In 2024 Johan Steensland delivered his debut album, Crossfade (see review), a rock opera. I listened a few times to that album. My overall opinion is that it is a nice album. There are a few great tracks on it. My point of criticism is that I do not always like the voice of Johan, it is a bit over the top now and then. Maybe that also belongs in the concept of the album because it deals with a broken relationship. Musical wise I always have respect for multi instrumentalists because they can play so many different instruments, chapeau. Only a year later, Johan is back with his second album, Duality. Once again Johan made a rock opera. As a multi-instrumentalist, Johan plays all instruments by himself. However, this time he got some contributions by some people who we know from the progressive rock music industry. We can hear Aleena Gibson from Kaipa on vocals as well as Per Nilson from the same Kaipa playing guitar on several songs. Because I am a really great Kaipa fan, I can only smile when I see that they are contributors. Besides the Kaipa people, Ingemar Brandt plays piano on Only Good Men, Owe Eriksson who plays fretless bass on Black Sea as well as vocals on They Believe That I Am Kind and Ture Trygger who plays flute on Only Good Men and Here And Now. On the website of Johan you can read the full story of this album. I tried to read it, but it was such a long story that I quickly decided not to want to know the story. Normally it is better for my imagination to let my intuition do the work, so I will trust on that and let the story be what it is. Let's take a look at the music, that is always what counts. Fragments is the album opener, the shortest song of the album. Some lovely guitar comes your way, played on an easy level, open and multi interpretable. But then it results in a solo and that one sounds good. After the soloing the guitar repeats the first seconds. They Believe That I Am Kind starts with easy guitar tunes and then Johan is starting to sing and what stands out is that he sounds really emotional, the whole song. On some moments the music reminds me of Pink Floyd. The song is not that heavy, but it does provide a certain direction. It all sounds a bit more freely interpretable than on the previous album. It seems to have a bit more depth. This first full song is a good one to me. This tastes for more. Only Good Men starts with penetrating piano sounds and when they fade, there is a flute solo from Ture Trygger. In this one Johan sings on an other level than in the earlier song, this variation is good to hear. I can say that Johan his singing qualities have improved considerably. During this song your ears are also caressed by the voice of Aleena Gibson, what do I like her singing, also in duets with Johan. Musical wise you do not know what to expect, let yourself be surprised. Then it is the turn for The Shredded Suit, and for the first time we can hear Per Nilson playing a few guitar solos. And this solos are so incredibly good, just wow. But because of the high level of guitar playing, the rest of the song is a bit insignificant and that is a shame. A Perfect Lie is next. The singing of Johan and Aleena is here top notch again, I really like this duets. It is a nice neo prog song. Also in this song you can hear Per Nilson playing a great guitar solo. What is this man good with his guitar! After A Perfect Life we will hear An Ordinary Man. A nice start with singing of Johan and some repetitive drum sounds. We don't know where the drums are going to but it keeps you on your toes. After a while it becomes more melodic and yes, it is a bit danceable, but then you really need to know the beat of the song, because that sometimes changes. And just as in the previous song, Per Nilson may give his guitar some spotlights again. Now we are halfway the album and so far almost all songs are good ones, also because of the good addition of mister Nilson as well as Aleena Gibson. Let Me In! is an emotional song with beautiful duets between Johan and Aleena. Also the music is very emotional. This one is totally different from the other songs so far and tastes for more. The only point of criticism is that it has a fade out and I normally do not like fade outs. Walking In A Straight Line is a song that does not walk in a straight line, to cite the title. It has another time emotional vocals but musically you do not know where it will go and I really like that, the unpredictability of it. Johan gives a guitar solo this time, he plays a really other style than Per, but it is a good one. Black Sea starts with the great voice of Aleena, she proves again what a great vocalist she is. I surely hang on her lips if she is singing. It gets a bit boring, but this one is another emotional one, with some great fretless bass playing by Owe, that just stands out. Sometimes it comes to mind that a more important role for the guest musicians the album would have been of an even higher level. Maybe that is a missed chance. The Dr. Dorian Dance starts with a lovely guitar solo. In this song Johan sings a bit too high, because of this I do not like this one as much as the other songs. The playing of Per Nilson, who has another contribution in this song, cannot prevent this, unfortunately. Yet every album should have at least one song that is the weakest one. What Would You Give is the penultimate song of the album and starts with piano combined with Aleena, a combination of gold. Johan gives a nice guitar solo after which he dives into his emotional singing again. This time it is a less higher in range and that fits exactly. The intensity of this duet is from a really high level. It is a pleasure to listen to. The last one is the longest one, Here And Now and clocks 10 minutes. It starts a bit ominous with another leading role for a guest musician, Ture with his flute. You will hear him more than once in this song. Lucky you will hear both singers again, they are a good couple that complement each other. Your ears are caressed again, this time by a deep guitar solo from Johan. This one is a good album closer. When the album is over, you have a smile on your face because you know that Johan and Aleena has find each other. You can hear that in the music, in the lyrics and in their emotions. Over all this album is from a higher quality than it's predecessor and that is because of a few things. For me Johan has grown in his singing, the guest musicians are from a high level and the overall picture is easier on the ear. The album is a grower for me, the more I listen to it, the more I can appreciate it. So I can highly recommend this album. **** Michel Stolk (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
