TNT
My Religion

TNT is a Norwegian quartet from Trondheim, bass guitar and drums plus an American singer (and what a singer!). They play a bright and adrenaline-fueled '80s hard rock (power rock-class metal: in the years when these music genres were "blessed" by major record labels, similar subgenres were abundant). But I was talking about the singer: after a debut album (1982) with lyrics in Norwegian and a good reception, obviously only in their homeland, TNT hit the jackpot by replacing the native Dag Ingebrigsten (but where did he think he was going with that last name?) with the formidable emigrant American Tony Harnell, a guy with titanium tonsils and a four-octave vocal range at his disposal. He can scream at the top of his lungs (no falsetto for him) to almost inhuman heights, easily overshadowing the spirited chaos of the other three. Harnell might not be the pinnacle of expressiveness, but in his genre, he's a standout, truly powerful and resonant in his expression, with a very clear and shimmering timbre; a pleasure to listen to and admire the ease with which he handles choruses that would leave any other colleague breathless. Alongside Harnell, the other arrow in the group's arsenal is the unique and personal technique of the guitarist Ronnie Le Tekro. This guy has a right arm capable of working at inhuman frequencies, a sort of Black&Decker with a plectrum as the final tool. It's a real experience to hear him play thirty-seconds and forty-eighths with the energy and precision of a machine. A true muscleman of the guitar, able to start from the canons of '80s guitar mastery (Van Halen) to arrive at his personal, creative, and highly torrential style. TNT's artistic trajectory is typical of almost all bands dealing with this musical genre: debut in the early '80s, progressive and substantial success for the rest of the decade, the grunge + techno turn of the '90s that sees them struggle, first trying to "update" towards current sounds, then suspending their career once the support of those who push the buttons in the music market faded. Finally, at the turn of the new millennium, there's a resumption of recording, with much more modest budgets and ambitions, relying on a crowd of old and faithful fans and a good number of new admirers of powerful and melodic rock. Yes, because melody is always the foundation of TNT's offering, although volumes are always at peak; by the late '80s, the group had almost immersed itself in true AOR (Adult Oriented Rock), but now it's different, and the records produced in this decade are tough and noisy, direct and fast, without any sentimentality, not even in the ballads. "My Religion" is from 2004 and is one of their best works. It's easy to be quickly captivated because the first two tracks "Invisible Noise" and "She Needs Me" are both authentic killers, best appreciated at a fitting volume to savor the unreal attack of Le Tekro's Stratocaster and the spatial fullness of Harnell's high notes. The rhythm section is not just sitting idly by; bassist Morty Black and drummer Morten Dahl pound hard in support of their two virtuoso soloist companions. A couple of years ago, Tony Harnell, however, left TNT, replaced by a colleague this time British, named Tony Mills (ex-Shy, other folks who sold a few million records in the '80s). A real shame, even though I have yet to verify Mills' performance in the band, I consider Harnell almost irreplaceable. As long as the electric guitar spot is occupied by Ronnie Le Tekro, the group's peculiarity is guaranteed. My favorite Norwegian band, without a doubt.