Some things change, some things stay the same … and Swede dreams are made of much nostalgia, going by the evidence of Sole Syndicate’s heavy but melodic and hugely entertaining Into The Flames.
For me, this was a grower. Play it once, play it twice, play it loud! It’s an album that’s very good company for its 12 tracks, all music and lyrics written by singer/guitarist Jonas Mansson and expertly delivered by a four-piece including keyboard player Katja Rasila.
Blending “Trad” sounds, particularly the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, with the more modern Alt-Metal of the likes of Alter Bridge, with a quality sheen of Power Metal thrown in, Sole Syndicate, now on their third record, can be bombastic but never truly brutal, and only occasionally preposterous. The consistent quality and frequent hooky melodies should hold the attention of most fans of this kind of thing.
Opener Forsaken features clean, heroic vocals and Rasila’s keys, which also make their mark on later tracks like Brave Enough, Sunset Strip and In The Absence Of Light – the latter hinting strongly at a Black Sabbath (Dio version) influence, with a dramatic set-up, epic scope and ambition and a classic Tony Iommi-esque riff.
Brave Enough features superior lead guitar from Cameron Cooper while Shadow Of My Love sounds like a Flying Colors song (Fury Of My Love, anyone?) while being a real highlight in its own right, impressive in concept and execution.
Sunset Strip boasts an atmospheric opening and recalls Germany’s Scorpions, riff-tastic with a hooky chorus, more than a hint of late-night sleaze and some melting hot geetars. Another stand-out, Do You Believe, is surely destined to be a fist-pumping singalong and could perhaps be taken as something of a statement of intent for this Swedish band: “We will live for love and die for our honour / And everywhere we go we will sing / And we will break the spell of the mighty dollar/ Listen to the music we bring.”
Mansson’s lyrics appear to be deeply personal at times, and certainly don’t lack colour – from Dust Of Angels: “I’m a tanker set on fire, with Dust Of Angels in my eye / I’m a maniac so save me from myself … / A shot of toxic cyanide, a rattlesnake prepared to fight / Come and rescue me …” There’s surely a story behind that song. Other subjects include lynch mobs, social malaise, love and fear, dreams and nightmares, global warming and being “born into war”.
A lot of it is derivative, and very little wholly original. But the rhythm section of David Gustafsson (bass) and Henrik Zetterlund (drums) keep their end of the bargain throughout and, from Track Seven, Sunset Strip, onwards, there is a powerful and effective charge to the epic, climactic title track. This is an album that seems to pack more of a punch the more the fight goes on – in fact, could there be a case for flipping the running order, forward loading the likes of In The Absence Of Light, Do You Believe and Sunset Strip, and ending up back where we started, with the more than acceptable Forsaken? No offence, just a thought Swede Dudes (and Katja).
Into The Flames, by Sole Syndicate, is out on Friday (June 17), via Scarlet Records