Denmark has given us some of the best music in the past two decades from bands like Aqua, The Ravonettes, drummer Lars Ulrich from Metallica to the sentimental strains of the ever lovable Michael Learns To Rock.  MLTR as they are popularly known are back with their eight studio album ‘Scandinavia’ probably a lift from Deep Purple’s double live album ‘Scandinavian Nights’.

The sound of the album is close to their 90’s MLTR sound and would appeal to just about anyone who tunes into the band even for the first time. Their music which is a blend of Pop – rock is fresh, same piano based and light to heavy guitar instrumentation, nothing complex, making for a great listen. The impressive cd cover image of a wing of a plane at dusk goes to show that MLTR have travelled all over and their sunset days are far from them.

Mikkel Lentz who handles guitars, drummer Kare Wanscher and keyboardist - lead vocalist and songwriter Jascha Richter who make up MLTR, weave their sound gracefully, with Lentz’s guitar work holding a lot of style, sometimes forceful like in Shanghaid in Tokyo (with a close opening hook of their previous hit Wild Women) and Crazy World.  Any Way You Want It is a classic MLTR rock-ballad touch, while Hanging On tops more for its soothing feel and its lilting melody. The opening piano strains and Jascha’s vocals with the repetitious We are, we are work well with the beautiful and catchy tune. Heaven Is My Alibi is a soft rock ballad, while Icebreaker has a breezy wind of electric guitars playing in the background.

Jascha handles each song with a different touch, be it in a rocky edge on Shanghaid in Tokyo, or the simply beautiful Please Forgive Me that explores the father-child relationship. You have Crazy World that talks about the world we are living in. While early MLTR albums have revolved around themes of love, this time the nature of Jascha's lyrics has the usual love ballads, but their focus is on more aerial escapades, a slight deviation from the usual MLTR's love songs. But Jascha doesn’t disappoint, he puts in ballads like ‘Icebreaker’ where he talks about his frozen state when he croons “Icebreaker take me higher, Just hold your warm body next to mine, keep setting me on fire…” The album title song the slow and catchy ‘Scandinavia’ talks about the band flying in a jet from Asia back to their hometown in Scandinavia. Jascha goes slow on the song singing beautifully in a narrative… “The little mermaid in Copenhagen turns to gold in the morning sun, we are gently flying in from Asia, ‘cause we belong to Scandinavia”.

Any MLTR fan can recognize the intimacy of Jascha’s vocals, for they have become a trademark with fans who have heard their music time and time again. Jascha’s melodious vocal harmonies resonate on most of the album. Besides many have been lucky to attend their concerts when they came to India, not once but thrice. The strong bond has only hardened. On the album, Jascha’s vocals are as soothing as ever, fresh as they once were in the early 90’s. He puts his personal touch on all songs, fine tuning them to the best he can. On the opener Renovate my life he pushes his voice to bring out a message he wants to convey. He then slows down and gets mushy on ‘Any way you want it’, a fab ballad, with strong lyrics “baby you’re the master that I want to please…” Despite the strong language barrier, the band has taken the world by storm and once again bring an intimacy of which has to be heard to be felt.

At just 11 tracks, you’d surely not get much to complain on an MLTR album, and this goes for this album too. 'Renovate My Life' begins on a slow note, but builds up in time, and boasts of amazing guitar-work and varied instrumentation. The spacey up-tempo Space Commander is a twister here that shows a female commander in charge of a space ship. It’s got a dose of romance in it as well when you listen closely. The lyrics are filled with romance twirled cleverly in a whirlwind of fantasy. Crazy World, has a disco feel running through it, and is about a little girl. 'Scandinavia' is MLTR's tribute to their homeland while Shanghaid in Tokyo, the only high powered track, very peppy, shows MLTR in a new light, with MLTR using a fraction of a few seconds of the Tabla in the track.On Please Forgive Me'the band uses synthesizers, backed by a crisp acoustic guitar strum, and an addictive bass riff, and making it easily one of the best songs on this album. The only downer could be Make Me Feel that lacks the typical MLTR magic of melody.

Guitar solos, neat vocals and catchy melodies abound on the album. The band who has given us songs like The Actor, Nothing to Lose, That's Why (You Go Away) and lots more ballads, have at last made a replica of their original sound, which in turn makes it one of the better albums of MLTR after ‘Eternity’ (2009). All in all, a good, memorable package, good collaborative work from Jascha, Mikkel and Kåre. Despite many labeling them as easy listening, naïve, MLTR are still balladeers who still find favor with Asian music listeners. It’s no wonder then that their first music video Any Way You Want It features Nepal. Includes lyrics.

Rating; ****

Reviewed By Verus Ferreira