Eclipse is one of the greatest Rock bands of the 21st Century.
Album number ten is magnificent…
Things kick off with the infectious ‘The Hardest Part Is Losing You’ a Pop rocker you all surely have heard by now? There’s a real kick to the song and interestingly to me I’m reminded a lot of Teenage Casket Company with a dab of Celtic twang in the guitars. It’s a great song, more immediate and less Melodic Rock than you might imagine straddling as it does pure commerciality and yet still gloriously parading its Rock and Roll cred with a killer solo and plenty of grunt in the refrain. I personally love it, but it is a different slant for the band.
Second up is second single ‘Got It!’ which amps up the guitars for the doubters and goes large for the chorus, this time with a spikier, punkier edge to the Rock and Roll stew. It’s a song that has equal energy and also sports some killer guitars. Throwing the cat amongst the pigeons you can almost imagine these openers being tackled by the likes of P!nk or Myley Cyrus and co.
It’s ‘Anthem’ that changes the tempo and lights the fires Erik and co have been stoking these last few albums with the distinct Celtic sound they have honed to great effect on songs like ‘Run For Cover’ or ‘Things We Love’ from ‘Wired’ for example. ‘Children of the Night’ that follows is a distinct change of emphasis with a riff that comes on like Sabbath and a harder edged vocal. It’s a wonderful song with a great chorus and edges the ‘Rockometer’ into the red zone!
‘Hearts Collide’ has you feeling like the change of pace has come before it explodes. It’s one of my favourites here – all energy, bursting with melody and driven by guitar it just sweeps you up and carries you away! ‘I Don’t Get It’ adds a little bite and spite to the mix and again that harder edge.
‘The Broken’ adds a mid-tempo call to arms for the downtrodden and ‘So Long, Farewell, Goodbye’ cranks up those guitars again for an opening riff not a million miles from vintage Crue before we get far more complex and far more melodic with just a touch of Dio in the mix. It’s another real high point for me before ‘High Road’ adds a some more magic by way of a driving road rocker that keeps on giving before exploding into a solo that fits like a glove.
All too soon the end is in sight but before we go ‘One Step Closer to You’ threatens to steal the show with a mid-tempo rocker that encompasses all that I love about this band before closer ‘Forgiven’ actually does steal the show with that epic Melodic drive that fueled earlier albums and yet still shines through. For me it’s the reason you all need to hear this band. Europe holds the future of Rock in its very safe hands with bands like Eclipse.
“I love the fact that we have a diverse following these days,” says Mårtensson. “We have strived to evolve both in terms of sound and songwriting with every record and clearly our fans are happy to come join us for the ride. Even better, they have continuously invited a bunch of their friends along the way. We see proof of that every night.” And with an album like this those queues and those listeners are just going to grow and grow.
MEGALOMANIUM hits the streets on September 1, 2023 and it’s well worth the wait. As the press release says it’s an album “riddled with the full DNA of the band, a fearless dive into the deep end of the pool – or in this case – the lake Siljan surrounding the island in the middle of Sweden where we record all our music.” It’s a real highlight of the year and for me a contender for best of the year. Eclipse continues to evolve and grow and let with every release stays just as essential.
9 /10
Tracklisting: The Hardest Part Is Losing You | Got It! | Anthem | Children of the Night | Hearts Collide | I Don’t Get It | The Broken | So Long, Farewell, Goodbye | High Road | One Step Closer to You | Forgiven
Lineup:
Erik Mårtensson – Vocals
Magnus Henriksson – Guitars
Philip Crusner – Drums
Victor Crusner – Bass
Social Media:
https://www.eclipsemania.com
https://www.facebook.com/EclipseSweden
http://instagram.com/eclipse_sweden
https://www.facebook.com/groups/236829727206186
http://www.eclipseofficialfanclub.com
https://twitter.com/eclipsesweden