GRAND - GRAND (Album Review)

GRAND is a new band from Stockholm Sweden. There is so much great music coming from Sweden these days. Mattias Olofsson handles lead vocals and is a pure tenor that can hit any high note he wants to. Jacob Svensson handles both lead and bass guitar as well as keyboards and backing vocals. Anton Martinez Matz plays drums and some bass as well. The sound of this band is pure 80's at the decade's most decadent period. Big syrapy keyboards and flamboyant choruses and instantly catchy hooks. It's a cross between Cutting Crew and Toto. These guys have a hardcore pop side to their music. It's actually really refreshing. It doesn't take more than few listens to be fully vested in this terrific upstart band.

"Caroline" is one of the best songs of 2022. It's lilting intro is followed by a slow but steady climb to a mountain of melody that creates an earworm that won't go away. Svensson's guitar fills and leads are tasteful, classy and loaded with texture. Olofsson soars on vocals to places that are typically reserved for classically trained singers. In a better time where great art was once respected, this song would be all over radio. It's too good to ignore. "Stone Cold" is the perfect 1988 top 40 radio tune with smart chord changes and lyrics that tell the story of non-responsive love. The song has a sweet ending on the chorus. These guys are just different. There's more evidence of their uniqueness on "Make It Grand" with it's Bon Jovi-lite sing-a-long hook while still maintaining the Grand scheme of things. 

"The Price We Pay" is a smooth west coast track that delicately ebbs and flows but with all the sticking power of anything else on this album. "Johnny On The Spot" kicks the rock up a few notches while retaining all of the glossy 80's goodness that makes this such a standout collection. High notes abound as Mattias is on the spot! "Those Were The Days" is a superb mid-tempo song that rides along the Pacific Coast Highway with bands like Toto and Sonic Station. The chorus rings out yet again. This band has no shortage of excellent songwriting moments. And all of the guitar breaks are ear candy. 

"Once In A Blue Moon" is an airy, gliding pop song with lush keyboards and guitar work that rides shotgun with the melody. You could fall in love with any of these songs. "Too Late" alternates between smooth and choppy late night hooks. A bit like Mike and The Mechanics or Mr. Mister. "After We Said Goodbye" begins with an 80's syn-drum. It will make you smile, because there is no mistaking this sound for any other decade. The song itself is a bit meloncholy but then transitions to a more triumphant melody. "Ready When You Are" is a stripped down rocker with more guitars and less keyboards. It's more early 80's than the other tracks but is still very effective in it's approach. It almost sounds Pat Benatar-ish. "Anything For You" is a beautiful ballad in the tradition of Alias or REO Speedwagon. It's a big and satisfying way to wrap up this 11 song album. 

This is such a well written and arranged bunch of songs that you'll be hitting repeat play over and over. The vocal parts are lush and clean. The production is smooth and precise. There aren't records being made like this one anymore. GRAND hits a grand slam with their debut. This is just awesome music that echoes a time when life was better and the world made sense.

Album Rating 9.9

Killer Kings - Burn For Love (Album Review)

Killer Kings is a new band featuring guitarist Tristan Avakian, who has over the years been in the orbit of the great Brian May. Vocalist Gregory Lynn Hall is a seasoned AOR rock veteran who was pounding the pavement in Los Angeles back in the 1980s. The name Killer Kings might be a nod to Queen's Killer Queen. Many of the guitar solos will take you back to that classic Brian May style. Hall adds a David Coverdale element to the band. And stylistically it comes off as part Journey, part Whitesnake with a touch of Foreigner and Queen.

An absolute juggernaut of melodic rock greatness. This thing hits like a ton of bricks from the very first rockin' note. If you want the genre to continue, you put this on the radio. Songs one and two are both made for radio singles that instantly solve a 30 year old dilemma. "Burn For Love" with it's Vandenburg acoustic intro and it's sweeping proggy-melodic imprint is a joy for rock fans looking for some meat and a sweet side dish. Gregory Lynn Hall's smoky and seasoned vocal is the perfit fit for these well written melodies. Tristan's guitars will not only fill out those speakers, they will twist, turn and solo with reckless joy. The sound is big and impressionable. 

"I Will Be Stronger" puts the guitar hook right in your face. This is rock radio material if the rock radio era still existed. "Higher" harkens back to the great band Guiffria with a lot of Whitesnake's most accessible top 40 moments. It soars and rocks and feels like an instant radio favorite. The chorus contains enough feeling for one entire album. "In A Different World" mixes in a lot of that Queen guitar sound while the keyboards end up segueing into a wonderful bold lyrical word-guitar cacophony. It's such a forceful song. "Another Night, Another Fight" is a 6 minute opus combining elements of late 70's progressive rock with 80's melodic rock. Like all this material, there is a grandness to it. These are all playable album cuts that you could play on an 80's FM rock station. "Phoenix" is a "killer" battle between guitars, keyboards and vocals. And each instrument comes though without the heavy handed modern production that often plagues newer releases. 

"Two Ships" is a a power ballad that Alias and Mr. Big would have written if they were a couple back in the 80's. The guitars really kick in during the chorus making this more glam than west coast rock. "Losing Me" jumps out of the gate with elements of pop and hard rock and is super convincing in both areas. 

The quality of songwriting is really something to behold on this record. "Do Or Die" is a hard rocking MSG sounding track with vocals, drums and guitars blazing. "The Plains of Yesterday" is another keyboard drenched rocker with more powerhouse vocals and a groovy bass line. "Ain't No End in Sight" is almost a power ballad. It rocks out, but those keyboard parts bring everything back to the glory days of melodic rock.  

In summary, what an amazing album. The powerful singing. The incredible songwriting. Let's not forget Alessandro Del Vecchio who did the production on this one. He really brought out all of those textures from so many influences. This collection will engage you from start to finish and proves that this kind of music can still be creative and relevant. The Killer Kings are Killer.

Album Rating 9.9