The first I ever heard of these guys was on YouTube, and I really liked the song I heard, which as it happens is on this album and was the advance single from it, but I knew nothing about the band. I hunted down their, at the time, only album, and was disappointed that the track I had heard --- “What about my broken heart” --- wasn't on it. I was also a little let down by what I heard, but nevertheless once this album became available I went for it, hoping to hear more of what I had heard on YT.
Considering I only heard the one track before buying their first album --- and was less than impressed by it --- it's no stretch of the imagination to say that the improvement on their second is nothing short of staggering. Talk about coming on in leaps and bounds!
Murder of crows --- Human Temple --- 2010 (Escape Music)
As ever, a little background, since you're unlikely to know anything about this artiste. Human Temple come from Finland, and have only been together since 1998, but due to various things including shifting personnel they only managed to release their debut album, “Insomnia”, in 2004. Formed by Janne “Brother Cane” Hurme on vocals, EQ Saint playing bass, Petri “Hellhammer” Lehto (any guesses?) and Petri Kitti on guitar, Human Temple's lineup seems however to have proven --- and remains --- as fluid and changeable as the rate for the Euro, so all I can tell you is that the only original member of the band still with them is Hurme.
The album opens strongly with “Not my fault”, hard AOR with a great punchy guitar leading the way, Hurne's powerful clear vocals taking command, and like so many “foreigners”, I'm amazed at how perfect his English is. Okay, so it's the universal language of music, but there's not even a twang a la Michael Schenker or Udo Dirkschneider, or a hundred other non-English-speaking rock vocalists. If I hadn't known they come from Finland I would have just assumed they hailed from somewhere like the US or England. As an opener, “Not my fault” is about as catchy as you could want, very commercial and with some great hooks, but heavy enough to shy away from the lighter aspects of AOR like Journey and Asia.
“Empty stages” keeps the power up, with a great idea about how fame can be fleeting:
”When the stages are empty/ And no-one's screaming your name”: some really smooth guitar allies to pumping keyboards and takes us into “Just one night”, with a great line in keys, and almost Bon Jovi circa 1984, before they got too commercial and successful. “Promised land” starts on a single, picked and echoey guitar, almost like a banjo, and moves along as a sort of country/hillbilly cross with blues/gospel vocals from Hurme, while guitarist Frank de Funk (what a great name!) keeps the song firmly in bluegrass territory until it punches up into a full rockout, with a great keyboard solo from Jori Tojander. It's pretty epic, being the longest track on the album at just over six and a half minutes.
Atmospheric synth and tinkling keys introduce “Lie”, sounding very Europe (the band, not the continent) in places. Janne Hurme certainly knows how to write a great song, as every track here is written by him, except for the closer, on which he collaborates with someone called Pertti Renko. And the highs just keep coming: not a bad track so far, and we're more than halfway through the album. “Yours cold blooded” is another song that would just sound great on the radio (and why is this not happening?), and indeed any of those which have gone before could be hits, with the possible exception of “Promised land”, and I only exclude it due to the length: perhaps if they cut out the guitar and vocal intro? But then, that's such an integral part of the song...
We haven't had a ballad yet; if that's taken as any sort of criticism of this band it's not meant as such. I'd just like to see how Human Temple handle a slower song, as I feel it could be very special indeed. But “Ghost of you” is another rocker, and keeps up the high quality that really you shouldn't be expecting to get from a band as comparatively unknown as this one, but hell, they're putting a lot of established rock and AOR bands to shame with this release! “Emily” is their hardest-rocking to date, the guys raising their game a few notches beyond what is already mightily impressive to belt out a real headshaker, perhaps a little less of the gorgeous melodic rock we've been used to up to now, but a really cool change of pace, and it shows Human Temple aren't afraid to cut loose and really rock the house (or temple!).
There won't be any ballads. Not really. “Secret” is another AOR gem, with some really new-wave keyboards and a great line in guitar, some excellent backing vocals, and then unbelievably, disappointingly, we're at the end, with the closer being the song that first attracted me to this fine band. “What about my broken heart” has everything: melody, power, hooks, clear and concise vocals, great guitar solo, the sweetest little keyboard intro you've ever heard: it's a great crime this wasn't a huge hit all over the world. In its own way I guess it's a ballad, but more a power/semi-ballad than an actual slow song, but without question a great closer to a great, great album.
It's taken Human Temple a long time to push out two albums, but I hope it won't take too much longer before they get a new release out, as I'm eager to explore this band's music a whole lot more. Oh yeah, just in case you wondered, I
will be going back to listen to their debut a few more times.
TRACKLISTING
1. Not my fault
2. Empty stages
3. Just one night
4. Promised land
5. Lie
6. Yours cold blooded
7. Ghost of you
8. Emily
9. Secret
10. What about my broken heart