Band : Winger 
Album title : Karma
Label : Frontiers Records
Distributor : Rough Trade Benelux
Release Date : 16/10/2009
Release : CD

Following the release of their first live CD and DVD, this is te next brand new studio album by Winger.
And what a cracker of an album it is.

Combining excellent musicianship, a hint of commerciality has seeped in, but to be honest, for those of you who remember Winger from their first albums back in the late eighthies, and since lost him out of sight, this might come as a surprise.
Not only has Kip's voice changed - not that is has worsened, not at all, he's matured, which means that he sometimes sounds a bit like David Coverdale, but this also brings with it that he's got to take care when he tries to sing the higher notes.
Guitar work by Reb Beach is once more incredible.  As for the compositions, they range from what you could call a club rocker, to power ballads, to what you'd almost call semi-metal.
My favourite tracks on this album are "Pull Me Under", which has a great guitar-solo, "Supernova", which has a dark athmosphere over it, and "Always with Me", and then I didn't even mention "After All This Time" a slow-tempoed song,  with a bluesy touch to it.

Such a shame that they weren't able to continue their rise during the nineties, but let's just hope they are able to pick it up where they left it.

85/100

Erik Morren.