Johan Langquist The Castle opens its doors to us.
Known as the vocalist for Candlemass, the man surrounds himself with Erik Henrikssen (guitar/keyboards), Fredrik Isaksson (bass, Dark Funeral, Berzerker Legion, Heljarmadr, Disharmonium…), Stafen Englin (drums, Disharmonium) and Emelie Lindquist (vocals) to give life to his debut album, Johan Langquist The Castle, released via I Hate Records.
While we’re greeted by Emelie‘s backing vocals on Heavy/Doom-sounding opener Eye Of Death, Johan adds his unmistakable mysterious touch, taking the rhythm from solid to epic. The heavy tones continue on the solo, but also on the simpler finale that leads into Castle Of My Dreams and its airy keyboards that set the tone for the whole track, much lighter than the previous one. A few Power Metal influences bolster the more upbeat passages, before returning to darker touches with Where Are The Heroes, which barely takes the time to calm down, turning the choruses into heady unifying moments, and which doesn’t skimp on melodious harmonics to create soaring moments. The band picks up the pace again with Raw Energy and its livelier riffs with tepid heavy tones, tinged with a fairly simple but catchy rhythm that lends itself well to lead parts, on which the vocalist gives it his all, before moving on to the intriguing Revolution and its groovier approach. The rhythm section holds the course to let vocals and guitar dance together in a Hard Rock vibe, then Freedom slowly unveils itself with a reassuring introduction, followed by the usual saturation on a fairly slow rhythm that eventually catches fire to remain fairly constant, skilfully placing the solo. The more majestic final finally leads us to Bird Of Sadness, a track haunted by pure melancholy and some pared-down hypnotic harmonics, allowing the vocalist to bring his album to an intense close.
If you enjoyed Johan Langquist‘s voice with Candlemass, Johan Langquist The Castle will convince you from the very first riffs! Johan Langquist The Castle is a rather diverse album, but one that allows the singer to show us the full extent of his talent.
85/100
