Artist: Brazen Abbot
Label: SPV Records
Release: 2003
Rating: 3/5
Yes, this is the manifestation of white-hot, ossified hard rock in the best possible way. Band leader and guitar wizard Nikolo Kotzev didn’t want to leave any room for doubt, so he went at it without compromise. He gathered a victorious, battle-tested ex-Europe trio around him: drummer Ian Haugland, bassist John Leven and keyboardist Mic Michaeli. No point wasting words on their outstanding talents. The fact that this very trio backed Glenn Hughes himself on his “From Now On…” tour in 1994 says it all.
But that’s not all! Nikolo split the vocal duties between the seasoned, hardened old fox J.L. Turner (ex-Deep Purple, ex-Rainbow, ex-Y.J. Malmsteen’s Raising Force), the rising star and one of the biggest voices of the new generation J. Lande (Jorn, Masterplan, ex-Beyond Twilight, ex-Ark, ex-The Snakes), and, for an extra boost of contrast, G.Edman, a smoother clean-voiced singer who can also roar with full force when ordered to. The latter cut his teeth with Y.J Malmsteen (on the albums “Eclipse” and “Alchemy”).
Kotzev builds his songs (with the exception of two ballads) on direct, killer, super-expressive riffs that catch fire from the first note. The riffing is pushed to the front of a clean yet lively production. The guitar sound is properly vampirized and steeled. Still, every element that makes up the overall sound picture comes through clearly, and none of them gets trampled or muddied in the mix. The rhythm section sounds fluid and keeps an open, punchy “drive” wherever it’s called for (opener One Life To Live, Slip Away, Mr Earthman, Supernatural). That “drive” further underlines the sonic intensity of the guitar ultra-voltage. Boosted by tasteful backing vocals and organ, the album’s final sound adds up to a grand, massive curtain of sound that carries an outstanding atmosphere through the whole record. The rhythm section occasionally strays into flirting with power metal, especially in the fast shredder Eyes On The Hotizon, where the song even strikes a piercing resemblance to some neo-prog metal acts à la Symphony X. The title track, which also closes the album, features a wicked, apocalyptic finale of crossfire between Mozart and crazy gypsy violin that carries the record to its peak.
All three screamers adapt to the song structures with real feeling and, with a great sense of improvisation, deliver some outstanding screams that tear through the air and electrify the white-hot atmosphere even more. Jorn Lande stands out for sheer power, of course. Lande’s passionate vocals are at times taken right to their limit, sounding almost brutal (A Whole Lotta Woman), while Edman shines especially in the neo-ballad Eve, where the song is built on acoustics and underpinned by percussion with a “Hawaiian” flavor, and Edman, for his part, brings real ice into it with his voice, creating a striking contrast of sound and of the different moods the song carries. But the most convincing is the great master J.L. Turner. Simply put, whenever his vocals lock into the guitar riffing, it looks like Kotzev and Turner have been playing in a sandbox together for an eternity, because the chemistry between them just works. Magically convincing! Turner’s sensual yet leathery voice lights up the compositions even more, since the riffing is tailor-made for him, which leaves the songs with a balance of motifs and a captured, high ambient “feel”.
I think everybody would surely have survived without the clichéd, sugarcoated ballad I’ll Be Free, which lowers the seriousness of the release and drains its dynamics for no reason, while the rest of the record is a real treat for old-school connoisseurs of ultra-melodic hard rock in the vein of Rainbow or Whitesnake with a revamped modern sound, full of guitar wielding and foaming solos that will no doubt win over Y.J.Malmsteen fans too. When “feel” fully and convincingly beats technical polish! A pure, ball-busting shot straight between the eyes!
Lineup
Jorn Lande – vocals
Joe Lynn Turner – vocals
Goran Edman – vocals
Nikolo Kotzev – guitar, keyboards, percussion, violin
Mic Michaeli – keyboards
John Leven – bass guitar
Ian Haughland – drums
Production
Nikolo Kotzev
Track List
1. One Life To Live
2. Eyes On The Horizon
3. I’ll Be Free
4. Slip Away
5. Mr. Earthman
6. Like Jonah
7. Bring The Colors Home
8. Fool’s Confession
9. Supernatural
10. Eve
11. A Whole Lotta Woman
12. Guilty As Sin
Album length: 62:00
