GRAND LUX - NORWAY

Iron Will - 2004 - Sand
Carved In Stone - 2007 - Ulterium

Grand Lux image
  
 
Members
Vocals
PHIL GOODE

Guitar
KIRK EVIN - B. D. HUGES


Bass
ZACK RAMENT

Drum
RAN-DEE





History & Biography
Grand Lux was formed in 1999 with Kirk Evin and B. D. Huges on guitars and vocals. Ran-Dee played the drums, while bass-for-hire Morty Black took care of the four strings. The latter man lasted only a year. Evin played bass for a while, but was eventually replaced by Ran-dee. Phil Goode became the band’s singer in 2003. The band had already issued a self-titled demo in 2001, but now an album was issued courtesy of Norway’s Sand Records. The band played Norway’s Quart Festival and recorded a new album for Ulterium Records. Grand Lux’s Carved In Stone album was licensed to Nightmare Records by Ulterium Records for North America in 2007.

The act was white metal.


Reviews

GRAND LUX - CARVED IN STONE - ULTERIUM  
Grand Lux is a strange name for a metal band. It almost sounds like a hotel, a ballroom or maybe even a book, although there might be some kind of a context to it all. Right now though, Grand Lux is a young underground hard rock and heavy metal band from Norway with a surprising style and equally surprising quality. The album begins with a sample that might be Japanese before quickly throwing down the gauntlet in the name of pure traditional metal.
The vocals, guitars and bass have a good presence with a clear sound, but the drums and the toms coming off as synthetic. They must be sampled and more badly than usual. Overall, the band harbours ingredients from '80s hard rock, Mausoleum metal and NWOBHM. There are several good riffs, but one has to be patient because owing to the band’s offbeat parts Grand Lux is not going to be an immediate hit. Eye Of The Storm has an air of Dokken. Through Dirt has an NWOBHM vibe and singer Phil Goode (ha!) shows off his voice. Never Fall has a good hard riff with the vocals again showing versatility. Eternity In Fire is equally powerful, but Rainbow’s End closes the album somehow weaker. There is a nice melody in the middle however.
Grand Lux’s Carved In Stone gets better with each repeated listen, but several songs have a drag effect on one at first. The band needs to focus more on its powerful parts and dump the plodding sections and go from there. The album features a video for the song Escaping The Clouds. - Anna Tergel


Interviews







Grand Lux