Power of Metal.dk Review

Anton Johansson's Galahad Suite
Galahad Suite
Rating
 
Style: Progressive Rock/Metal
Release date: 11 May, 2013
Playing time: 45:17
 

Anton Johansson's new elegant album “Galahad Suite” is quite a surprise. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it was not a very high expectation, I can tell you that. What I heard, however, was something that I haven't heard in quite a while: a genuinely good rocker that doesn't try anything new at all, but still manages to pull off a great, enjoyable album.

That's right, this album tries nothing new at all. You get some heavier tracks, and some ballads. There are some nice and heavy standard riffs and some great keyboards. Heck, the album theme is about Galahad, as if medieval themes haven't been done to death. Yet, somehow, Anton manages to focus enough on great song-writing that he produced an album that is just fun to hear. Prog isn't normally about “fun” albums, and that is one thing I like about it. However, it's kinda nice to hear such a straight-up rocker that isn't worried about impressing everyone.

I was also really excited to hear the vocals of Alf Wemmenlind. Have you ever heard of the band Mister Kite? They were an interesting little, semi-proggy band a few years back that put out a couple good albums. I was trying to place his voice for about 3-4 listens of this album, and I finally recognized him. He still sounds amazing.

So, “Galahad Suite” is a good album. That's it. But, that's all it wants to be. It doesn't try to impress with technicality or even new ideas: It simply gives us a great rockin' album with some great choruses. I can respect that.


Tracklist
01. Galahad: The Hope
02.
Somewhere: The Quest
03.
Happy: The Incident
04.
Hunted: The Decision
05.
Morning Sun: The Battle
06.
Loneliness: The Peace
07.
Never Alone: The Victory
08.
Coming Home: The Reward
09. Vision Divine: The End
10.
Galahad: The Man
Label: Lion Music
Distribution: Border Music Distribution
Artwork rating: 60/100
Reviewed by: Jason Spencer
Date: 6 June, 2013
Website: www.galahadsuite.com