We Could Build An Empire – In This Place (CD)

For being quite a small country and on the brink of collapse (at least according to Fox news… I haven’t seen it and I live here) we do squeeze out quite an impressive number of bands and records per year. So, here’s another name to add to the list – We Could Build An Empire. Musically they are really hard to box in. “All In This Together” sounds very Ghost influenced, while “Worry Of The Heart” has a heavier edge. “Red III” is quite proggy and quirky. I find it really hard to pin down this band, I must say. Musically they blend in elements of U2 (which I hate, but they kinda make it sound good), Ghost, King Crimson, Katatonia, Opeth, at times with proggy elements, and at times, as in “In This Place” with an almost gothy feel. “The Rise And The Fall” is another killer track that needs to be mentioned. The band features Marcus Pehrsson (ex-Last Laugh): lead vocals and bass, Pat Wallin (ex-Last Laugh): guitar and Michael Ohsson on drums. This is one of those albums I find highly intriguing. At first I can’t decide if I like it or not, I listen to it like watching an accident waiting to happen, can’t look away, can’t turn it off, and in the end I can’t stop listening to it. A really great album, indeed!

Janne Stark

Year: 2018

Country: Sweden

Label: Mighty Music

LESLIE WEST – Soundcheck (CD)

Leslie is one of my all-time favourite guitarists. Ever since I heard Mountain back in the 70s I was hooked! His solo albums, quite a few by now, has however never really been any 10/10s, but on the other hand he’s never released any bad albums either. It’s mostly been half killer stuff and the other half swaying between good and ok. On his last couple of albums it’s like he’s been rejuvenated in some way, because he’s actually better than ever! The guitar playing, vocals and overall attitude is rock hard and the songs are for the most part really good! Souncheck starts out with a hard hitting nut kicker in the form of Left By The Roadside To Die, one of the album’s few originals. I’m not an extreme fan of covers (says the person who has released three cover albums…), but when you record a cover don’t really like it when you do a carbon copy of the original. Leslie West has, ever since the old days of Mountain, Leslie West Band and West Bruce & Laing recorded covers, and made them his own. From Stones’ Satisfaction, Jack Bruce’s Theme For An Imaginary Western to the entire Dylan cover album Masters Of War. This album features several covers, and I really love it when he gives them the full frontal West treatment, such as You Are My Sunshine (featuring Peter Frampton) as a cool soft blues ballad in a minor key. Just as genius as when Ghost did The Beatles Here Comes The Sun in minor. You will also find Leslie’s (or actually bass player Rev Jones’) renditions of The Beatles' Eleanor Rigby, Curtis Mayfield’s People Get Ready (with Leslie’s lead guitar tone soaring like a bit proud eagle) and a really groovy, strutty cover of Don Nix Goin’ Down (featuring Brian May). The only one I don’t really like is Stand By Me (mainly because I don’t like the song from the beginning and also because the way it’s done didn’t really speak to me) and the quite badly recorded live-version of Spoonful, which I can fully understand he included because of nostalgia reasons after the loss of Jack Bruce, but it doesn’t really live up to the quality of the rest of the album soundwise. As for his original tunes, Here For The Party is an outstanding chunky, gritty and heavy blues rocker that hits you like a steamroller while A Stern Warning (dedicated to his friend Howard Stern) is an outstanding showcasing of Leslie’s acoustic guitar skills. All in all, this is a damn fine album, one of the best Leslie has released since the Mountain days!

Janne Stark

Country: USA

Year: 2015

Label: Mascot Records

LOMMI – Life In Sepia (CD paper pocket)

Not sure about the name, but it may be a pun on Tony Iommi (whom we sometimes used to call Tommi Lommi). Anyway, brace yourselves for this new Swedish power trio featuring drummer Jörgen Tjusling and bassist Dennis Österdal who have played (and play) with bands like Eaglestrike and Human Race. A tight rhythm section indeed. This time they are fronted by singer/guitarist Jens Florén and form a trio who is more in the vein of Black Label Society in degree of heaviness, but with some elements reminding me a bit of early Alice In Chains in songs like Suffer. It’s all very raw, untamed and crude, but in a good way. I’m not always 100 % into the vocals, but for the most part Jens does the job really well. At times I’m a bit torn between feeling it’s a bit too crude, like in Honesty and Leaver, but I still digging it. It’s a bit like when I heard Motörhead for the first time, like watching a horror movie through your fingers, if you know what I mean. And Motörhead did grow into a long term musical friend of mine. Powerless Consciousness reminds me a bit like playing a Pantera single on 33, it sort of reminds of Walk, but slower and heavier. Back From the Dead is a really cool rocker, starting out almost reminding me a bit of Ghost, which only goes for the intro. A great chunky rocker indeed. It’s a weird album in the sense that it’s no favorite of mine, but I still keep coming back to it. I think we have a love/hate relationship. A good one, that is. 
Janne Stark
Year: 2012
Country: Sweden
Label: private release