” though.

Altzi proves to be an improvement for the band, whether it is an up-tempo song or a ballad, he definitely makes his mark.

With the up-tempo songs he sings rather slow and melodic (‘Victory’, ‘Golden Leaves’); it makes these songs very melodic. Of course there are a few heavy and fast tracks on “VII”, ‘Truth’ for example blows the listener away. The best song on the album is ‘Shiver’ though, a slow tempo song with amazing singing, catchy guitar solo’s and solid symphonic influences. ‘Cold as Ice’ is the obvious single because of the catchy riffs that carry this track.

Conclusion: no “VII” is not just a repetition of the previous At Vance releases. It’s a great hard rock album with 10 balanced songs characteristic At Vance music and improved vocals.