The 90’s wasn’t the best decade to live in if you were a melodic Hard Rock act. With Grunge taking over you were more or less a laughing stock if you had any positive vibes included and could handle your instruments and sing properly. So kudos to all the bands that didn’t give a crap and went on to form bands in that genre anyway. Million from Gothenburg, Sweden was one of those bands. Well, to be accurate the band was formed back in 1988 but it would take them up until 1991 to release their debut album No.1. But it was a little too late as Grunge was sniffing around the corner and even though it hadn’t exploded just yet, it was clear that the big Hard Rock audience had started to distance itself from music with big keyboards, a slick sound and radio-friendly choruses.
My first – and only, actually – bump-in with this band was when I took a chance and bought their second album We, Ourselves And Us (1994) cheap in a second hand record store – and I dug it immediately. For some reason I’m still not sure of, I never checked out the debut and fact is, I lost them after that album and I had no clue until recently that they had released no less than five albums after that. Their latest album Sane And Insanity came out in 2011. The band was put to sleep back in 2014 after original bassist B.J. Laneny had been touring with different line-ups for a few years. But now it’s time for a comeback and the new album is a compilation album with three new songs, two re-recordings of songs from their debut and the rest is remastered/remixed versions of songs from their three first albums, all by the original line-up. Also worth mentioning is that the three new tracks was mixed by Simon Hanhart of David Bowie, Saxon, Bryan Adams, Asia and many more fame.
The three first tracks are the new ones and the album takes off with the titular track which is also the leading single. It starts out with a keyboard intro only to continues upbeat in a mid-pace with a meaty riff and a distinctive beat. It’s a melodic Hard Rock number much in vein of the second album with direct melodies, hooks and a strong refrain that sticks right away. Really good. The second one, “Rising” holds a chunky groove, quite 70’s laden where the roaring Hammond is quite prominent. It’s edgy and in-your-face with a direct heaviness but also some Melodic Rock laden melodies that throws some nice pop-hooks our way without getting even a tiny bit sugary. The chorus is spot on and is easily embraced. Great one.
The third track and latest single “Circle Of Trust” is a fat, beefy rocker contained in a big soundscape. The verses are a bit more laid-back but it gets more upbeat and crunchy when the direct and effective chorus arrives. There’s also a darker mid-break with monk-like chants thrown in for contrasts sake. Great tune. “90-60-90” is taken off the debut and is a mid-paced, Classic Rock laden groover with a good swing, chunky riffage and a strong main-melody. The whole tune is a great blending of 70’s Classic Rock and 80’s Melodic Rock. The bluesier guitars marries splendidly with the slicker vocal-melodies – and the refrain is just magnificent.
Also from the debut is the Melodic Rock number “Sign Of Victory”. But it’s not only a smooth rock-tune, it also brings a fat organ and a heavy foundation to the table with edgy and beefy guitars to go with it. The poppier vocal melodies brings some AOR-smoothness to the song and the blending works like a charm – and the refrain is massive. Very good. It’s followed by the magnificent “Judgement Day” from We, Ourselves & Us. With a riff reminiscent of Blue Öyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear The Reaper”, the song bounces off with a steady groove and a big 70’s feel all over. The song takes on an upbeat pace but slows down in the chorus a bit. It’s not single-sniffing at all but both chorus and verses is still very memorable. A great tune.
Two songs from the third album Electric (1997) follows. The first, “Eye Of The Storm” is a bluesy and dark and holds an almost dystopian feel to it. The verse brings on a rhythm that makes me think of Sabbath’s “Heaven And Hell” and the soundscape is big with some haunting keyboards. The chunky groove, crispy guitars and Hans Dalzon’s Ronnie James Dio influenced vocals brings on a Rainbow vibe as well. A great tune with another smashing refrain. The 70’s stays on for “Narrow Mind Land”, a punchy, fast-tracked rocker that holds equal parts Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, especially in the song’s mid-break. It’s a frantic, straight-forward rocker with a big live-feel and a crunchy organ. This is brilliant.
The ballad “Lovely Eyes” is, from what I can find out, previously unreleased as it’s not on any of the band’s previous albums. It’s a mid-paced, warm and cozy number with a big feelgood touch all over it. It’s down-beat and comfy with a slight hint of jazziness involved as well as some 70’s singer-song writer touches. It holds a strong main-melody, nice vocal arrangements and a memorable refrain that’s not even close to being sugary. This is great stuff indeed.
Three songs from We, Ourselves & Us follows. The first one, “Burn In Hell” is a beefy stomper with a ballsy groove. It holds some cranking riffs, a darker atmosphere and a stone-hard rhythm with a roaring organ to fatten things up even more. The chorus strikes hard and is in-your-face catchy but without any signs of radio-flirtation. Awesome. A bit more cheesy is “Dr Lööve” (that’s Swenglish for love, non-swedish readers), but the cheese is only lyrically. Musically, it’s a beefed up and heavy rocker, very riff-happy with an Arena Rock of late 80’s/early 90’s style. Big on hooks, the chorus hits right off the bat and holds every element for a hit-song. Great.
“Mother Earth” is darker and even though it’s a heavy number, it’s also very memorable in every melody, no matter if it’s verse or chorus. It’s lurks around Metal, the groove is bouncy and it’s a straight ahead rocker, quite intense where every melody is direct and effective, especially the chorus which again isn’t the least buttery but sticks like glue anyway. Great. “Get Down To Biz” is from Electric and this groovy piece of work is a classic Hard Rock party belter, a bit happy-go-lucky with one foot in Sunset Strip in the late 80’s. Had this song been released in 1990 instead of 1997, Million could have had a big hit on their hands because the chorus is spot-on catchy and impossible to remove from the skull once it’s there. Very good.
“Tear Down The Walls” (We, Ourselves & Us) is a fast rocker, pretty gritty with rough and edgy guitars and the rhythm-section is poundy and thunderous, clearly with a nod towards classic Metal. The chorus is while very memorable not exactly catchy as such and the song is one of those “album tracks”. That’s not a bad thing at all – the song is really good. Last out is “Candyman” from Electric, a song that comes across as a heavier version of 80’s Melodic Rock with a ballsy organ instead of a synthesizer. It’s powerful and muscular and the effective refrain belongs in the early 90’s. Damn good.
To file Million under Melodic Rock or even AOR feels so very wrong. Sure there are traces of both but the music is built on Hard Rock and Classic Rock and the fact that they were around throughout the 90’s instead of the 80’s gave them a bit of a left-field touch sound-wise. Add to the fact that the band contains of very good musicians and holds a personal sound, this band is a winner. If you’re not familiar with the band, this record is an excellent way to start and after having missed out on pretty much everything the band has released, this album has made sure that I have no option but to check out their back catalogue. Also, the new tracks here proves that they’re still relevant and can still write some great songs. I really hope that we’ll be treated with a full-length album of new material rather sooner than later.
8/10
Tracklist:
- Back On Track
- Rising
- Circle Of Trust
- 90-60-90
- Sign Of Victory
- Judgement Day
- Eye Of The Storm
- Narrow Mind Land
- Lovely Eyes
- Burn In Hell
- Doctor Lööv
- Mother Earth
- Get Down To Biz
- Tear Down The Walls
- Candyman
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