Eclipse’s “MEGALOMANIUM II” Album Review - Now, this is more like it!
If you haven’t heard of the underrated hard rock group Eclipse, you do now. Reigning from Stockholm, Sweden, these melodic monoliths originated in 1999 and, after two below-average debut records, reached their musical identity in the late 2000s. From that point forward, they’ve peaked with some of the most hair-raising, fist-punching albums of their careers with songs inspired by multiple genres from metal and pop. To this very day, I still get incredibly nostalgic listening to tracks from albums like Bleed & Scream, Armageddonize and Momentum. If you haven’t checked out albums from what I call “The Skull Era”, nothing is stopping you from doing so.
As the years went by, changes to the band were made. During the time 2019’s Paradigm was in production, vocalist Erik Mårtensson and lead guitarist Magnus Henriksson brought Victor Crusner in as their bassist, joining his brother (I assume) Philip Crusner, who’s been the group’s drummer since 2015. After releasing 2021’s Wired, our ragtag team of heavy rock warriors introduced us to 2023’s Megalomanium.
As excited as I was to see a new Eclipse album coming out, I have to be complete with myself by saying that upon many repeated listenings, the first Megalomanium didn’t and still doesn’t impress me all that much. There are some great songs to be had, but even when listening to it for another time I felt like something was off about this album. It’s like they sacrificed their quality songwriting for critical success and commerciality. Despite the powerful production, the instrumentation felt run-of-the-mill and uninspired, some tracks felt like they'd been borrowed from other songs.
What surprised me is that the band themselves, specifically Erik Martensson himself, stated in a press release that a sequel would be in the works. Cautious as I was, I didn’t know if they would repeat the same errors as before or would finally return to the good old days of what they were before. I’m happy to reply that they chose the latter.
Megalomanium II feels like a grand fusion between the ‘Skull Era’ records and Wired; . The ingredients are all there: the magical production is present and accounted for, the songwriting is much improved, the instrumentation is near top notch and the choruses are fantastic (sometimes). When ranking their albums of the 2020s, this one might rank above Wired and it showcases itself as a major step in the right direction after an above-average part one.
In the beginning, the first single “Apocalypse Blues” explodes with delight. From the start of Philip Crusner’s pummeling percussion to Henriksson’s window-shattering guitar work at the end. The second single “Falling to My Knees” is the bee's knees (I regret nothing). Chugging riffs, a wonderful chorus; this track has it all.
But when it comes to highlights, you won’t be prepared for how awesome the second-half tracks of Megalomanium II are. Where do I even start? The vengeful, western-inspired track
“Until the War is Over”, beautiful ballads like “Dive Into You” and “To Say Goodbye”, the rebellious “Divide & Conquer” in which every riff and drum beat sounds like a satisfying punch in the face?
As if those albums didn’t raise the hairs on every part of your body, the phenomenal closer “One in a Million” raises your soul to the heavens. What an unbelievable way to close the album; a final mid-paced track that I haven’t loved so much since Momentum’s “Black Rain”.
A special nod also goes to the fifth track of the vinyl; the emotional, bittersweet single, “Still My Hero”, a number dedicated to Erik’s father who passed away in 2014. You can imagine how personal this song is for the lead vocalist. Every note of the song, including the vocals of Erik himself, makes one imagine all of the cherished memories they’ve had with their dad.
There isn’t a ton I have to say regarding the problems of the album. Though, if I were, it would be the following. Numbers like “All I Want” and “The Spark” are just okay. For the former, it’s a competent fast-paced love song that kind of resembles similar grievances I’ve had with part one’s “Got It!”; sound and instrumentation that sounds like it came from a Paramore record. As for “The Spark” I admire the experimentation of electronic and heavy metal and I dig the opening riffs, but when you melt the bells and whistles, what you have is a very standard single with take-it-or-leave-it lyrics that ranks as the weakest of the four singles.
Whereas Part One was a disappointment to a degree, despite its redeeming values, Megalomanium II makes up for all of the misgivings I’ve had for the original. It’s not a magnum opus, like Bleed & Scream or Momentum, but it’s still an exceptional effort from the hard-rockin’ Swedes showing us that they have what it takes to be regarded as titans of the rock and metal genre.
Hey Eclipse, if you are making moves for a US Tour, hope to see you in Texas.
RATING: 8.5/10
