Loud 'N' Nasty - Teaser Teaser (2004)

Country: Sweden
Year: 2004
Line-up: Rob Nasty (lead vocals, bass), Chris Loud (guitars, vocals), T-Bone (drums)

Track Listing:

1.   Teaser   2.   Play Dirty   3.   Annie   4.   Hungry   5.   If You Wanna Rock   6.   Love Child   7.   After The War   8.   Saturday Night   9.   Hollywood Dream   10.   Kick 'n' Fight   11.   Help Me

Fletchanator's comment: Just as LA's Sunset Strip was the mecca of sleazy hard rock in the 80s, that role has now been taken over by Sweden. Since the turn of the millennium, the Scandanavian country has churned out a seemingly-endless supply of bands invoking the big hair and attitude of those early acts. Sleazy trio Loud 'N' Nasty are an example of that, forming in 1998 and putting out a string of great albums, this being their second.
I don't often post albums from the 2000s, but this one is pure 80s. There are no modern influences here, this sounds like it crawled out of an alley behind the Whiskey A Go Go sometime during Reagan's presidency. Ratt is the best comparison, mixed with some early Motley Crue, WASP and a smidge of Dokken.
This one is highly recommended - turn it up and party like it's 1984!

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Swedish Erotica - Swedish Erotica (1989)

Country: Sweden
Year: 1989
Line-up: Mats Leven (vocals), Magnus Axx (guitars), Morgan LeFay (guitars), Johnny D'Fox (bass), BC Strike (drums)

Track Listing:

1.   Rock N' Roll City   2.   Love on the Line   3.   We're Wild, Young and Free   4.   Hollywood Dreams   5.   Love Hunger   6.   Love Me or Leave Me   7.   Downtown   8.   She Drives Me Crazy   9.   Loaded Gun   10.   Rip It Off   11.   Break the Walls bonus track   12.   Hollywood Dreams (acoustic version) bonus track

Fletchanator's comment: Pure and simple, Swedish Erotica's self-titled debut is one of the best examples of late 80s hard rock done right. It's a shame that this band doesn't get mentioned alongside the "big names" of the genre, because they're just as good. Their second album, in 1995, was heavier and had a different singer, best to avoid that one and listen to this instead.
The sound on this album is awesome, from the anthemic We're Wild, Young and Free to the ballad Hollywood Dreams, there aren't any bad songs among the bunch. What really puts it above a lot of other albums from this time is Mats Leven's voice. Leven - who went on to sing with Treat and Yngwie Malmsteen for an album each while also fronting symphonic metallers Therion and doom merchants Candlemass (a gig he still has) - is quite simply one of the best singers in hard rock, up there with Sebastian Bach.
I can't recommend this one highly enough! Turn it up and rock out!

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Madison - Diamond Mistress (1984)

Country: Sweden
Year: 1984
Line-up: Goran Edman (vocals), Anders Karlsson (guitars), Dan Stomberg (guitars), Conny Sundqvist (bass), Peter Fredricksson (drums)

Track Listing:

1.   Lay Down Your Arms   2.   Run Boy   3.   Sneaker   4.   Don't Look Around   5.   Pictures Return   6.   Diamond Mistress   7.   Don't Go   8.   Squealer   9.   Changes   10.   Turn Me Loose

Fletchanator's comment: Swedish singer Goran Edman is one of the busiest men in hard rock, having fronted bands ranging from Brazen Abbot to Street Talk, AOR to Glory, while also having sung on albums by Yngwie Malmsteen and ex-Europe guitarist John Norum. But this is where it all started, with Madison. If you're familiar with Goran's voice you know what to expect, and here it's at its very best.
Madison play a great brand of melodic hard rock, sometimes bordering on melodic heavy metal, that sounds like a mix between classic Dokken and early Europe. If you like those bands, you'll love this!

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Treat - Scratch and Bite (1985)

Country: Sweden
Year: 1985
Line-up: Robert Ernlund (vocals), Anders Wikstrom (guitars), Joe Larson (bass), Jamie Borger (drums), Patrick Appelgren (keyboards)

Track listing:

1.   Changes   2.   Scratch and Bite   3.   Get You on the Run   4.   Hidin'   5.   Too Wild   6.   We Are One   7.   No Room for Strangers   8.   You Got Me   9.   Run With the Fire

Fletchanator's comment: Along with their more famous compatriots, Europe, Treat were among the best of Sweden's late 80s hard rock/AOR acts, releasing six albums between 1985 and 1992. This is their debut and while it's not their best album it's a pretty good mix of keyboard-laced AOR and rockier tunes. It's easy to compare them with Europe, but there's also elements of early Bon Jovi and Def Leppard. The songwriting isn't the strongest but if you like keyboards and gang vocals this will be right up your alley.

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Reckless - Reckless (1994)

 

Country: Sweden
Year: 1994
Line-up: Patrik Axelsson (vocals), Robert Monegrim (guitar), Magnus Ostborg (bass), Johan Romert (keyboards), Stefan Orhamn (drums).

Track listing:

1.   Back in Town   4:05 2.   Mirror   3:15   3.   Livin' Without You   3:19 4.   Give Me Your Night   3:57 5.   Spirit of the Night   4:00 6.   Stay   3:08    7.   Got You On My Mind   4:52 8.   Get Excited/Rock the Nation   4:13 9.   Liar   4:07 10.   All Their Needs   3:23 11.   Crimes of Passion   3:48 12.   Give Her a Sign   3:57 13.   Can't Reach the Limit   4:08 14.   Living Without You bonus track   3:14 15.   Hot Sweet Lovin' bonus track   3:08 16.   Sally's Rime Give Her a Sign bonus track   0:26

Fletchanator's comment: The only full-length release by Swedish hard rockers Reckless, who offer a very polished sound. The guitar licks are great - this one definitely rocks, while keyboards add some AOR pomp to proceedings. Singer Axelsson has a voice that at times sounds like your typical hard rock vocalist, hitting all the high notes, but then at other times it has a raspy quality to it. Reckless remind me of a lot of other Swedish bands like Treat, Dalton and 220 Volt, with some Bonfire mixed in.
This CD was released by MTM Classix in 2004 and includes three bonus tracks - which are essentially the band's first EP.

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