Europe
Start From the Dark

THE REVIEW

Teased hair, glam clothes, pompous keyboards, and lots of choirs. This was a history-making band, named Europe.
You might be wondering why I used the imperfect tense instead of the present since I am reviewing this new album, released about a month ago. The explanation is simple: today's Europe is a new band. If it weren't for the voice of the charismatic Joey Tempest, which is almost unrecognizable compared to the past glories, one would hardly say that it is indeed the same band. I have been eagerly anticipating this reunion since it was announced, even though the statements from ex-Europe Kee Marcello, who chose not to participate due to Norum's new guitar style (now fixed on Zakk Wylde's type and his Black Label Society's rough rock-thrash-blues) gave me some concerns about the new album.
I didn't know what to think except for the fact that, however this comeback would be, I wouldn't miss the chance to listen to the new effort and, if possible, see live the form of the band born in distant 1980.
The album then arrived and without hesitation, those few “euros” needed for the purchase jumped out of my wallet. Honestly, the first listen truly shocked me: heavy guitars, solid drums, keyboards and choirs rarely present, and especially a Joey Tempest (let's admit it, the hallmark of Europe also because the main composer) that I struggled to recognize.
A great disappointment was overwhelming me, I remembered the good times of “Out of this world” (which I highly recommend to all those who want an excellent melodic rock album), with those melodies that made you dream and with Joey evoking magical images with his so angelic voice, and I wondered where they had gone. Then I stopped for a moment to think about the title… “Start from the Dark”... Then I understood that what I was listening to were not the Europe I knew, but their rebirth from the darkness.

The album itself, as mentioned, has rather dark and melancholic hues; even in the ballads, there is a substantial veil of sadness and anger. The songs are mostly mid-tempo with meaty and gloomy riffs, tending much towards blues-thrash (see the latest works by Ozzy Osbourne), among which the beautiful opener “Got to have faith” and “Wake up call” stand out. However, there is also room for some ballads like the cute “Roll with u” or the anonymous “Settle for love” where acoustic guitars and piano prevail. Now let's get to the pains. I would have never expected tracks like “Song n.12” which seems to take and put together, almost like a collage, various parts of Audioslave tracks (note especially Tempest's singing… what a shame!!!) nor such a ridiculous song as “Sucker” that could have fitted perfectly in an Avril Lavigne album (without taking anything away from the latter, to be clear). Nonetheless, the performance of these sacred monsters named Joey Tempest (vocals), John Norum (guitar), Ian Haugland (drums), Mic Michaeli (keyboards), and John Leven (bass) is quite energetic and compact, thanks to excellent production and remarkable group cohesion.
The only flaw might be Michaeli's keyboards, quite in the background except in some parts reserved for solos or ballads.

In short, in the end, it is a new beginning, well-produced and perhaps even well-packaged (despite the artwork being really sparse if not for the song lyrics), but it shows clear signs of a transformation that in some ways can even be enjoyable (due to the much more abundant energy expressed than in the past), but in others denotes an abysmal fall from the Olympus of the greats for a band that I think had no need to mimic others to achieve today's success.