Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Royal Hunt
Label: Frontiers Records
Released: 2016
Runtime: 85:21
Rating: 3/5
The fourth live album overall from the long-running Danish symphonic hard rockers Royal Hunt, titled »Cargo«, is actually the band’s first double live CD. It lands ten years after their previous live record, »Live« (2006).
Last year Royal Hunt played a run of shows promoting their current studio album, »Devil’s Dozen« (2015). One of them took them to the famous ProgPower USA festival in Atlanta, where the band decided to play the whole of »Paradox« live. That’s the band’s cult album, the one that did a lot to help Royal Hunt break through on the international scene!
Royal Hunt put out studio albums like they’re coming off an assembly line, so thank God this one’s a live record, because I honestly don’t know what else I could write about their music. It’s been artistically set in concrete for years and doesn’t budge by a single millimeter. »Cargo« is a live album that’s played brilliantly. It sounds brilliant, too. The contrasts are lavish, the sound is full and exactly what it should be. Catchy and alive. DC Cooper proves why he’s the band’s number one voice with an outstanding vocal performance, while the band gives him a top-notch instrumental backdrop, following the formula of the mini-orchestra laid down by the musical vision of the band’s indestructible leader Andre Anderson. The contrasts are sonically well balanced. You might wish for a bit more “warmth” in the low end, but that’s not a real complaint. The guy wielding the guitar, Jonas Larssen, is an outstanding new addition to Royal Hunt, and it’s a real pleasure to listen to his guitar wizardry. So performance-wise and sound-wise there isn’t a single slip on this live album, and Andersen has apparently finally found the right lineup formula, one that sounds fresh and convincingly re-lived on stage.
Anyway, a few other things bug me about this release. The first one that puzzles me is that this live album runs a mere 85 minutes. That means there’s almost an hour of unused (empty) playing time left on it. The second thing is that Royal Hunt have already put out a live album called »Closing the Chapter« (1998), on which they played the whole of »Paradox«. So the new live album delivers precious little that’s new. The third thing that bugs me is that the band “wedged” the performance of »Paradox« into the middle of this live document. It starts with the third track in the set and ends on the second CD. It would have made more sense to have the album performed in full on a single disc. Either the band plays it right at the start and gets it onto the first disc, or they play the new album and the other career classics for the first hour and then play »Paradox« in full in the second half. As it is, it’s “cut in two”, spread across both CDs.
If you’re a Royal Hunt fan, you won’t lose sleep over this, since you’ve already got the album at home. As for “random music explorers” who don’t know the band, I’d advise against buying it. Especially if you want to get to know the band properly. In that case, start with the compilation »20th Anniversary« (3CD/DVD), released in 2012. So we can conclude that, given its content, the live album »Cargo« was far from a necessary release for the band. Royal Hunt would have done significantly better if they’d put out an album a full two hours long, stretched across both discs. With a set list covering the band’s whole discography. As it is, we’ll probably have to wait another ten years for the next live album from them.
Royal Hunt – Half Past Loneliness (official video):
Lineup
DC Cooper – vocals
André Andersen – keyboards
Jonas Larsen – guitar
Andreas Passmark – bass guitar
Andreas Habo Johansson – drums
Production
Royal Hunt
Track list
CD 1.:
1. The Mission
2. Half Past Loneliness
3. The Awakening
4. River of Pain
5. Tearing Down the World
6. Message to G-D
7. Long Way Home
CD 2.:
1. Time Will Tell
2. Silent Scream
3. It’s Over
4. May You Never
5. A Life to Die For
