When it comes to hard rock, the Scandinavians have always had a really good ear for a melody and chorus. Throughout the 90s when melodic rock and AOR was hugely unfashionable, the Swedes’ knack for delivering classic, big haired sounds continued unabated, and in metal terms, twenty first century heavy hitters like In Flames and Opeth have more than shown how once extreme subgenres can often benefit from a finely tuned melodic streak. What’s more, they’ve achieved this with so much more style than their US counterparts.
The same can be said for Danish band Taboo. A new arrival on the rock scene for 2022, but featuring a couple of old faces, the musical project teams H.E.R.O vocalist Christoffer Stjerne and Pretty Maids guitarist Ken Hammer, with the intent to do something a little different from their day jobs. Their debut album proudly boasts the kind of huge chorus hooks you’ve come to know from Pretty Maids, but trades in some of their big haired, 80s cheese and bombast for something not only with a bigger crunch in places, but also a slight electronica twist.