New album from the much loved ones The Quill, and just when I heard the first few seconds of the introductory piece “Stone Believer,” I realized how much I missed the voice of the talented and unique Magnus Ekwall. Not that I didn’t want to listen to the rest of the band in new material, since The Quill is an active band in recent years. Whatever it is, I think Magnus is one of the most gifted singers ever made by Sweden. The band’s return to musical events, in addition to returning to the classic line-up (Karlsson, Nilsson, Ekwall, Atlagic), marks and defines their musical stigma back in time, somewhere between “Voodoo Caravan” and “Hooray! It’s a Deathtrip”, in 2002-2003. Years that make up their musical culmination. It’s not that their last two albums (“Full Circle” and “Tiger Blood”) were not good, anyway. Just another singer was involved, as Magnus had left for some time. “Born From Fire” then brings the band back to its old glamor and contains all the features that made it widely known. The sound is extremely compact, the compositions are quite inspirational, the groove (“Keep it together”, “The Spirit and the Spark”) and the interpretations on the vocals are the authentic The Quill interpretations that their fans loved! Bassist Roger Nilsson and drummer Jolle Atlagic compose a robust rhythm section that reminds of the good old days and is the basis for their groove feature which is their trademark. Guitarist Christian Karlsson with his characteristic passion contributes most to this “back to the future” album, and you cannot help loving it, if you like the old The Quill. With music from Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep and Deep Purple, the feel of the album is amazing, and of course the one who steals the show is Magnus Ekwall, who plays the new material remarkably and re-energizes the audience’s interest. Songs like “Set Free Black Crow” or “Hollow of Your Hand” are a tangible proof of the latter, another proof of the original DNA of The Quill, which remained unchanged over time. So now it’s the right time for you to enjoy state-of-the-art Swedish heavy rock! Hail the new (old) The Quill!
→ 8/10
Antonis Mantzavinos
