By DJ Monk
To be honest, I wasn’t at all sure what I was going to make of this album after I read the accompanying collateral. I’m a fan of Nils Patrik Johansson’s other projects – Astral Doors, Lion’s Share and Civil War – but this latest release sees him not only flying solo but also dealing, on a deeply personal level, with a subject that has intrigued him, and many of his fellow countrymen, for nearly his whole lifetime – and that is the many conspiracy theories which still exist around the assassination of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme in 1986.
So, there’s the first giveaway: this is a concept album, dealing with an event that, even more than three decades later, still strikes deep into the heart of Swedish society. Johansson has developed a fascination with it, going so far as to work closely with the author and podcaster Dan Hörning to explore the many theories behind the shooting: was it the act of a lone gunman, or the culmination of a conspiracy by international arms dealers disgruntled with Palme’s approach to disarmament and social justice? Well, now, the singer is using his music to explore his own thoughts on the issue, even going so far as to officially release the album on the anniversary of the act itself…
Laying aside the actual subject matter (about which I admit to knowing next to nothing apart from being aware of the incident at the time), musically ‘The Great Conspiracy’ will immediately strike a chord with those familiar with Johansson’s previous output and projects, ploughing the same sort of melodic hard rock-meets-power metal furrow with which he has made his name and reputation. It sets a fiercesome right from the opening bars of ‘The Agitator’ through ‘One Night At The Cinema’, which ends with the highly symbolic sounding of two gunshots (Palme was shot in back walking home from a night at the movies). Driven forward by the superb drumming of Johansson’s son Fredrik, the riffs crunch and grind while the solos sear and soar, the melodies are spot on, the harmonies are impressively tight and the chorus’s fist-pumpingly singalong in their Covid catchiness. In fact, if anything, the likes of ‘The Baseball League’, ‘Prime Evil’ and the title track would sit comfortably alongside anything produced by those prime exponents of Swedish power metal, Sabaton.
No matter the concept behind it, or even its worthiness, any album of this type should stand on its own two feet in its own right. ‘The Great Conspiracy’ does that. Taking the context of its subject to one side – although the lyrics obviously make this difficult – this is an extremely competent power metal album, containing all the right ingredients and all in the right measures. And, it has to be say that Johansson’s vocals are stunning throughout. If you’re a fan of not only Johansson’s but his aforementioned countrymen, then this one you should definitely be checking out.
- ‘The Great Conspiracy’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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