INTERACTION – Warriors [2-CD Anthology] (2019)

Now this is a true rarity: next March 1 will be released “Warriors [2-CD Anthology]“, the first ever on CD music from INTERACTION, a pioneer melodic hard rock band from the Swedish scene.
Interaction were one of first Swedish hard rock bands, having been formed in 1979 but also existing under different names since the early Seventies. With a career spanning over 15 years, the group released a series of demos, songs included into ‘bands compilations’, and an EP.

With the possibilities of today’s technology, it was a matter of time until all this material was available for the first time on CD, compiled into this very interesting anthology.
Janne Stark, the well known Swedish guitar player from Grand Design and author of the Swedish Hard Rock & Heavy Metal Encyclopedia, dropped the idea and set the wheels in motion and thanks to him, pretty soon you’ll be holding in your hands a double disc deluxe CD reissue featuring almost everything the band has ever recorded.

It’s fun and illustrative to hear how Interaction musically evolved over the years.
On Disc 1 we have the early material of the band, consisting of demos and two songs Interaction recorded for a indie bands 3-LP compilation titled ‘Rockslaget – 20 Grupper – 40 Låtar’, featuring Scandinavian unsigned acts.
It’s obvious the NWOBHM influence on these songs from the early ’80s, both sound and style, all based in melody. Just check out ‘It’s Right’, ‘Stuck in Drugs’ or ‘Impressions’, akin Praying Mantis or Saxon.
Later appear mid-Eighties material and the orientation changed for European flavored hard rock, like on ‘Deep in My Soul’, ‘Heavy Night’, ‘ Turn up the Light’ or the catchy ‘You Make Me so Wild’.

The last part of Disc 1 showcases Interaction’s shift to the melodic hard / AOR trend of 1985/86 due to Europe’s success, with synths into the mix. In this vein are ‘Girls’ (akin Fate), ‘Helpless’ (somehow reminds me of Virgina Wolf), and there’s great synths / harmony / choruses on midtempo ‘I Go Crazy’ (similar to Airrace).

Disc 2 defintely encompass Interaction’s ’80s recordings, from the hard rockers ‘It’s a Game’, ‘Silver Lady’ and the slightly pompy ‘Angel’, to their selftitled EP released by themselves in 1990. And this is the material I enjoyed so much.
Apart from the very good sound quality (professionally recorded EP), on songs like ‘Warrior’, ‘Go Man Go’, ‘Pay with Rock’, ‘Shadows’ (check the video-song above) and ‘Turn It On’, Interaction plays here pure late ’80s Scandinavian keyboard driven AOR / Melodic Rock.
You’ll love this.

A very, very interesting release from an obscure Swedish band, “Warriors [2-CD Anthology]” is not only a collectors material, but also an entertaining career spanning showcase from a Rock band throughout the ’80s and how it morphed all over the years. The sound quality varies – many of these a rough demos – but it doesn’t distract the enjoyment.
And for ’80s AOR fans, having Interaction’s 1990 songs available on CD is an added plus. All these are keyboard-fluffy driven tunes with great hooks and catchy choruses.
HIGHLY Recommended

DISC 1:
01 – Stuck in Drugs
02 – It’s Right
03 – Woman in White
04 – Space Jail
05 – Heavy Night
06 – Turn up the Light
07 – You Make Me so Wild
08 – Impressions
09 – I’ll Still Be Strong
10 – You’ve Got to Realize
11 – Strange Situation
12 – Deep in My Soul
13 – Girls
14 – Helpless
15 – I Go Crazy
16 – Take It Easy

DISC 2:
01 – Shadows
02 – It’s a Game
03 – Silver Lady
04 – Angel
05 – Why Don’t You Call Me
06 – Meaning of Life
07 – We Are the Leaders
08 – Woman
09 – Warrior
10 – Go Man Go
11 – Pay with Rock
12 – Shadows (EP Version)
13 – Turn It On

Håkan Windahl – Vocals
Peter Lindskog – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Jim Johnsson – Guitar, Vocals
Johnny Granström – Bass, Vocals
Roger Karlsson – Drums, Vocals
Kenth Eriksson, Tibor Djember – Bass

Pre Order:
sonicagerecords.com/_shop/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=52607
www.hrrshop.de/INTERACTION-Warriors-DCD_1
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