Album review by; Ian P
Dreams From The Darkest side is the fourth album from Danish Metal Band Statement. I must admit, before I received this album to review, I was not familiar with Statement or their music. Nor to be honest Danish rock music in general. Probably like a lot of people once I get past Pretty Maids and Volbeat I’m beginning to struggle. So, with nothing b the routine record company bio to go on, it was with a completely open mind that I hit the play button.
Melodic power metal is probably the simple definition if you like to categorize and first impressions with the album on in the background whilst I was working were that it was all good, competent stuff maybe nothing ground-breaking but a good, solid album. An important benchmark for me is how much of the songs, how many riffs you can actually recall once the album has finished playing and there were certainly a couple of things that stood out. But much as first impressions count, you can’t do justice to an album by just having it on in the background and any band that has put their work out there deserves far more respect than that. So, when I sat down to give this my full attention, wow – did I realise what I’d been missing.
Opener ‘Don’t You Hide It’ kicks off with a driving rhythm and a nice little lead guitar intro before a classic hard rocking verse and chorus to get your head nodding right from the start. Lyrically it sets the scene for the whole album, very intense and personal whether exploring the darker side of the mind or the joys of reaching the heights and being the best you can. Summed up by a short, spoken word section reminding us of the importance of not being afraid to try and that life is for learning. Heavy stuff? Maybe but it never imposes on the music and some excellent soloing throughout the track.
If you want heavy stuff, then going straight into ‘The Reaper’ gives you just that. A huge dark riff, vocals full of raw power and evil undertones. Like Twisted Sister’s ‘Destroyer’ it provides a complete contrast to the rocking pace of the rest of the album, but the immense vocal power of Jannick Brochdorf makes it work so well.
Title track ‘Dreams From the Darkest Side’ has an epic feel to and is a perfect mix of what Statement do best, combining a full-on double bass drum metal opening with melody, guitar harmonies and some classic rock soloing. There’s no mindless shredding just for the sake of speed here. The solos from founding guitarist and songwriter Neils Alex are simple, a touch bluesy at times reminding me of fellow Scandinavian John Norum despite the more contemporary metal power of the band. The two guitarists combine well providing the perfect showcase for Jannick who effortlessly moves from raw edgy power of metal to the smoother melodies.
Another huge strength of the album is the sound and production. Producer Soren Anderson is a working musician himself as well as producer/engineer with the likes of Glenn Hughes, Dave Mustaine and Dead Daisies on his CV along with many other top names. The sound is clear, crisp, despite the many layers and textures. A great drum sound throughout and excellent balance in the standout lead work from Niels Alex that never gets buried in the mix but neither does it overpower the rest of the song.
‘Lifeline’ sees the band showing a few Nickelback influences, definitely a good thing from my point of view. I’ll never understand the Nickelback haters, but that’s an argument for another day. There’s also a touch of Metallica at times in the likes of ‘Sacrifice’ and ‘Indestructible’. The whole album displays genuine quality throughout, certainly enough to make me go back and check out some of the band’s back catalogue – YouTube can be a wonderful thing. And whilst there’s still a great deal to enjoy in those earlier albums it also highlights what progression and leaps forward have been made here.
After a couple of line-up changes from the first two albums the consistency of same personnel, same studio and producer as 2019’s ‘Force of Life’ certainly seems to have had its benefit with a more cohesive set of songs. And this is despite the twists and turns through Metal and Hard Rock – Melody and Muscle that also help define the band.
The aforementioned spoken word section of the opening track tells us ‘The only thing that matters is you’re not afraid to try’ and ‘Whatever you are searching for will become your kind of perfect’. Well, the results on this album show that Statement have been trying damn hard for the last few years and that whilst their search to be the best they can, will never be over, they’re pretty close to finding their kind of perfect.
A definite 5/5 from me
TRACKLISTING;
1. Don’t You Hide It
2. The Reaper
3. Dreams From The Darkest Side
4. Sacrifice
5. Lifeline
6. Here I Am
7. Beyond Control
8. Escaped
9. Indestructible
10. Fade Away
Line-up;
Jannick Brochdorf - vocals
Niels Alex Larsen - lead guitars, backing vocals
Lars Ulrik Le Fevre - guitars, backing vocals
Martin Poulsen - bass
Daniel Nielsen – drums
Socials;
Statementband.com
Facebook.com/StatementDK
Instagram.com/statement_dk
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