The release of Pretty Maids singer Ronnie Atkins’ second solo-album occurs almost a year to the day of the release of his debut solo album, One Shot. It was a successful album and got lots of rave reviews from both press and fans. For me personally the album was without the shadow of a doubt the best release of 2021. Since there was a pandemic kicking the world’s ass when the album came out plus Ronnie’s health-issues there was no tour for the album so for a creative song-writer like Atkins, the only sane thing to do was to keep writing and recording which explains how a new album could be released so quickly after the debut. With 2022 looking far brighter than 2021, solo dates has already been booked as I write this.
The gang behind this album, except for Ronnie himself, is the same as for the last record with Chris Laney (Pretty Maids) holding guitar, production and arrangement duties, the rhythm section of Pontus Egberg (King Diamond, Wolf – bass) and Allan Sörensen (drums), keyboarder Morten Sandager, Linnea Vikström Egg on backing vocals with guesting guitarists John Berg (Paralydium), Pontus Norgren (Hammerfall), Oliver Hartmann (Avantasia) and Anders Ringman (acoustic guitars) spicing the album up. I’m a huge fan of Pretty Maids – never an album even close to bad in their career – and I love the Nordic Union records too and with One Shot fresh in mind, my expectations on this album are astronomical. How on Earth is Atkins gonna top, or even equal, the album?
Just like on the debut, Ronnie and his cohorts open not with a fierce rocker but an upbeat pop-rocker, in this case called “I’ve Hurt Myself (By Hurting You)”. The song holds a smoother outlook with a bit of a Thin Lizzy touch in the guitar-lines. The main-melody hits the spot right away with a gorgeous arrangement and the chorus, which holds a slight resemblance to Pretty Maids’ “My Soul To Take”, is nothing short of criminally catchy. The song, to me, screams hit. Next single? Brilliant. The lead-off single “Unsung Heroes” is a stompy rocker, rhythmic with a crunchy riff and a mid-paced verse. It comes with a melancholic atmosphere but it’s also quite uplifting in its structure – lyrically the theme fits perfect in a time when Vladimir Putin has totally lost it. The pre chorus takes a bouncy ride and the chorus throws out pop-vibes with melodies that takes me back to Ronnie’s debut and it’s strikingly catchy without any sugar added at all. Phenomenal.
Second single “Rising Tide” sees Atkins taking a step into his metal-roots in a faster tempo with jaw-hitting riffing and a thunderous rhythm section and a main-melody that leads us into later Pretty Maids. It’s a straight ahead hard-rocker with some great keyboard-work inserted. The chorus is pure dynamite with shitloads of of hooks that hits like ton of bricks. Splendid stuff indeed. “Remain To Remind Me” is a slow-burner, a ballad yet with an upbeat groove – a Pop song in a Rock suit, quite 80’s laden sound-wise. As a nice contrast, a rougher mid-break with some edgy guitars is thrown in. And again, we get a magnificent refrain, so catchy I lose breath. This is stupendously good.
“The Tracks We Leave Behind” opens with a big, beefy metal-fused guitar-riff and then continues on a Melodic Rock path with a pop-laden main-melody albeit carried by a heavy rhythm. The verse takes on a bit more held-back structure with a vocal-melody that throws a slight glance to Nordic Union’s debut. The smooth and über-catchy refrain has a fragrance of 90’s Pretty Maids poppier moments. It’s an upbeat stomper where Hard Rock meets Pop that leaves me completely enamoured. Terrific stuff. “All I Ask Of You” is a real Melodic Rock pearl. It’s quite plain and concise with a verse melody that could have been on Undress Your Madness, an infectious and distinct refrain that’s etched like a tattoo to the brain, quite straight-forward and direct. The guitar solo part contrasts with some gritty edges. Amazing!
