Frontiers [Release date 14.10.22]
Swedish songwriter/singer Mattias Olofsson teamed up with Wigelius guitarist, Jakob Svensson and drummer Anton Martinez to form Grand in 2020. The band subsequently signed with Frontiers. This is the debut.
Grand are as good an AOR/Melodic Rock band as we’ve heard on Frontiers for some time now. They make it sound effortless, and you’ve got to work damn hard to achieve that.
Olofsson’s subtle, understated Melodic Rock production balances guitars, keys and voices on a tightrope of solidly constructed melodies, embracing just enough aural hooks to constantly enthral.
The singer’s vocal similarities to Jon (Yes) Anderson on opener ‘Caroline’ is something of a distraction though, edging the track’s dreamily textured AOR into Proglite territory.
Then the album bursts into life. ‘Stone Cold’ is the killer cut, a heartstopping AOR thrill machine that shares its DNA with Work Of Art’s magnum opus, ‘Why Do I’.
None of the tracks that follow measure up to ‘Stone Cold’, but each one has its own melody to sell, it’s own story to tell, and all seem happy existing in the penumbra of that explosive slice of AOR.
The slickly manufactured soft rock of ‘The Price We Pay’, a high quality Starship styled retread from their poppified Peter Wolf days, and the swirling, chiming radio rock of ‘Johnny On The Spot’, a John Waite/Giant soundalike that stops just short of being too flamboyant, aren’t far behind.
‘Make It Grand’ goes off piste, taking a welcome detour through US sleaze/glam rock, brimful of attitude, big guitars and na-na-nas.
But we’re brought back into line by the band’s undeniable AOR songcraft. The ‘endless summers’ of the gentle westcoast rock of ‘Those Were The Days’ and the romantic, understated ‘After We Said Goodbye’ stand side by side with the the ghosts of a thousand influences.
No question, the music plays to the past, but it’s right here with us in the present. ****1/2
Review by Brian McGowan
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
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Power Plays w/c 24 March 2025
HARRI LARKIN Too Close To The Sun (Robot Distro)
SANDNESS Not Your Dog (Rockshots Records)
DOCTOR BLACK Drag Me Down (indie)
COHEED AND CAMBRIA Goodbye Sunshine (Virgin Music Group)
LEONI JANE KENNEDY Closer (indie)
SMALL TOWN POLITICS Red Lights (indie)
Featured Albums w/c 24 March 2025
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Singer Songwriter)
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