ALLEN-LANDE – The Battle

The highly anticipated album featuring Jorn Lande and Russell Allen on vocals has finally reached the stores. Russell Allen is the singer of the American Progressive Metal band, called Symphony X, that drew much attention with their latest release, The Odyssey. He has also released his first solo Hard Rock album with a project band named Atomic Soul. His charismatic voice was also chosen by the composer/singer/guitarist Arjen Lucassen for the first Star One album, Space Metal, and for the second part of Ayreon’s release, Universal Migrator.

Jorn Lande has built a very “long” resume by participating in several bands like Millenium, Mundanus Imperium, Ark, The Snakes, and Beyond Twilight, amongst others. The very good and second Masterplan album, Aeronautics, was the result of Jorn’s latest collaboration with Roland Grapow and Uli Kusch, former members of Helloween. He is also a well known solo artist with three full-length albums under his belt.

The music that brought the two voices together is courtesy of Magnus Karlsson, who is the guitarist of Last Tribe and Starbreaker, with the flawless sound production of Anders Theander (Pain of Salvation, Last Tribe, and Urban Tale).

After the short keyboard intro, comes “Another Battle,” with an enviable sound production that perfectly combines the two voices. The music has a strong Hard Rock basis with some great guitar work, especially in the lead parts. Jorn has a Melodic Rock voice, while Russell has a coarse one, paying his duty on the “Hard” part. Russell sings his best on “Hunters Night,” that features a very sophisticated guitar solo. One more vocal duet entitled “Wish for a Miracle” can be described as Rainbow meets Progressive Metal, especially regarding the guitars. The time has come to soften things a little bit with Jorn’s voice on the lead in “Reach a Little Longer.” It is just amazing how Jorn can use his voice as a lead guitar following all the melody lines. “Come Alive” marks the return to the Hard Rock sound with a dash of Stoner, which once again features both singers. The main guitar riff in “Truth of Our Time” draws some attention from another perfect voice combination. Jorn alone sings the catchy chorus on “My Own Way,” while Russell proves his melodic skills on “Ask You Anyway,” which has strong Progressive Metal foundations. “Silent Rage” is a pure Hard Rock song in the Whitesnake vein, with a strong and melodic chorus line performed by the Allen – Jorn alliance. The best track on the album is next, with the title “Where the Angels Gone.” This mid-tempo song was composed over Jorn’s voice, and his performance has strong influences from Joe Lynn Turner’s singing style. The tempo rises in “Universe of Light,” which has Russell on the steering wheel. The main guitar riff sounds like a Rainbow song called “Can’t Happen Here” and reveals the band’s intention to play traditional Hard Rock. The classic Hard Rock ballad “The Forgotten Ones” is the closer for this album, and comprises the best vocal duet on the album. Of course, there is the pretty good “crying” guitar solo, but it doesn’t stand a chance against the two excellent vocal performances.

The winners from this Battle are by far everyone who buys this album! The coexistence of two (at least) great voices and the excellent song writing created has produced possibly one of the best Hard Rock albums of the year. The only wish that one can make is that the Battle will go on for a second album.