Certainly, such praise is deserved, as Nystrom definitely shares Bazilian’s ability to write guitar led, memorable pop-rock songs and ‘Leap Of Faith’ is brimming over with tunes that fit that bill.
Nystrom usually occupies himself by performing in the House Band for
a Swedish TV show, but songs like opener ‘That Dress You Used To Wear’
demonstrate that his ambitions stretch much further. With a sound
reminiscent of another notable Scandinavian artist Torstein Flakne, the
song’s perfect summery chorus and rootsy guitar work is a great introduction
to ‘Leap Of Faith’, and even though Nystrom isn’t doing anything particularly
new, songs like ‘The Mystery Begins’ and the outstanding ‘Welcome To My
World’ prove he is certainly doing it better than a lot of signed artists
out there in major label land.
What also sets Nystrom apart is his unique deep voice, which adds a real soulful, almost bluesy sound to such well crafted songs as the relaxed delights of ballad ‘Clean and Lazy Love’, the mid-paced ‘Work Of God’ and the song that caught Bazilian’s attention, ‘Mother Mercy’.
On the ballsy ‘Connection’, the swaggering ‘Had It With You’ and the rocking title track, Nystrom proves he is also able to crank the guitars up a notch or two, whilst the breezy acoustics of the closing track ‘Peace’ provide a pleasant contrast.
Cutting the track numbers by one or two might have made this album even more focused and impressive, but that’s a small gripe as Eddie Nystrom could quite conceivably be the latest in a long line of Swedish musicians with an ear for melody and a knack for radio-friendly songwriting.