#13

#13 is a varied hard-rock work on which Gotthard unites thick guitar riffs and Swiss-like refined melody. Counting from the self-titled debut, it is a memorable thirteenth studio album. Nic Maeder’s vocals are powerful yet somehow warm, never letting the band’s native rich songcraft be lost even in heavy songs. A record showing the sure fullness of the mature period. Sturdy, powerful rockers, bluesy-flavored songs and mellow, lyrical songs line up in good balance, and the album never closes into a single mold. Precisely because of the sure steadiness of playing cultivated over a long career, each song’s small experimental attempts resound extremely naturally. Content in which the band’s wide musicality is fully displayed. A record on which its outstanding skill of powerfully sounding the classic hard-rock style with a thoroughly modern sense shines throughout. Even as veterans, Gotthard’s sure songwriting and rich melodic sense have not dimmed in the least. Overcoming the tragedy of Steve Lee’s passing and built together with Nic Maeder, it is a fulfilling hard-rock work full of mature appeal.