Jorn Lande
The Duke

‘The Duke' by the great singer Jorn Lande was released in 2006, and I'll start right away by saying that Jorn has not, at least regarding this album, taken the solo path to transcend the characteristics of Masterplan: some melodies of this album strongly recall "Aeronautics", while the sound and the lyrics clearly lose the comparison with the aforementioned album. But the pivotal point is obviously Jorn's haunting voice, which crumbles in the air like sand in the wind and doesn't even make the lack of extension noticeable; I conclude this preface by saying that Jorn, just like the incomparable LaBrie, needs to transcend the clichés of metal to create something truly unique.

As for the album itself, what is there to say? The homework assignments were completed entirely and correctly: the excessive technique lacks candor.

‘We brought the angels down' opens well, accompanying Jorn with bursts of guitar, dividing verses and melodies between harsh and sentimental, the latter echoing the beauty of Aeronautics while the former are stale. The pathos culminates in the melodic switch of ‘Blacksong' where we find a call-and-response pattern, which states: ‘Hold on, and all that is beautiful dies, hold on, I'm standing here asking you why.....hold on, and everything powerful fades, hold on, all that is young will age'... Written this way reveals little of Lande's masterful and austere interpretation.

Passing through and skipping some tracks identical to the above-mentioned album, we arrive at the most beautiful track: ‘End of time', on a slow and slithering melody perhaps heard countless times in civilian settings, with two harmonic intervals in the measure, and immortalized by Lande's strings, ending with another change with beautiful lyrics: ‘Tell me what she did, tell me who she was, show me how she loved, here before. Did she run around, with the boys in town, living fast at the end of the line..no time, I'm like a jet, I like the speed....' A masterpiece. This is followed by ‘Duke of love' which over classic and coarse heavy metal offers, in my opinion, banal lyrics, as they are endearing.

‘Burning chains' is an acoustic ballad, not romantic but desolate, without particular highlights. ‘After the dying' raises appreciation with its chorus, an unusual fact. But to seal the record is the splendid ‘Starfire' where Lande shows himself to be excellently accompanied by the guitar, interspersing sobs and outbursts on the beautiful lyrics: ‘I am the footprint in the sand, I am the wind that sweeps the land, I am the eyeglass of a blinded man...in the heat of desire, I'm a starfire falling down from the sky...I am the footprint in the sand...the sunshine and the rain. I am the hurt I am the pain...burning desire, I'm a starfire'. Closing the record just as ‘Drained' closed ‘Elements of persuasion' by LaBrie which, however, has nothing to do with it, beyond this similarity that those who have the album can understand.

In conclusion, this is not a step forward for Lande compared to his former band, more a confirmation if you will, but, in my opinion, what needed to be expressed had already been expressed, however, it is reiterated and nuanced, and very well in the instances I highlighted. I highly recommend one of these two albums for the uniqueness in the most soothing melodies.