C.O.P – Enemy (2022)
C.O.P is a Swedish Melodic Rock / AOR band of the highest order formed in 2014 who with “State Of Rock” has released one of the finest AOR albums in 2015 via the AOR Heaven label. Fronted by extraordinaire singer Peter Sundell (ex-Grand Illusion, Decoy), the three piece band completed by Christian Sundell on drums & keyboards and Swedish guitar wizard Ola af Trampe (ex-Grand Illusion) now returns with a classy sophomore release.
Titled “Enemy”, the new album continues exactly where “State Of Rock” stopped – Peter with his high pitched and powerful voice once again sets new standards for the genre. Backed up by his younger brother Christian who also wrote all songs for this release and the extremely talented guitarist Ola – who also mixed the album and mastered it together with Jakob Lindahl – C.O.P II come along as a pretty unique Melodic Rock dream team.
On “Enemy”, powerful melodious hooks combine with classic AOR and brilliant choruses on each and every song.
With grandiose opening track ‘The Enemy’ we have a huge sound, a thick drum beat and trigger effects gloriously emphasized with the chorus, the band keeps the song interesting through small melody changes that keep the listener guessing where the song will go on the first playthrough.
‘For You’ follows and is a more straight forward AOR track. It is a standard mid-tempo rocker done very well, with a feeling of the first album. ‘Fighting Your Ghosts’ fools you into thinking it is a ballad, but with urgency and high energy, the song bursts to life with a driving melody that is sure to get your legs bouncing and your head bobbing.
‘Too Late’ rocks straightforward, while things are much more melodic with ‘Til the End’, then ‘Rise Up’ is a fast-paced, double-based ripper of a track that sounds different from the rest.
One of my favorite tracks comes at the end of the album. ‘Glorious’ starts out with what seems like a slow brooding melody but quickly changes up into a midtempo melodic rocker with some fantastic keys from Christian Sundell. This is also Peter’s best vocal performance on the entire disc.
“Enemy” delivers what was promised, a solid Melodic Rock / AOR release with a couple of different (heavier) tracks, all delivered with great musicianship and appealing melodies. A worthwhile album to check out and certainly a band I would not want to wait seven years to hear from again.
HIGHLY Recommended
01 – The Enemy
02 – For You
03 – Fighting Your Ghosts
04 – Too Late
05 – The One
06 – ‘Til The End
07 – The Gods
08 – Higher
09 – Rise Up
10 – Proud And Alive
11 – Glorious
Christian Sundell – drums & keyboards
Ola af Trampe – guitars & bass
Peter Sundell – vocals
Pre order:
www.amazon.co.uk/Enemy-C-p-II/dp/B0B9QMHD7P
