24 October 2010

Europe Last Look at Eden/John Norum Play Yard Blues – CD reviews

E.A.R Music/Mascot Records

Noble PR

Review by Damian McDonald

Remember The Final Countdown? The song I mean, from the band EUROPE. If you were alive or at least aware of music in 1986, you definitely would. Hearing the song now, it verges on the cringe-worthy. But if you really can remember that era, and what was going on in music, the song, and the band, were actually a God-send.

Popular music was absolutely rubbish. The dominant form was represented by the likes of The Thompson Twins, Howard Jones, Wham!, Billy Ocean, Whitney Houston, Pet Shop Boys, and our own local contributors were lightweights such as Whispering Jack and Icehouse… should I go on? No. So for a band like EUROPE to get any exposure was kinda out of left field.

Despite being very polished back in 1986 – if you can remember the film clip for The Final Countdown, singer, Joey Tempest, hair permed immaculately, stands straight and tall like a hair-metal mannequin on a gigantic stage lit by a million-dollar lighting rig – EUROPE, like their (at the time) quite similar genre-mates Bon Jovi drove hard rock music out of the clubs and into the stadiums, and off word-of-mouth bought vinyl and onto teenage girl’s tape-decks and radios. Long hair on guys became a little more accepted by the wider community. Although many a headbanger had to put up with having EUROPE or Bon Jovi yelled at them from passing cars full of Wham!-hair-styled apprentice mechanics, at least there was a reference point! Hard rock was being recognised.

I have to admit I had the album The Final Countdown, before it went global though. And I liked it. It was Deep Purple-ish, Scorpions-ish, but very polished AOR. It was when the film clip was on every music video show and the single on commercial radio constantly, and – literally – my little sister liked them that I rejected them. And eventually, so did EUROPE’s guitarist, JOHN NORUM. Citing the fact that, on the back of their mid-eighties success, they had to do ‘silly playback shows and appear in magazines next to Samantha Fox and Rick Astley’, NORUM left to pursue a solo career.

The band continued with a replacement and recorded two further albums. But their commercial success was not repeated and the band took pretty much the whole 90’s off. NORUM rejoined in 2004 and EUROPE recorded the, as they themselves put it, two ‘relevant’ albums Start from the Dark and Secret Society.

EUROPE’s latest album, Last Look at Eden, is the band back fresh, hungry, but with thorough professional experience. Yeah, there’s the trademark EUROPE keyboards but JOHN NORUM’s bluesy, funky, tasty riffs are up in the mix. Way up.

The musicianship is immense. Not at the expense of the songs though. I would much, much rather here these songs on the radio or see them on Video Hits than Bon Jovi’s new stuff. NORUM shreds with practised restraint, fitting his multitude of notes around the rhythm; not talking over the top of it. Singer, Joey Tempest too lays it back when that’s what it needs. The whole band has really found their groove on this album. Real standouts are Gonna Get Ready, Catch That Plane, The Beast and Mojito Girl; and if you’re a fan of EUROPE from the 80’s, New Love in Town could almost have been on The Final Countdown.

NORUM has matured, but is a very cool and slick player. And he makes EUROPE cool. With that in mind, I would like to fuse into this NORUM’s very recent solo album, Play Yard Blues. The album is not EUROPE leftovers. It’s good blues/rock songs from start to finish. Yeah, I know, another blues/rock guitarist. But there is something fresh about NORUM’s latest. It could be that the Swedish influence adds something original to it. Or it could be he’s just been divinely inspired – both by his muses and by music; the album features three covers: a Thin Lizzy (how cool!), a Mountain, and a Mohogany Rush song. Or it could be NORUM really listens to his blues and feels it.

The opening track, Let it Shine has a riff that will stay in your head all week, but not in an annoying way. It’s so simple it’s genius. Red Light Green High is very reminiscent of blues/rock doyen Chris Goss of Masters of Reality. If it’s deliberate, all the better. And the Lizzy cover It’s only Money is a true tribute.

Production and musicianship are big. EUROPE’s Mic Michaeli plays keyboards on several tracks, but the brass is nowhere to heard! Tomas Torberg’s bass playing is spot on and fills the bottom end right out. And NORUM’s voice is that of a true singer/guitarist.

If I only had pocket money, and had to make a choice between buying NORUM’s Play Yard Blues or EUROPE’s Last Look at Eden, I would have to go with Play Yard Blues. But I was around in 1986, and so can now afford more than one album in a single purchase, so thankfully don’t have to make that choice.

Both good rock albums. One just a bit cooler.

Europe

http://www.europetheband.com/

John Norum

http://www.johnnorum.se