Lucifer Lucifer V

Sweden based heavy rockers Lucifer return with their magnificent fifth album "Lucifer V" which blends influences from Blue Öyster Cult and Black Sabbath with the melodic and enticing voice of singer Johanna Sadonis. After hundreds of shows, including select dates with Ghost in '23, here comes one of 2024's finest pieces of hard rock!
Combining elements of all their previous albums into one monumental mass of electrifying heavy rock and roll. Eerie landscapes shaped by soaring guitar riffs, the thunderous pounding of bass and drums from some sort of groovy inferno, haunted melodies to weep into your drink to, the screeching tires of a 1971 Cadillac hearse, the humorous morbidity and tragic wit of Johanna’s lyrics.

Lucifer wasted no time and used the pandemic to record yet another long player that rings in a new chapter and dives even further into the grande realms of colossal old fashioned rock, with a severe morbid twist. For this opus they entered guitarist Linus Björklund’s Studio Ryssviken for an even more heart pounding drum sound while continuing their work at The Honk Palace. This time Lucifer has expanded their song writing partnership within the band and Johanna has not only penned the new material with Nicke but also with guitarist Linus, as well as guitarist Martin Nordin contributing. With “Lucifer IV” the group is proving furthermore to be steadily building their very own pillar of rock history, brick by brick.

Although they would develop a more prog-influenced style, this debut album finds Lucifer's Friend living up to their sinister name by performing heavy, keyboard-textured rock in the vein of Deep Purple or Uriah Heep. It gets off to a thunderous start with "Ride the Sky," a punchy rocker built on a rumbling, guitar-fuelled melody reminiscent of "The Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin. From there, the band works its way through a series of songs that combine heavy guitar riffs with often-complex arrangements that border on prog rock: "Keep Goin'" builds from organ-led verses into a guitar-dense jam driven home by John Lawton's wailing vocals, and the title track effectively contrasts heavy guitar-laden verses with an eerie chorus full odd keyboard and vocal effects to create its spooky atmosphere…

Lucifer's Friend is a German hard rock band, formed in Hamburg in 1970, fronted by British vocalist John Lawton (of Uriah Heep), guitarist Peter Hesslein, bassist Dieter Horns, keyboardist Peter Hecht, and drummer Joachim Reitenbach. The group was an early practitioner of heavy metal and progressive rock; they also incorporated elements of jazz and fusion into their music, especially in their fourth album Banquet of 1974. Evolved from Asterix and comprised of 3/4 of The German Bonds, the group officially disbanded in 1982. They briefly reunited (1993-1997) as Lucifer's Friend II, releasing one album before disbanding once again. In 2015 they have reformed again. The band features core original members John Lawton, Peter Hesslein and Dieter Horns.

Founded in 2014 in Berlin by The Oath front woman Johanna Sadonis, the group first consisted of Cathedral, Angel Witch and Ladytron members. The debut album "Lucifer I", penned by Johanna and Cathedra's Garry Jennings and released by British label Rise Above Records, brought LUCIFER international recognition. With a shift of constellation within the band in 2016 and Johanna Sadonis' move from Berlin to Stockholm, LUCIFER were ready for chapter two. In Nicke Andersson, notable for his groups The Hellacopters, Entombed, Imperial State Electric, Death Breath among others, Johanna found a new renowned writing partner. Johanna and Nicke wrote and produced the albums "Lucifer II" and "Lucifer III" at Nicke's studio The Honk Palace in Stockholm.

Lucifer's Friend is a German hard rock band, formed in Hamburg in 1970, fronted by British vocalist John Lawton (of Uriah Heep), guitarist Peter Hesslein, bassist Dieter Horns, keyboardist Peter Hecht, and drummer Joachim Reitenbach. The group was an early practitioner of heavy metal and progressive rock; they also incorporated elements of jazz and fusion into their music, especially in their fourth album Banquet of 1974. Evolved from Asterix and comprised of 3/4 of The German Bonds, the group officially disbanded in 1982. They briefly reunited (1993-1997) as Lucifer's Friend II, releasing one album before disbanding once again. Original members John Lawton (ex-Uriah Heep), Peter Hesslein and Dieter Horns thrilled fans when they put Lucifer's Friend back together in 2015.

Lucifer III" is the third studio album by LUCIFER who celebrated massive international success with 2018's much acclaimed "Lucifer II", which saw the 2014 formed band's new constellation reach a new level of songcraft and sheer impact. Uniting the songwriting talents of Johanna Sadonis and Nicke Andersson (The Hellacopters, Entombed, Imperial State Electric), "Lucifer III" now further perfects the group's stunning mix of 70's hard rock, tinges of doom, doses of classic heavy metal and addictive choruses resulting in powerful ballads ('Leather Demon', 'Cemetery Eyes'), straight up rockers ('Flanked By Snakes', 'Ghosts'), catchy anthems ('Lucifer', 'Midnight Phantom', 'Pacific Blues') and Sabbathian heaviness ('Coffin Fever').

Leaving behind the overtly progressive approach of Banquet, Lucifer's Friend returned once more to a more straightforward Rock sound with Mind Exploding. The album most similar to this one is I'm Just A Rock 'N' Roll Singer from a couple of years earlier and, like that album, Mind Exploding features shorter and more Rock-based songs. The band still utilizes assorted keyboards, brass and female backing vocals, but all this is more discrete here than on Banquet. Mind Exploding is hardly Lucifer's Friend's best album, but neither is it their worst.