Stockholm Showdown – Last Call To Paradise…2002 Rare CD

As requested, here’s in exclusive the now rare, hard to find album by STOCKHOLM SHOWDOWN, 2002’s “Last Call To Paradise…“.

Sweden’s STOCKHOLM SHOWDOWN was formed by ex- PRINCESS PANG members Stefan “Sterta” Byrstedt (vocals, guitar) and Ronnie “Roze” Johansson (bass, vocals). They have been writing songs together since the mid ’80s – these guys are no boy-scouts, they’ve “Seen it, been there, and done the whole kit”… and that can be heard on “Last Call To Paradise…”
Gone is the slickly produced pop metal, exchanged in favor of a more soulful hard rock sound in STOCKHOLM SHOWDOWN. The band at times comes across as a combination of Cheap Trick and Dogs D’amour. “Last Call To Paradise…” only packs 8 tracks, but no fillers, just rock solid performance from the beginning till the end.

Roze and Sterta take care of the composition on this album and they’re good at it. The frosting on the cake here is Slim Tannberg’s guitar solos – this man really catches your attention from the very first time with classy melodic riffs and a certain ’70s feeling in the solos. The band has a fine rhythm section and altogether this is a darn good rock album.

Sterta has a gritty voice similar to that of Rod Stewart (before he started crooning lounge tunes). The music is mostly midtempo hard rock, complete with great guitar solos and a killer rhythm section, a sound that would have easily found a place on radio playlists decades ago.
The disc kicks off with the exceptional “Wont You Mind Me Leavin’”, which is reminiscent of Cherry Street‘s “Deuces Wild” – complete with it’s laid back vocal approach and dueling guitars.

The real pleasure of the album though is the fact that even if a song doesn’t completely grab your attention, the catchy and sing-a-long choruses will be sure to, case in point “Moonlight Avenue.” The bass rhythms are always rolling, and the guitar sound crisp and clean.
The album is pretty straight forward rockin’, but if your looking for a ballad you will have a hard time finding one, “‘Bout A Thing Or Two” coming closest.

The lyric “I may take a chance, but I won’t sell my soul” pretty well sums up this album. The members of Stockholm Sweden have broadened their horizons without spewing forth the usual commercial drivel, choosing instead to sacrifice fame for musical integrity.
”Last Call To Paradise” is an entertaining listen and worth the price of admission. And has become a collectible.
Highly Recommended

1 Wont You Mind Me Leavin’ 4:31
2 Prince Of Prophets 3:47
3 ‘Bout A Thing Or Two 4:34
4 All I Wanna Do 3:45
5 Midnight Mission 4:22
6 No Compromise 4:30
7 Moonlight Avenue 2:58
8 Vanilla Skies 4:10

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