For a lot of people Adrian Vandenberg will of course be remembered for his stints in Whitesnake starting in 1986-1991 and adding a few tours and albums after the band reformed in ’94. For me though it was always his main band ‘Vandenberg’ which preceded Whitesnake that offered more and when you add to that his 1994 recording with ‘Manic Eden’ you can appreciate his real talent. The only surprising thing for me for a guy with such talent was the fact that he remained silent after the Whitesnake ‘Starkers in Tokyo’ acoustic album in 1997 until the first Moonkings album in 2014. So here after just three years comes the second installment.
Simply titled MK II. The album has everything the debut offered – a wonderful mixture of 70’s Hard Rock given a modern sheen, and it clicks faultlessly. The only difference with MK II though is that it’s even better realised and the band seem to have built on that initial spark of chemistry to become an impressive unit indeed. Indeed Jan Hoving has become a real force as a singer and the rhythm section of Sem Christoffel (bass) and Mart Nijen Es (drums) are full of feel and when given reign more than a little fury.
Starting out with the 70’s rock powerhouse of ‘Tightrope’ we’re immediately rocking, and the great start is followed up by the fiery blues boogie of ‘Reputation’ and the mellower ‘Whitesnakey’ blues of ‘Angel in Black’. Next up though is the crowning glory – the epic seven plus minutes of ‘The Fire’ chock full of drama, chunky riffs and topped with some great vocals. It may be the most compelling reason you need to buy this record, but its far from the only one.
‘Walk Away’ the blues-infused ballad goes down very nicely too, as does the ballsier ‘Ready for the Talking’ and the stone-hewn classic rock of ‘Hard Way’ before the rather poppy flavour of ‘Love Runs Out’ (the only ‘miss’ for me here sounding a little sub-Robert Palmer) and the big-riffed ‘If You Can’t Handle the Heat’ close proceedings.
This is a great record and edges that first release for me. Get on board with the Moonkings…
