Candice Night –Reflections
2011, Minstrel Hall Music
2011, Minstrel Hall Music
All she asked for was an autograph.
Candice Night started out as a model. The Hauppauge, Long Island (New York) nativetransitioned to radio in her twenties; seeming destined for a career incommunications. In 1989 she approachedrock legend Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple, Rainbow) for an autograph. It wasn’t long before she was singing backupfor Deep Purple on tour. Now married toBlackmore, Candice Night is the lead singer of Blackmore’s Night. Candice Night is not just the beneficiary ofgood fortune; however, she is a serious vocalist who has also performed withthe likes of Sass Jordan, Glenn Hughes and Beto Velazquez. Night strikes out on her own this week with Reflections, a collection of ten powerether rock songs that show off her voice in fine fashion.
Night’s voice is highly trained, a fact that becomes quicklyevident on the opening track, “Wind Is Calling (Hush The Wind)”. Night mixes hard pallet sounds with a softtone in unusual and intriguing fashion. The melody is utterly memorable, built within a well-constructedarrangement that’s part lullaby and part fairytale. “Gone Gone Gone” is a high-energy, vocaldriven rocker with a catchy chorus. Thisone could be a breakout hit with the right push and the right luck. “Black Roses” is pretty and haunting; darkbut with a sparkle of light in the middle. Night gets ethereal on “Now And Then”, before dancing into the mid-tempo(but catchy) “Dangerous Smile”, playing on the edge of innuendo.
“For You” has a dark, indigenous feel; playing on Celticthemes drawn from deep in Aerie. It’s agorgeous melody that will haunt you even after the album is done. Night coasts through “Call It Love” and “RobinRed Breast”, but rouses listeners with the baroque and Mediterranean strains of“Alone With Fate”. Dark in tone andtimbre, the song springs to life with an inner glow that’s part melody, partenergy, and largely Night’s voice. Reflections winds down with an orchestralfinale in the form of “In Time”. It’s asolid end, but somehow it doesn’t seem right to say goodbye without one lastutterance from Night.
Reflections is asuccessful collection of songs that perhaps don’t exactly fit within theBlackmore’s Night songbook, but are perfectly fitting to Candice Night’s voiceand style. There are a couple of downmoments her, but on the whole the album is entertaining and worth spending sometime with. Night does the ethereal andlyric stuff so well, but she is surprisingly good when she lifts her face intothe headwinds of rock and roll and lets loose as well. Reflectionsis a worthwhile trip.
Rating: 3.5 Stars(Out of 5)
Learn more about Candice Night at www.candicenight.com or www.myspace.com/candicenight. Reflections drops today digitally, with the CD released on October 11, 2011. The album is available from Amazon.com as a CD(as a pre-order) or Download. The album is also available via iTunes.