On paper, singer John West's recent leap from Artension to Royal Hunt appears
to be a decent career move. But ultimately, West's performance replacing D.C.
Cooper as Royal Hunt's legendary lungs will be judged on disc and onstage. If
the band's first post-Cooper effort is any indication, Denmark's Royal Hunt has
taken a huge step in an epic direction with its fifth studio release. Fear
weighs in with only seven tracks, all of them breaking the five-minute mark and
one cracking nine minutes. They feature dense instrumentation and vocals,
pretentious yet tasteful keyboards and a newfound dark side. Meanwhile,
Artension's latest album (and most likely its last with West at the helm) was
released a few months after Fear and represents a major maturation, too. Machine
boasts more intricate piano melodies mingling with heavy power chords and
greater musical variety than the band dished up on its three previous efforts.
Both discs count as worthy acquisitions – not only because of the contrasting
crossroads they represent for each band, but also because they mark the finest
releases by either group. West's voice, while not as shrill and charismatic as
Cooper's, is allowed more room to move and soar in Royal Hunt than it ever
received in Artension. In fact, West's lack of emotion and autopilot delivery
marred much of that group's work. On Machine, at least, he sounds livelier –
perhaps the result of better material with which to work. But West (who also
sang with the '80s hard-rock band Badlands) is just one cog in this Machine,
just as he's only one element of Fear. Listened to individually, each album is a
full-group effort, highlighted by dominant keyboards.
That's no surprise, considering that the chief composers in both bands are
the keyboardists. Andre Andersen, who has written and produced virtually every
Royal Hunt track since its 1993 debut album, Land of Broken Hearts, opts to
sacrifice a bit of his solo fluidity to better blend in with the band's harder,
darker sound while retaining all of its neoclassicism – and the strategy works.
The title track kicks things off with an extended spoken-word intro creeping
over some spooky keyboards and sound effects. Then West's voice, slightly
distorted, enters for the first time. After singing four lines in a somber, evil
tone, West stays silent for the better part of three minutes while Jacob Kjaer
proceeds to play perhaps the best series of power chords the band has ever laid
down. The rest of "Fear," surprisingly, comes off as one of the softer songs on
the disc, with gentle – almost sympathetic – background vocals. Keyboards remain
a crucial element of the song (and Andersen's solo is pure Royal Hunt) but they
leave breathing room for the other instruments, a courtesy Andersen extends to
his bandmates on other tracks, as well. "Faces of War" begins with the
undulating rhythm section of bassist Steen Mogensen and drummer Allan Sorensen
in a distinctively anti-Royal Hunt intro, and "Lies" sounds like it could have
been yanked from some hair-metal band's archives.
"Gold City Lights" and the grandiose ballad "Follow Me" are all Andersen,
though, despite some more intricate instrumental work from the rest of the band.
"Voices" and disc-closer "Sea of Time" retain all of the pomposity of earlier
Royal Hunt efforts, particularly those on Moving Target and Paradox. Lyrically,
the album's title hits the mark. West sings about such dark topics as war
("Innocent kid covered in blood/Shredded to pieces and left in the mud," from
"Faces of War"), addiction ("It seems to me I'm falling down to the same old
ground again," from "Gold City Lights") and loneliness ("Voices are
calling/Calling to you from the stories which never've been told" from
"Voices").
Meanwhile, Artension's keyboardist Vitalij Kuprij sounds as if he's learned
to share with the boys, too, giving West more leeway as a singer and allowing
guitarist Roger Staffelbach, bassist John Onder and drummer Shane Gaalaas more
playing time on Machine. Still a more over-the-top player than Andersen (if
that's even possible), chief songwriter and co-producer Kuprij adds more piano
and background vocals than usual to the mix. The result is Artension's most
diverse disc. A ferocious piano replaces the overworked synthesizer on "Madness
Calling," creating a sound not often heard in modern progressive-metal beyond a
ballad. But "Madness Calling," a rousing first-person journal of someone going
crazy and one of Machine's standout tracks, is far from ballad material. Piano
dominates "Mother Earth," as well, which also spotlights West's memorable voice
as he caresses listeners on the verses and carries them to new heights on the
soaring chorus. Likewise, "The Way" features an a cappella opening that will
induce goosebumps on the skin of even the most casual listeners.
Despite Artension's assortment of approaches on Machine, songs like "Wings of
War," "Evolution in Reverse" and even the title track still follow the "been
there, done that" formula – which isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially
given the caliber of Artension's players. But it does give some indication of
why West might have jumped bands. Royal Hunt also offers him a chance to tour
more than Artension, which has been held back by Shrapnel's budget constraints.
With the acquisition of West, Royal Hunt appears to be headed toward a new
phase of its career, while the future of Artension – unless the band finds an
even better singer to replace West – remains in doubt. At least, that's how the
situation looks on paper. But anything can happen, as both Fear and Machine
forcefully attest.
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