Dokken style metal will have you in Dreamland!
As far as background to this band goes, all I can give you is this – An Eye For An Eye is the successor to their 2005 debut 'Future's Calling' which, by the way I have never heard, so there won't be any comparison as to how they have changed, progressed etc.
There is a change of personnel from the debut cd with Jesse Lindskog drafted in as the new drummer. Jesse also is the regular skin beater for the excellent Dragonland .
Dreamland are a Swedish band and knowing this European market it's a hard area to crack as an artist. Scandinavia probably has more bands per square metre than any other area on the planet. It has to be something special to break out of this mould.
I didn't know what I was going to get judging by the album cover. 'Dreamland', nothing too special on the name front, with yet another band favouring the name 'Dream' as a prefix. Look in rockdetector and 74 bands have this as a part of their name.
So on to the album. What we have here is an 80's style piece of work (I'm not complaining), and immediately influences come thick and fast in the forms of Helloween, Queensryche (the good early years), and one of my personal fave's from the 80's, Dokken
The opener 'Eye for an eye' is really catchy opener, with a style very similar to Michael Kiske era Helloween. Very catchy melodies, with a melodic chorus make this one of the stand out tracks of the album.
'Carousel of Pain' takes me back to the glory days of when Dokken ruled the roost circa. Tooth and Nail / Under Lock and Key, with Johan Eriksson and Eric Rauti nailing the George Lynch style off to a tee
'Reverse Deny' is only a slight dip in quality. The next one to grab my attention is the VERY Queensryche sounding 'Secret Signs'. The underlying riff sounds similar to 'Operation Mindcrime's Spreading The Disease'. This is not a bad thing by any stretch of the imagination
'Chosen Ones' is again vocally superb, with excellent harmonies. It all goes back to the 80's where bands had 3-4 members who could all sing well, which can only enhance the sound of the band both in the studio and more importantly in the live arena
Most of the remaining songs are all on a par musically, with the Dokken vein throughout. My personal dislike is the final song, which is a poorer version of Kamelot's 'March of Mephisto' with melodic / death metal alternating vocals
Newbie Jesse Lindskog handles proceedings exceptionally well varying between pounding double bass and keeping the few ballads in time. Singer Jake E nails all tracks with ear piercing shrillery and is a joy to listen to
Production is excellent and polished. Andy LaRocque (King Diamond) and Joacim Cans (Hammerfall) have produced an album they can be proud of
Dreamland are signed to Dockland 1 records, I hope they (Dockland 1)have the clout behind them to get these guys on the road gathering momentum and picking up new fans along the way. Whether or not we will ever see them in the UK is a major doubt, maybe London as a one off if I'm lucky.
It's a big ask nowadays for bands with a definite 80's style to stand up above the parapet and be counted. I expect them to do really well in their homeland and other select countries throughout Europe, but carrying the Dreamland torch further could be a big ask.
Fans of Dokken (of which I include myself) will love it!