JAYCE LANDBERG - review added 23rd February 2010
Album Review: Good Sleepless Night (2010)
For fans of: Hard Rock... and Yngwie wannabes kicking Yngwie's butt
Swedish guitarist and composer Erik Jayce Landberg only decided to pick up the guitar when his Mother insisted he learned an instrument. We should be very thankful to her. He started traversing the frets at 14 and, not long after that, began learning piano too. It's clear, not only from his playing but his choice of singers, that Jayce is a real Yngwie Malmsteen fan. You know what? Comparing their contemporary output, Jayce has the edge.
His debut album Break The Spell came out on Escape Music back in 2008. Like this one it featured Göran Edman on vocals. Follow-up Good Sleepless Night sees vocalist Mark Boals joining Jayce for one track, 'Invasion'. Chistian Pettersson and John Leven (Europe) play bass. Jayce plays all guitars and the Steinway piano.
The sound, as mentioned, is influenced by Yngwie Malmsteen, but there are also similarities to one of Göran Edman's other projects, Vindictiv. Good Sleepless Night is an inconsistent album. The lesser songs are average. Fortunately, the best songs really are very, very good.
Opening track 'My Valentine' is a weird one. It's grungy, groggy and really rather odd. The guitar work is superb, but the overall effect is all a bit 'huh?'. 'The Devil's Wine' is an odd one too. It's appealing in a leftfield sort of way, and you've got to give it credit for being different. 'Drama Queen' is a tad more normal, but still as nutty as a cashew fruitcake in the general scheme of things. The slower 'Skyscraper' is a great track with a cool laid-back throbbing chorus. The instrumental 'Sun Dance' is pleasant enough, but doesn't go anywhere. 'Bitch Is Back' is a good memorable effort, although again a few notches short of greatness.
'The Thorns' is a combination of slow ballad and big theatrical show-piece. It doesn't seem to know what it wants to be, but it's rather splendid so we'll let it off. It's not as splendid as 'Invasion' though. Harking back to the very best songs Yngwie Malmsteen made, and featuring the sublime sounds of Mark Boals, this track is a true monster that makes the album a worthwhile purchase all by itself. If only Yngwie still made music this emotive and brilliant! 'All I Wanna Do (Is You)' is a fun bouncy entry. 'Abduction' features a cool guitar instrumental from Jayce, and an equally cool bass solo from Europe's John Leven. Final entry 'Crazy Lorraine' is a strong take on the better tracks from Göran's Vindictiv albums.
Break The Spell is, in parts, stunning. It's worth buying, with the proviso that you might not like all of it. There's little doubt that Erik Jayce Landberg is a prodigious talent. With a few more albums like this under his belt, he'll be able to put out a stunning 'best-of' release.
Check out... 'Invasion'. Simply awesome.
Track List:
01. My Valentine
02. The Devil's Wine
03. Drama Queen
04. Skyscraper
05. Sun Dance
06. Bitch Is Back
07. The Thorns
08. Invasion
09. All I Wanna Do (Is You)
10. Abduction
11. Crazy Lorraine
Label: Escape Music
Artist's website(s): Jayce Landberg , MySpace
