51 WAR OF KINGS

Europe

This was the sound of the Swedish rock band being just that – a rock band – as they revelled in their heavier musical roots and audibly recalled the reason they got into this game in the first place – i.e. before The Final Countdown happened and planted them firmly in ‘glossy 80s poodle’ territory. With War Of Kings’ toughened layers of classic rock muscle, it felt more Deep Purple than Def Leppard, with keyboard player Mic Michaeli swapping their parping synth sounds of old for a moodier tone. Plus it sounded like the band were having the best time doing it. PG From: War Of Kings, 2015