Nalle Pahlsson’s ROYAL MESS – Royal Mess [Special Edition] (2015)

“Royal Mess” is the debut solo album / project from Swedish musician Nalle Påhlsson – a world-class bass player that is mostly known for his job with melodic rockers Treat and AOR band Last Autumn’s Dream, but has also worked with Chris Laney, Zan Clan and Randy Piper’s Animal. But if you’re a metalhead, you might know him more as the bass player for Therion since 2008.
Now he delivers Nalle Pahlsson’s ROYAL MESS showing that he’s not just bassist, but also a great frontman, as well as songwriter and a versatile musician also, providing rhythm guitars and keyboards, as well as bass.

Nalle does this along with an all-star cast of guest musicians that reads like a who’s who of the Scandinavian rock scene, like ex Europe monster guitarist Kee Marcello, Mats Levén (Yngwie Malmsteen), Jamie Borger (Treat, Last Autumn’s Dream), Henrik Bergqvist (The Poodles) and lots more.
“Royal Mess” is a kick-ass hard rock record as we’ve come to expect from the Scandinavian quarters in recent years. The quality of songs is of the highest order and Påhlsson turns out to have a solid Rock voice, as we soon get to find out from opener ‘Aces High’.
A great starter, a driven slab of hard rock that has a Kiss feel about it, complete with some vintage keyboards to give it an added classic hard rock feel.

The album continues on the Hard Rock path with the excellent ‘Hell City’, a real crank it up rocker that has a great riff running through it. The groove filled rocker ‘Mr Freedom’ keeps the good rocking going on a more mellowed down affair, but still top notch hard rock.
Next Nalle brings a more modern edgy hard rock feel to the mix with the thumping ‘Gold Digger’ where you can tell Chris Laney is behind the mix on this one.

With a bassist at the helm it wasn’t long before the big bass lines come thick and fast and on ‘Breakout’, Påhlsson shows just why he’s regarded as one of the best in the business, as he really brings in the big guns on this one.
But also here – one of the highlights on the CD – we find Kee Marcello doing a te-rri-fic guitar work… man, this guy is just awesome. The track (as many on the album) has a Steve Stevens Atomic Playboys feel, which is a plus in my book.

The up-tempo rocker ‘Higher Than The 7th Heaven’ has a touch of the Sunset Strip about it, a sleazy rocker that just oozes class from the off, before the tempo is brought back down with the dark, moody semi-ballad ‘The Pieces Of My Heart’.
Things are soon turned to 10 with the catchy ‘To Hell and Back’, which has a Southern Bluesy Hard Rock feel, a kind of ‘Scandi Jackyl’ if you like. It’s back to the melodic hard rock with the hook filled ‘Trip’. I don’t know where Påhlsson’s going on this journey, but you find yourself going along for the ride and don’t want it to end.
‘From Rise to Fall’ is another killer hard rocker in the Atomic Playboys / Vince Neil solo vein featuring a hot guitar solo by Stefan Bergström (Skintrade), then we have a fantastic closer in the kicking ‘Loaded Gun’.

But wait, this Special Edition includes an Exclusive Bonus Track; “See You In My Dreams”, a slow (not a ballad) melodic rock / AOR tune adorned with keys and acoustic guitars showing another side of Nalle & Co, really interesting for sure.
Once again the Scandinavians show us how it’s done; Nalle Pahlsson’s ROYAL MESS is a complete Melodic Hard Rock record with varied, strongly composed & arranged songs, first class musicianship and brilliant production (produced by Påhlsson and mixed by Chris Laney).
Highly Recommended.

01. Aces High
02. Hell City
03. Mr Freedom
04. Gold Digger
05. Breakout
06. Higher Than Seventh Heaven
07. The Pieces Of My Heart
08. To Hell And Back
09. Trip
10. From Rise To Fall
11. Loaded Gun
12. See You In My Dreams (Exclusive Bonus Track)

Nalle Påhlsson – Bass, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
special guests:
Kee Marcello (ex- Europe)
Ian Haugland (Europe)
Mats Olausson, Mats Levén (Yngwie Malmsteen)
Jamie Borger (Treat, Last Autumn’s Dream)
Danne McKentzie (Mustasch)
Snowy Shaw, Linnéa Vikström, Johan Koleberg (Therion)
Pontus Norgren (Hammerfall)
Patrick Appelgren (Treat)
Kristian Niemann (ex Therion)
Zinny Zan (Easy Action, Shotgun Messiah)
Stefan Bergström (Skintrade)
Christian Vidal (Therion)
Igna Jover (Antalgia)
Love Magnusson (Dynazty)
Stefan Lindholm, Pontus Larsson (Vindictiv)
Henrik Bergqvist (The Poodles)
Mikael Erlandsson (Last Autumn’s Dream)
Lasse Andersson (producer, songwriter)

BUY IT !
www.nehrecords.com/SHOP/RoyalMess.htm
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