And so we have Dracula: Swing of Death, a rock opera concept album which is based around the story told in Bram Stoker's Dracula. The project is a dual effort between Jorn Lande, whose vocals talents have taken him through many projects over the past two decades, and guitarist-songwriter Trond Holter, someone I knew nothing about. A little research led me to find he was a member of a band called Wig Wam, whose song "In My Dreams" was Norway's entrant in the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest, and which Holter had written. None of that really helped in looking for what direction this album would progress.
Rock opera's can go either way in terms of overall output. Some can click together perfectly and work from the outset, conceptually combining the story and the music in an enjoyable and entertaining way. Others have good intentions but don't quite hold the interest in one facet or the other. Tobi Sammet's Avantasia project is one that has continued to work over the years, both through good writing and the influx of guest musicians. Here we have the band of Holter, Bernt Jansen on bass and Per Morten Bergseth on drums, with Jorn providing lead vocals on half of the songs and Lena Fløitmoen Børresen doing her bit on the other half.
To the album itself, and while it does come across conceptually well, any more than a few listens begins to sort out the gems from the chaff, and rather than wanting to listen to the whole album all the way through you begin to pick and choose those songs that you enjoy and just want to listen to them at length. Jorn's vocals are as impressive as ever, but when he does songs such as "Hands of Your God" it just feels as though it is a waste of his talents, whereas a song such as "Queen of the Dead", where he really delivers an impassioned performance, is where his best qualities lie. "Queen of the Dead" is where the band really breaks out as well, especially in the final half of the song where they all get to showcase their talents in a fast-paced heavy guitar oriented fashion, not just holding fort while the story is told around them. Compare this to "Swing of Death", which has a very 1970's pop movement about it, both musically and vocally. Sure, it's a part of the story and this is how it has been interpreted, and this is what you get in a rock opera, a variety of styles. If you are listening to this just as an album, it does appear slightly off kilter and out of place. Lena's vocals too swoon with delight, and her starring roles in "Save Me", "River of Tears" and "Into the Dark" are excellent performances.
The instrumental "True Love Through Blood" gives the band great scope to show what they can do, and it is perhaps the best part of the album. The rhythm section sounds terrific, while Holter unleashes on his guitaring fingers to provide a fast and speed-laden track that probably stands out because it is vocal-less. The final track "Under the Gun" returns us to a mid-tempo range with duet vocals from the two lead singers, with a grand element of whimsy and emotion as the musical looks for its grand conclusion. While the performances are again great, just the melancholic and clichéd way the song is written and performed doesn't do it for me.
It feels wrong to not give this a higher rating, because there is no doubt that the musicianship is terrific, and the vocal performances are wonderful. Unfortunately, for me anyway, I was unable to get through more than half a dozen listens before most of the songs bored me despite their excellence. As a middle-aged headbanger from another era, perhaps I am unable to compromise to accept what this is and enjoy it for that. The end result just doesn't drag me back in for multiple listens, which is as good a sign as you can get that it hasn't grabbed me at all.
Rating: I'll paint the world with the blood from the hands of your god. 2.5/5
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