Hardcore Superstar
Dreamin in a Casket

December 2007
Released: 2007, Gain/Sony BMG
Rating: 5.0/5
Reviewer: Anders Sandvall

The last masterpiece released by this Swedish glam/sleaze act was their self-titled fourth album which came out in 2005. I was blown away by the album and couldn’t believe that they would deliver one smashing album after the other but goddamn, they have! This is their fifth album and with DREAMIN IN A CASKET they prove once again that they are now the undisputed Swedish kings of sleaze/glam metal and rock’n’roll. When I saw them play in their hometown of Gothenburg at the Metaltown Festival this summer they played two new songs and the audience went crazy; I could already feel that something big was going to happen.

This disc is even rawer, dirtier, meaner and heavier than all their previous releases and it seems like they’ve found the magic formula. Silver has been given a lot more space in the mix for his stunning guitar playing which iss what I had been wanting for a long time. Their music is taken to another level by this guitar playing and it suits them like a glove. Sandvik on bass and Adde on drums are solid as a rock; I have never met such a hard hitting drummer as Adde. That man has muscles of steel. They’re the perfect back up team for Silver and Berg.

The first single “Bastards” isn’t amongst the 12 tracks because the band felt that they already had too many great songs, so that one didn’t make the final cut. It’s no loss though, because the rest of the songs are just as good as “Bastards”, if not better. They’ve twisted and turned to deliver such strong material and it feels like they’re much more confident in all musical aspects. The only thing the songs have lost is their catchy sing-a-long tendencies. The songs are still catchy and easy to remember, but it feels like they are more mature and not as catchy as before.

“Need No Company”, “Medicate Me”, “Sophisticated Ladies”, “Wake Up Dead In a Garbage Can”, “Spreading The News”, “This Is For The Mentally Damaged”, “Lesson In Violence”, “Sorry For The Shape I’m In” and “No Resistance” are the greatest songs and yes, I know that’s almost the entire album. This is how glam/sleaze should be done: with energy and passion. You can tell that they’re really passionate about what they are doing. The tempo calms down during “Dreamin In A Casket”, “Silence For The Peacefully” and “Sensitive To The Lights”, but they are still heavy, ass-kicking tracks.

I felt that their previous albums were a bit overproduced; the sound was a little too polished and I wanted it to be dirtier. The production is stunning; Sandvik, Adde and Roberto Laghi have done an amazing job. This is probably the best album in this genre this year. It’s a true lesson in violence.