Review from Lords of Metal (Holland)

Rating 95/100

Jan-Simon: Normally I read press releases that accompany new CD’s with a bit of distrust. Of course this is a wonderful album with fantastic songs played by accomplished and inspired musicians who have worked with the best of the best, recorded by a top producer, etcetera, etcetera. It is logical, if I had to do the PR for a band I would not write that this might be a nice record to perhaps play once as musical wallpaper either…

So when I read the info that was delivered with the debut-CD (well, sort of, more about this later) by Switch Opens my first thoughts were: yeah, sure. But I must admit, every word was true this time. I quote: “Switch Opens songs range from psychedelic doom to raw punk energy, all on a solid foundation of heavy progressive rock. Every song has its own, clear identity, brim filled with original hooks, yet with a patented bass heavy, warm, vibrating sound running through the record.” Perhaps you can gripe about the style, I can only confirm its contents. Switch Opens have made an bum with a few unique characteristics: as soon as you start it, you are sucked into a maelstrom of riffs and hooks and you can do nothing but turn up the volume. This is music to experience, full blast. My girlfriend is not such a fan of Switch Opens for that matter. For some reason she does not like the sound of happily marching crockery in the cupboard…

The Swedes of Switch Opens are no newcomers, although you might think so by the idea of a debut. They started out as Fingerspitzengefühl and by that name they released two albums, before they finally realized in 2008 that their name was not really helpful while pursuing an international career. So they chose Switch Opens, and were promptly asked to support Neurosis during their latest Scandinavian tour. You can say what you like about Neurosis (they are great, or they bring an unimaginative Ravensburger-painting by numbers sort of music because of their template-like way of working), they do know how to find talent.

The eponymous CD that has been released now holds eight long tracks. Sometimes such long tracks make you tired. After five minutes you start checking your watch. How much longer? It is not the case for Switch Opens, somewhere halfway ‘Pyramids’, the second song on the CD, you notice that you lost count of all the riffs you have heard in the past ten minutes, not to mention all the breaks and timechanges or the actual drumsolo you find yourself in the midst of. And the beautiful ting is, it may be a lot, it is all fitting, no overkill. Later on, in ‘He Dives Down’ we even hear vague oriental melodies and although it sounds fine, after the overwhelming start of the album it is the first moment the CD slumps a bit. It only shows Switch Opens is human too, the level of perfection shown in the earlier parts made me doubt. They continue with songs that sound like a punked up version of Motörhead and organically change in an even more proggy Mastodon, including mellotrons. All with the characteristic downtuned guitars and bass sound.

So here we have another discovery from Sweden, the country that has so much more to offer than Pippi Longstockings and Abba. Listen to this CD!

Lords of Metal