Sometimes it feels like not a month goes by without a new album by guitarist and song writer Magnus Karlsson. He’s responsible for writing songs for bands like Allen/Lande, Starbreaker, Allen-Olzon, The Ferrymen, Bob Catley and of course his own project Free Fall – and let’s not forget his day-job in German Power Metal outfit Primal Fear. Sometimes the projects turns out really well but of lately, I get the feeling that quantity has been more of a deal than quality. He never writes a bad album per se but the quality of the last few projects he’s been involved in has been of wavering quality. And now the productive Swede is back with yet another project.
This time Karlsson has gone for broke and written his own rock-opera – well, it’s a metal-opera hence the title – and to step outside a bit of the metal-opera box, only female singers has been brought in to play the characters. Adrienne Cowan (Seven Spires, Masters Of Ceremony), Anette Olzon (Nightwish, The Dark Element), Noora Louhimo (Battle Beast), Netta Laurenne (Smackbound), Ailyn (Her Chariot Awaits), Margarita Monet (Edge Of Paradise) and Youmna Jreissati (Ostura) are names that makes for huge vocal qualities. The opera is about The Heart Healer, a character played by Adrienne Cowan, who wakes up with no memory and does not know who she is. She soon finds out that she can heal people with just a touch of her hand, but every time she does, she gets weaker. On her journey to find out who she really is, she meets new characters who want to help her, those who want her help, and those who are scared of her and start to hunt her.
The albums opens with “Awake”, a bombastic, pompous and orchestral rocker featuring the amazing Cowan. After the overwhelming intro, the song takes a down-beat and held-back approach in the verses, an approach that continues as the tune gets more upbeat which culminates in the big chorus. There’s a mixture of musical theatre and Melodic Rock waved in as well which brings on a contrastive mood swing. A very good tune with Cowan in fine form. Jreissati, Monet and Laurenne takes hold of “Come Out Of The Shadows”, a grandiose and cinematic number with a huge keyboard orchestration. Again, the verses are laid-back and even soft but also brings along some rhythmic drum-beats. With some time-changes brought along, the tune gets bigger and more pompous when the refrain hits. There’s a darker ambience lying over the track, which is cool but for some reason the song never really takes off even though there’s a nice hook in the refrain.
Cowan and Olzon duets on the poppy “Who Can Stand All Alone”. The tune starts out with a piano, sparse and sombre with a direct nod to the Olzon-era Nightwish. There’s a slight Celtic vibe to the song as well and then the the tune goes up into a mid-paced tempo, very big on keyboards and more piano which gives the song a pompous touch. A steady beat, smooth vocal-melodies and a direct main-melody which culminates in the massive chorus. Great stuff indeed. Monet, Ailyn and Cowan takes hold of the slow-paced, dark and orchestrated “Back To Life”, a very pompous and bombastic piece. There’s also a Led Zeppelin touch in the orchestration here which gives the track a bit of a folky, Classic Rock vibe within all the theatrical arrangements. The chorus is decent but it fails to take off – it never reaches the “floor-me” level.
Louhimo gets a solo spot in the heavy and bombastic leading single “Into The Unknown”. The soundscape is grandiose the whole time although the verses are more down-beat and laid-back with a darker atmosphere. That contrasts with the faster and in-your-face chorus and the two marries just fine. I’m getting an ominous and somewhat spooky, operatic vibe here and the chorus is glistening and powerful and can surely kick down walls. Killer stuff. “When The Fire Burns Out” is a duet between Ailyn and Laurenne. It’s a big, pompous ballad – slow in pace and big on orchestration with a dramatic and cinematic atmosphere. It’s soft yet heavy and holds a sweeping main-melody and a very smooth and catchy refrain. This could have been a soundtrack to a Disney movie, to be honest. I dig.
With a symphonic intro, dark, intense and sinister, “Evil’s Around The Corner” gets going in a mid-pace and takes Cowan and Louhimo on a duet. The pre-chorus ups the tempo with a faster and crunchier outlook but the striking chorus takes the tempo down a notch once more and brings on an addictive vocal melody. It’s a very melodic number yet not as symphonic as the rest and there’s a big Metal vibe all over the track. Very good. Olzon takes upbeat and rhythmic Melodic Rock stomper “Mesmerized” alone – and does a brilliant job as usual. It’s a straight forward pop number in a Metal suit with gritty guitars and pounding drums with a gloomy undertone. A brilliant tune.
Cowan takes hold of the slow, dark and heavy piece “Weaker”, a largely orchestrated Metal power ballad. With a laid-back and sparse verse which holds an amazing vocal-arrangement the chorus goes massive, bombastic and over-blown with a huge cinematic vibe and enough drama to sell. What a killer. All singers appears in the closing track and latest single “This Is Not The End”, a faster paced yet still a bombastic powerhouse of a song. Instead of lifting the tune a notch the chorus goes into a more down-beat and held-back mode without losing its intensity or catchiness. Cinematic and orchestrated, the song both holds a dark atmosphere and is positive and uplifting. A really good closer.
To sum this up, this is without a doubt Karlsson’s most ambitious work in a long time. To throw out a rock-opera is a bold move but I have to say that he brought it home. Yes, this is his best work in a long time. I also dig the idea with only using female vocalists and the singers involved here are all nothing short of phenomenal. Also, a project like this always run the risk of being pretentious but I never once got that feeling while listening to this record. Sure, the album might contain a filler or two and the production is a bit too thick at times and yes, the overblown elements are a bit overkill here and there but for the most, Karlsson has managed to mix Hard Rock, Metal, Symphonic Rock, Melodic Rock and a twist of Pomp and cinematic musical-theatre vibes in a damn good way with a whole bunch of strong songs. A job well done by everyone involved.
7/10
Tracklist:
1. Awake (Adrienne Cowan)
2. Come Out Of The Shadows (Youmna Jreissati, Margarita Monet, Netta Laurenne)
3. Who Can Stand All Alone (Adrienne Cowan, Anette Olzon)
4. Back To Life (Margarita Monet, Ailyn, Adrienne Cowan)
5. Into The Unknown (Noora Louhimo)
6. When The Fire Burns Out (Ailyn, Netta Laurenne)
7. Evil’s Around The Corner (Noora Louhimo, Adrienne Cowan)
8. Mesmerized (Anette Olzon)
9. Weaker (Adrienne Cowan)
10. This Is Not The End (All)
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