COVERED CALL – Money Never Sleeps

Okay, what the hell is a Covered Call anyway? Basically, it’s a term used by those that work in investment banking and the stock market. Interestingly, some of the members of this band work in that field. It just goes to show that Metalheads come from all walks of life! Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s focus on this band and its excellent music, both of which come to us from Sweden. The most recognizable member of the group is Thomas Vikström, who is a very good vocalist that has performed with Candlemass and Therion. Don’t let the big names fool you; Covered Call isn’t at all Doom, Epic, or Symphonic. With this bunch, you get upbeat and emotive Melodic Metal that’s driven by heavy guitars and the aforementioned very good vocals.

Things kick off with “All Because of Me.” This track sets itself apart from most of the others because it seems to be geared more toward the FM dial than anything. The whole “oh, woe is me” theme has been done countless times before and this one doesn’t come off sounding any different. Many people are tired of the self blame bit that saturates the air waves, so it’s rather surprising that this is the first tune on Money Never Sleeps. Anyway, the rest of the album is much more pleasant than this. There are instances where Covered Call reminds of bands like Leverage. They retain the heavy nature of that group, but their songs have much more to do with relationships and the pressures that often come with them. Don’t be at all surprised when the word “baby” is used to address women. In fact, four of the ten songs on this album contain that type of reference. Then there’s the whole flight thing about being able to touch the sky and “spreading your wings.” These themes get really repetitive after repeated listens. Despite all of these complaints, the band still manages to do as one of their song titles, they “Shine.”

There are some strong tracks on this album that can’t go unnoticed. “Never Again” features some female backing vocals that add a soulful and old-school type of touch. With this one, the band makes it clear that they’ve got more than a little depth. The next tune, “Anything You Want” is as blatant a ballad as ever. Is it cheesy? Yeah, but it reveals just how good a vocalist Vikström is. For the entire song, he’s accompanied only by heartfelt piano playing and shows that he’s got plenty of range and emotion to spare. Another standout would be the title track, “Money Never Sleeps.” It is here that the band displays a lot of character and some charm. The chorus isn’t at all inventive, but it is extremely catchy and bound to stick with you after the album comes to a close.

If you’re a fan of Melodic Metal, you can’t go wrong with this one. Some of the subject matter gets a little bland after a while, but there’s more than enough greatness in a musical sense to make this worth checking out. A lot has been made out of Vikström’s vocals, but the performances of the other band members are equally praiseworthy. Everyone comes off sounding inspired and if the band can add a little bit more variety to future works, Covered Call could have a bright future.