Bức Tường / The Wall - Tâm Hồn Của Đá / The Soul Of Rock (2002) - Lacks of originality but is performed with passion - 79% (16/07/12)

Bức Tường is a hard rock band from Hanoi that is quite famous in Vietnam but rather unknown outside the country. The band recorded three records in the hard rock genre with some prudent heavy and power metal influences before they split up to reunite again and play more modern rock orientated stuff.

The band whose name can be translated with "The Wall" put out its first record called "Tâm Hồn Của Đá" in the beginning of the new millennium. The title means "The Soul Of Rock" and the band indeed plays rather hard rock orientated stuff on this first strike. Honestly said, there is nothing truly exotic about this release apart of the Vietnamese lyrics.The band is clearly influenced by Western bands such as Guns 'N Roses, Scorpions but also The Connells. The band mostly plays hard rock ballads, approximatively half of the record is filled with ballads.

To my surprise, the songs are performed with enough passion to convince and pardon for the lack of identity. The ballds are all very touching. "Ngay Hom Qua" is a very calm song with decent symphonic elements. "Giot Dang" convinces with a good use of some piano melodies. "Nguoi Dan Ba Hoa Da" sounds like a mixture of a Helloween ballad and a track by The Connells but it's a very catchy song. "Niem Tin Cho Cat Bui" starts with some whistling that makes you think of Scorpions but the song gets heavier towards the end, especially from the vocal point of view and turns out to be one of the most emotional tracks on the entire record. By listening to all these tracks, you may understand why the band has gained a certain kind of popularity in their homeland. If the record was released twenty-five years ago, this kind of music would have hit the charts elsewhere, too. It now feels aged a little bit but not without charm at all.

The best thing about all these songs is without a doubt the brilliant guitar work. The melodies are catchy and well played, the riffs are engaging and the solos emotional. The guitar play is what distinguishes this band from a more or less faceless cover band and makes them actually a quite entertaining act. Just listen to the opening minute of the solid hard rock track "Con Mua Hoang Da" that turns out to be a highlight on this album. The guitars really develop a magic feeling in this song. They are slow and lumionous and each note seems to be well thought out.

For the more hard rock and heavy metal orientated fans, there are also a couple of good tracks. "Tam Hon Cua Da" is such an example for a very vivid and diversified song with great riffs, a beautiful guitar solo, a few piano melodies in the bridge and a catchy chorus that connects the whole thing. In comparison to most of the other tracks, this one is a little bit faster and focusses probably on a younger audience. A video clip has been made for this song that was filmed in a quite weird way and that includes a beautiful young lady in a red dress as well as some aspects of Vietnam's culture and its landscapes.

In the end, the band surely won't win a price for gripping originality or a truly promising debut record. But the band does what they do best with a lot of passion and talent. The guitar play is stunning, the vocals are at least good average and many tracks are truly catchy. This record is very entertaining and should please to all fans of melodic hard rock or soft heavy metal music. This debut album is quite addicting and has a fresh tone despite its old school definition. After a first hesitating try, I gave this release several spins and enjoyed it a couple of times. It's definitely a grower and if you care for exotic rock music, you should try to get a copy of this album.