Johan Kihlberg’s IMPERA – Age Of Discovery (2018)
To be released tomorrow via AOR Heaven Records, JOHAN KIHLBERG’S IMPERA “Age Of Discovery“, the follow-up to the three IMPERA albums, is a really good selection of classic melodic hard rock tunes with a great variety of vocalists and top notch session musicians.
In fact, this is a ‘new’ IMPERA. Founding drummer Johan Kihlberg decided it was time to spread his wings, and the Swede came up with the idea to record his first solo effort still utilizing the moniker behind his name.
And Johan Kihlberg’s Impera is definitely much, much more Melodic Hard Rock oriented.
You get Michael Sadler (SAGA), Nigel Bailey (THREE LIONS, BAILEY, LIFELINE), Göran Edman (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN), Nils Patrik Johansson (ASTRAL DOORS, LION’S SHARE), Mick Devine (SEVEN), sharing the lead vocal duties.
And there’s Lars Chriss (LION’S SHARE) rippin’ all the guitars and producing, plus Mats Vassfjord (220 VOLT) on bass, virtuoso Mattias IA Eklundh (FREAK KITCHEN) dropping a killer solo, and Kay Backlund (LION’S SHARE) & Anders Rybank (COASTLAND RIDE) on keyboards.
The album opens with a 34-second intro titled “Prelude”, then begin properly with “That’s the Way That Life Goes” with Nils Patrik Johansson at the mic. This is a mid-paced rocker of a track with well worked instrumentation where the vocals really fit in. A punchy stater and a pretty killer melody.
Next, “Fear” showcases a more keyboard oriented flavor and finds Mick Devine and Johansson both delivering the voices. A melodic midtempo song until the bite of the chorus. The pace really switches up in the middle, assisting in creating the epic feel.
Unknown to me but a great surprise, Michael J. Scott lends his voice to “Falling” with it’s lighter guitar verses and identifiable chorus. Pounding off the starting line, “The End of the Road” features Mick Devine taking over mic duties once again. An upbeat thumper with some wicked guitar work throughout.
Taking his turn, we find the mighty Goran Edman showcased on “Just a Conversation” which has me thinking ’80s AOR with its keyboard beginnings and its superb ’80s atmosphere.
We find “The Right Stuff” with Nigel Bailey on vocals for a more uptempo rocker, and again it’s clear that Kihlberg / Criss made clever choices in picking the right voices for their songs.
One of Kihlberg‘s all-time favorite singers, Saga‘s Michael Sadler appears on “Why Does She Care”, with a classic SAGA arrangement with a melodic rock keen.
Mick Devine turns in his third performance on “I Am I” which also features Freak Kitchen‘s Mattias Eklundh supplying an engaging guitar solo. We close out the adventure with “It’s a Revolution” witnessing Nigel Bailey‘s return.
Johan Kihlberg’s Impera “Age of Discovery” is an elaborated Melodic Hard Rock piece of work, cleverly arranged and produced. Sometimes a project using so many different vocalists can seem disjointed and hard to identify with. Not here, as everything flows perfectly. Tons of masterful guitar work supplied by Lars Chriss is stamped all over the record as well.
I can see why AOR Heaven signed Johan Kihlberg’s Impera: “Age Of Discovery” is an awesome Melodic Hard Rock album, which gets better and better with each listen.
HIGHLY Recommended
01. Prelude
02. That’s the Way That Life Goes
03. Fear
04. Falling
05. The End of the Road
06. Just a Conversation
07. The Right Stuff
08. Why Does She Care
09. I Am I
10. It’s a Revolution
Johan Kihlberg – Drums, Keyboards
Lars Chriss (Lion’s Share) – Guitars
Mats Vassfjord (220 Volt) – Bass
Michael Sadler (Saga) – Lead & Backing Vocals on 8
Göran Edman – Lead & Backing Vocals on 6
Mick Devine (Seven) – Lead Vocals on 3, 5, 9, Backing Vocals
Nigel Bailey (Bailey) – Lead Vocals on 7, 10, Backing Vocals
Nils Patrik Johansson (Lion’s Share) – Lead & Backing Vocals on 2, 3
Michael J. Scott – Lead & Backing Vocals on 4
Mattias IA Eklundh (Freak Kitchen) – solo on 9
Kay Backlund (Lion’s Share) – Keyboards on 1, 3, 6
Anders Rybank (Coastland Ride) – Keyboards on 8
Pre ORDER:
www.amazon.de/Age-Discovery-Johan-KihlbergS-Impera/dp/B078XXCJVL
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