The Duke [CD]

One of the most frenetic recording artists in music today, Jorn Lande returns again with another release, this time as a solo artist with "The Duke". This is a good thing because he is definitely one of the best singer/songwriters around at the moment. Some may believe that he has saturated the market of late with solo releases, Masterplan, Ark, Millenium and Allen - Lande, but I for one don't mind at all because I can't get enough. When a man has a voice and talent like this and he continues to come up with quality albums, who can complain? If he was to release something not so good then yes, I'd agree that he should lay off for a while and take the time to come up with something a bit better, but Jorn has never failed to deliver the goods yet and "The Duke" is no exception.

Personally, I like this album better than his previous solo efforts. He has a good band behind him and great production as usual, but I think the songs are a bit better than on his previous solo albums. "We Brought The Angels Down" is an unusual pick for an album opener as these days most rockers usually open with a bang and this song doesn't do that. Perhaps "Stormcrow" would have been a better opening choice as it is faster paced, but "We Brought The Angels Down" is still a good song none the less, and it is followed by "Blacksong" which in my opinion is the best song on the album. I also quite like "End Of Time", and whilst I didn't initially warm to the title track due to the chorus having a bit of cheese factor, I soon found myself getting around singing it quite a bit so it has grown on me! This song and the one that follows "Burning Chains" are particularly remindful of David Coverdale/Whitesnake. Jorn is often criticised for sounding like this rock legend, but I don't mind at all, I am a Coverdale fan as well. When Jorn himself is also a self-confessed fan of the man and has a similar sounding voice, how can he not help sounding like him on occasions? Get over it, Jorn has other strings to his bow as well, as he has proven in his work with other bands.

My criticism of this album is that the first half of it is stronger than the last, with "After The Dying" and "Midnight Madness" being the weakest songs in my opinion. However the former still has a good chorus, so it's not that bad. The latter is a bit heavier and darker and plods a bit, but it's followed by a cover of Thin Lizzy's "Are You Ready", a real rocker that Jorn does a great version of. "Starfire" closes the album, a remake of a song from one of his previous solo albums. I could have picked others that I'd have preferred a remake of, but this one is ok.

In comparison to his other work, I still prefer both Masterplan albums and "The Battle" which he recorded with Russell Allen and Magnus Karlsson last year, but "The Duke" is still a quality album that any fan of Jorn or melodic metal should add to their collection. I got the limited edition digi-pack, which is great (but no extra songs).

With the next Masterplan album not due for release until at least mid 2007 will we get to hear yet another Jorn work in some guise before then? I for one hope so, because he's all quality and class.

Jorn's previous effort "Out To Every Nation" was the album that made me want to pick my guitars back up and start pounding the drums again (yes I am multi-talented, thank me very much). But listening to this album, "The Duke", is like a necromancer lifting my soul out of the bowels of repugnance and back to the beautiful sights and sounds of Mother Earth. I hate the Coverdale references; this guy is the real thing. If you really want to argue, Jorn sounds more like vintage Dio, but I digress. "Stormcrow" is by far the most delicious symphony of perilous lyrical terrain and guitar fireworks. Jorn breathes new life into the world of heavy melodic music. I wouldn't call it powermetal because the lyrics are too genuine and the music isn't all in-your-face double bass drum pounding above detuned guitars riffs all in the keys of E or A. This is heavy melody personified. Absolute and steadfast in purpose, "The Duke" is just another step for Jorn, but one giant leap for mankind.-David J Newman 9/14/08

Albums like this are the reason I love Amazon's recommendation system so much. Amazon recommended this to me based on something else I'd bought/rated so I gave it a listen. I loved it right away! Led by the scorching "Blacksong" and "End of Time", this is a fantastic hard rock album. Has a bit of an 80s feel without the hair metal glam.

End to end greatness - pick it up!