SHOW ME HOW TO LIVE

The most intriguing aspect of this album is the fact that singer D C Cooper is back to the band that had launched his career. And, coincidence or not, Royal Hunt never had the been the same since he left. Nor was he capable of doing something as remarkable, solo or with his many side projects. So it was a bit natural that one day or another they´d try to do something together again. And that´s the dilema I was facing. Should I get the album and find if the magic was still there? Or should I forget it all and keep the good memories I had of this great band in the 90´s, avoiding the chance of a big disappointment? In the end I decided to take my chances into getting the new CD.

And it was worth it!! I don´t know if it was Cooper´s presence, or Andre Andersen´s renewed inspiration for great, bombastic and melodic tunes (maybe a combination fo the two), but Show Me Hot to Live is their best album since the masterpiece Paradox. It´s absolute unbelievable how D C´s vocals fit into the music like a glove. It´s a pity that this reunion did not include other members of the classic line up (bar drummer Allan Sorensen, who´s been with them since Paradox). But you´ll hardly notice: new guitarrist Jonas Larsen is a brilliant musician and his style is quite close to that of Jacob Kjaer. And all the group´s trademarks are there: Andersen´s symphonic keyboards, the great chorus reinforced by female backing vocals, the inspired guitar solos and the terrific rhythm section. Above all, of course, D C Cooper shows why he is one of the best all around singers of the world. He has lost none of his vocal prowness.

However, nothing would have worked so good without a good dose of great songs to match. And Andersen does deliver the goods: there is not a single bad moment in the whole CD. Only excellent, powerful and well arranged tunes that show the band in great shape. Ok, of course there is nothing really new or groundbreaking here. And the new stuff is not as fantastic as the Paradox, but I guess that would be asking for too much. The fact that the band, after all this time was capable of releasing such astonishing, convincing stuff is a feat on itself. I wish more bands could do that.

Production is top notch and the performances are spotless. There are no real highlights on this album, it´s all excellent, but I think the title track and Half Past Loneliness are excellent examples of classic RH tunes for future compilations.

Final rating: 4,5 stars. Highly recommended!