By Vinnie Apicella

This stunning compilation does exactly what it says it will-focus on those groundbreaking Swedish acts of yesterday while exemplifying the overwhelming talent of today's top Swedish performers whose contributions to the metal scene have grown beyond compare! Indeed, while North American fans have long reveled in the exploits of their own heroes as well as those of the NWOBHM variety, on the other side of the Atlantic, there was a Scandinavian uprising that paralleled those movements in kind. "Sweden Rocks the World" features fifteen tracks by the cream of the crop of metal talents, mostly well known to the listening audience, perhaps a few lesser known, but all worked together in perfect unison. The covered material stems mainly from the music of the 80's, with only "Mount Everest", originally performed by November in 1970, and here given a thorough working over by The Quill. Deserving to be first in order of appearance are the incomparable In Flames covering Treat's "World of Promises", turning up the heat full blast and engulfing the original completely with their powerful brand of melodic/speed that continues to solidify their position as the class of the metal elite. Lost Souls does a scathing version of Agony's "Deadly Legacy", here given about a ten year update, while Locomotive Breath… Locomotive Breath? Well, anyway they do an ancient cover of the Swedish pop metal pioneers Europe's "Scream of Anger", originally appearing on '84's "Wings of Tomorrow" and quite unlike anything you may have thought Europe capable of… Or basically its uncharacteristically heavy, something probably more attributable to their donors! Sludge-rock faves Entombed make a well placed appearance and settle things down in the form of "Albino Flogged in Black", a real blanket thrown over the burning fire three songs prior, it's a cover of Stillborn, yet another unknown to me, and given the full body wrap treatment! On that note, Transport League arrives at number six here doing "Crazy Sioux" originally by Glorious Bankrobbers-no and no on both counts-and is it just me or do they sound more like Entombed than Entombed themselves? What appears to be a two man show, Glory tackles an old favorite from Malmsteen recalling his "Trilogy" release from '86 and "You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget," giving it what is perhaps the biggest facelift among these covers in an all-acoustic symphonic parlance set to diva-like vocals in the finest Celine Dion tradition… with a little pinch and dash of Paul Young thrown in the mix. The Crown does the Bathory classic "Burnin' Leather"-and who would've thought the song could ever hold the significance it's been forced to reveal after all this time! Up and down the list, there's much to be impressed with… but then again, true fans of metal already knew this. What you might not have known are how good the original songs were by the original artists who created them and for bringing them out to the forefront-yes, Swedish metal began long before and not to diminish their significance, meant so much more than only Europe and Malmsteen! To the creators, producers and artists that contributed to this high quality audio documentary of otherwise low profile Swedish bands of the past, take a bow! "Sweden Rocks the World" is an enlightening journey that merges past and present to make Power from the North the unstoppable force it has become today!

More from the Online Metal Journal