In 2005, Jorn Lande and Russell Allen released The Battle to huge acclaim from fans and critics alike, earning themselves thoroughly deserved Album Of The Year plaudits from a number of magazines and websites, including this one. 

Even now, the quality of that debut collaboration sends shivers down my spine whenever I hear it, so I have been eagerly awaiting this sequel since I first heard mention of it last year. So have they lived up to expectations with this latest effort ?? 

Well, almost.  All the elements you have come to know and love from the debut are there, in the form of two of the finest rock voices around, some blistering guitar work from the man behind it all, Magnus Karlsson, sweeping choruses and an even heavier and better production, thanks to the involvement of Pink Cream 69’s Dennis Ward. 

So why only “almost” then, I hear you cry. Well for me, the quality of the songs just doesn’t quite match the outstanding nature of those on the predecessor. At times the new batch are a little too disjointed and just do not flow as fluently as before and there are no truly standout tracks that match the quality of the vast majority on The Battle. I’ve given this album so much thought and plenty of time in the hope that my initial impressions would be changed and that the album would be a “grower”, but as much as I wanted this to be the best album of the year, I have to say I am a tad disappointed overall. It’s still way ahead of the vast majority of releases I’ve heard this year, but for me it does not reach the incredible heights set by its own first chapter. 

Things start well enough with the title track kicking us off with a trademark piano-led intro which gives way to one of the half dozen tracks where vocal duties are shared between both Allen and Lande and which is very evocative of the style of The Battle. 

Russell Allen leads on “Obsessed”, with its great heavy chugging rhythm and excellent chorus. It’s back to shared vocals for “Victory”, one of the tracks I feel is fairly disjointed. It has many great individual elements, but doesn’t seem to hang together properly. The Jorn-led “Master Of Sorrow” is one the album’s highlights, displaying the man’s awesome vocal range after another beautiful piano-led intro. 

“Just A Dream” is another fine track, but we have to wait a while before the album’s true highlights in the form of the classic one-two punch of the celtic-influenced “Wake Up Call” and Jorn-sung “Under The Waves”, which are genuine melodic rock classics and easily my favourite tracks on the album. Closing track “When Time Doesn’t Heal” is described by Karlsson as the best ballad he’s ever written and whilst I personally do not believe it is as good as some of the slower songs on The Battle, it is indeed a fine and evocative way to showcase the vocal talents of both singers as well as proving to be a fitting climax to this second chapter in the saga. 

Overall I do not think The Revenge is as good as The Battle, despite being a very high quality release in its own right. It should still figure in many people’s end of year Top 10 album lists, but I will be genuinely surprised if it captures first place on as many occasions as its predecessor. That said, it is still one of the essential purchases of the year, so get yourself a copy and judge for yourselves how well you think it compares to the original.

Let us know your views on The Revenge

Track Listing

The Revenge
Obsessed
Victory
Master Of Sorrow
Will You Follow
Just A Dream
Her Spell
Gone Too Far
Wake Up Call
Under The Waves
Who Can You Trust
When Time Doesn't Heal

Line Up

Jorn Lande - Vocals
Russell Allen - Vocals
Magnus Karlsson - Guitar/Bass/Keys
Jaime Salazar - Drums