Dark and held-back, “Grace” takes a slightly different turn to the the rest of the songs. While the tune is carried by a distinct beat and a poundy rhythm, the song takes on a seductive atmosphere where the verses holds a sedate vocal melody over the beefy riffage which brings on a heavier outlook. The pre-chorus is a very catchy path to the chorus, a chorus that at first doesn’t take off the way I had hoped it would and therefore never lifts. However, after getting used to it, the way it’s built is exactly what gives the song character and it’s then the brilliance of it shows – and now I wouldn’t have it any other way. Good stuff.
“Let Love Lead The Way” is a soft-spoken ballad that starts out brittle and stripped with a piano, acoustic guitars and Atkins’ serene vocals with some synth-strings coming in in the background. Slow and calming the song gets bigger and bombastic when the band comes in and creates a big soundscape. It gets even bigger when the chorus shows up, orchestrated it gives the song a feel of musical-theatre. It’s an emotive piece, so emotional it hurts – it really gets under your skin. It’s a gorgeous song with a gorgeous and startling guitar solo. Astonishing!
The heaviest piece on the album however is the aggressive and muscular metal-belter “Blood Cries Out”. This one really could have been a Pretty Maids tune, the drum-pattern in the verse even flirts with “Future World” and many of the vocal-melodies throws a hook towards Atkins’ mothership. It’s a real powerhouse, menacing and edgy with rowdy riffing – a real ass-kicker and headbanger. This could be a future live-opener. Killer. “Easier To Leave (Than Being Left Behind)” is an upbeat power ballad of sorts that holds a solid beat and memorable melodies all over the song. It’s 80’s flirtatious, hooky as damn and the chorus is nothing but pop-genius. It’s colossally catchy but never buttery. Love it.
“Fallen” is a guitar-driven rocker that goes bumpy on a fat rhythm, quite upbeat on a straight forward approach. It’s a rocker but with a bombastic orchestration and the vocal-melodies are held-back, almost ballad-laden which contrasts brilliantly. There’s some quite smooth melodies with a pop-accent and the chorus melody is almost ABBA-like at times. Great stuff. And speaking of ABBA, that band has always been in Atkins’ DNA, a band he always admitted to love, something that comes across clearly in the album’s title-track and latest single.
The song starts out low-key and taciturn with a piano and Atkins’ frugal vocals before the strings comes along and makes for a bigger soundscape. When the song gets going, it bursts out in a big pop-stomp where ABBA shines through properly – and a slight wink towards Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” is right there as well. The tune is without a doubt the album’s left-turn, maybe the most left-turn thing Ronnie has ever done. It holds a mighty swing, it brings a danceable beat, however not disco-like per se and it holds a Rock vibe underneath too. If that’s not enough, Atkins and Laney has managed to get ABBA’s old guitarist Lasse Wellander to contribute with a magnificent guitar-solo too and the gorgeous theft of ABBA’s backing vocal-arrangements just adds to the song’s brilliance. On top lies Ronnie’s personal vocal-melodies which makes it so easy to spot that it’s Atkins we’re dealing with. The song will probably be a watershed moment among fans but I love this whole-heartedly. Simply phenomenal.
So does this album stand up to his debut, then? Well, yes it does – and then some. As for the quality of the songs and the band’s performances, this is easily as good as the debut. The debut, however, has a special place in my heart emotionally because of everything surrounding it. Has all that affected my way of looking at his albums, then? Some cynical people like to point that out, see. No. It’s all about songs and performance for me and there’s just something about how Ronnie writes and arranges his stuff, no matter if it’s his solo stuff or with Pretty Maids that gets me going. I’m puzzled by how he does it, how everything he touches holds such an amazingly high quality and personality. It’s his voice, sure but was he dropped in a bucket of hooks and melodies as a kid? Well, for me, Ronnie Atkins released the # 1 album of 2021 and he might just repeat that with this one.
9/10
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Tracklist:
1. I’ve Hurt Myself (By Hurting You)
2. Unsung Heroes
3. Rising Tide
4. Remain To Remind Me
5. The Tracks We Leave Behind
6. All I Ask Of You
7. Grace
8. Let Love Lead The Way
9. Blood Cries Out
10. Easier To Leave (Than Being Left Behind)
11. Fallen
12. Make It Count
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