To preface: I was first introduced to the world of hard rock in 1992, the cultural impact of grunge hadn’t hit yet and I was hearing albums that were relatively new then but are now considered influential classics left and right. Among them was Skid Row’s underrated album Subhuman Race, that was my introduction to the band and it was a powerful one. To many it might be the lesser album of the Bach era and I agree, but I still think it’s a great record in it’s own right. And in the same way those older hard rock bands and albums had an impact on a young version of me, The new bands and albums from them are really inspiring the older version of me.
Among those great new bands carrying the torch of great rock n roll is H.E.A.T, a Swedish band that is among the best around. I wasn’t a fan of the music Skid Row recorded with Johnny Solinger, in my opinion he not only lived in the shadow of Sebastian Bach, but he didn’t have the vocal ability to stand up to one of the greatest singers in rock history. Sorry folks, I don’t mean to say he was a bad singer and be disrespectful of the dead, but the facts reveal themselves as they are.
They made a go with a couple of other singers who were great in their own right but still not what this band needed, Enter ex- H.E.A.T. frontman Erik Grönwall.
Skid Row is his favorite band, like many of you he loves the early albums and the singing of Sebastian Bach.
Erik entered the Swedish version of American Idol by covering “18 and life” and you can still watch that audition on YouTube, he eventually won that competition.
A few years later he joined H.E.A.T. and released four incredible studio albums that helped set the standard for the many great modern hard rock bands, He is not only one of the best singers of the modern movement, He’s one of the best singers in rock n roll walking this earth.
The man has legendary level vocal ability and the pipes to nail any Bach era Skid row song, if you don’t believe me then look up any recent performance he’s done of the song “in a darkened room ” from slave to the grind, it’s stunning! And I don’t think most singers would nail it half as good as he does and he really nails that song.
Just imagine for a second that you could sing and you have the opportunity to sing for your favourite band, you’d be crazy not to take it. He’s a fan like you, and he’s up there singing his guts out and clearly having the time of his life.
For all you detractors, rock isn’t dead. It just left America on the larger scale, there’s so many great bands, great singers, and Erik is one of them. It’s my hope that Skid Row fans who haven’t yet heard bands like H.E.A.T, Crashdiet, Hardcore Superstar, Hell in the Club, The Cruel Intentions, Crazy Lixx and the MANY other great bands out there find out about them because of Erik joining Skid Row.
So support the man! He’s got the talent, the new single “the gang’s all here” is fantastic! He’s doing things right and what we get to see is something truly special: one of the best older bands fronted by one of the best singers of the newer bands, celebrate this, encourage it. In my opinion this is the first truly worthy singer the band has had since Sebastian, go to the show, buy the album, the future looks bright for this band, be along for the ride, because I think we’re in for the next golden age of Skid Row.