FIND THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE THE NEW SHINING - HEDGES AGAINST THE NIGHT Written by Lazy Rocker / 11-12-2009 / LazyRocker.com RATING 96/100 As lover of rock music you are always looking for the ultimate song or album. I think I found an album that comes very, very close. I like a lot of music, but I don't get lyrical that soon, but now I am!! I was blown away when I first heard their music on My Space. "Hedges Against The Night" has already been choosen as LazyRocker.com Album Tip of the Month December, but for me this absolutely The Album of the Year 2009! Great music gives me chills, and their music did that for me immediately. The New Shining is a Dutch band formed in the summer of 2006 by Xander "NAX" Stok on vocals and guitars, his brother Vincent "VINCE" Stok on drums and bass guitar player Arjan "R" Nijman. In 2008 the band released their first album “Supernatural Showdown”. Not soon later they started to write new songs. Then well-known producer Erwin Musper (Anouk, Van Halen, etc.) contacted them and as result I got the band's 2nd album ‘Hedges Against The Night’ in my hands. Most albums contain some great songs, some which are okay and tracks that don't mean anything to you. This album has got 10 brilliant songs! Although there are a lot of bands in their genre the sound of The New Shining is unique. There is a lot of variation on the album: straight rock songs like "Shadowcast", "No Exit" and "Set It Off", midtempo tracks just as "Here's To Nothing" and the beautiful ballads "This Close To Heaven" and "Leap of Faith". Sometimes the CD sounds raw, then polished and poppy. Some other keywords for this album are melodic, passionate, energy and emotion. It's a mixture of melancholy and hope. “Emotions become visible on this album, and this also explains the album’s title’”, says songwriter Nax. “A passage in the book ‘Duma’ by Stephen King really got to me: ’Edgar, does anything make you happy?’ ’I used to sketch.’ ’Take it up again. You need hedges...hedges against the night’.” TNS reminds me of a heavier version of Then Jerico, a British band that released 2 albums in the late 80's. You might know them from their single "The Motive". Chiefly Nax' voice sounds more than once like Then Jerico's vocalist Mark Shaw. Opening track "Shadowcast" was taken as the first single, but "How Does It Feel", "God Only Knows" and the astringent "Here's To Nothing" also have the potential to get a lot of airplay by rock radio stations. I also like the artwork very much. Maybe there is one minor point: it's hard to read the lyrics in the inlay of the cover. Christmas is coming and if you are still looking for the perfect gift for a rock music lover there is no need to look any further. The ultimate gift he/she can receive is this new album. If you are into bands like Daughtry, Third Eye Blind, Hinder, 3 Doors Down, Matchbox 20 and Then Jerico you just have to add this stunning release to your CD collection!! TRACKINGLIST: 01. Shadowcast * 02. How Does It Feel * 03. God Only Knows * 04. Here's To Nothing * 05. Blood From Stone * 06. No Exit * 07. This Close To Heaven * 08. Set It Off * 09. Prodigal Son * 10. Leap Of Faith * * Lazy Rocker's favorite tracks BAND LINE UP: XANDER "NAX" STOK – vocals, guitar VINCENT "VINCE" STOK – drums ARJAN "R" NIJMAN – bass guitar