Saffire – Where the Monsters Dwell

6/10

Having been a die-hard Deep Purple fan since way back (and I am quite old), it is easy to hear from which school of rock Saffire find their inspiration. Or, is it more than inspiration?

Their third album Where Monsters Dwell starts off with a classic distorted Hammond intro that really get some expectations going. But there are no glissandos or screaming Leslie cabinets. By that, the intro is actually perfect on what to expect on what to come. Saffire serves a quite tasty soup boiled on the skin and bones from a few white snakes. The heritage is more than obvious and they carry it out well, to perfection I would say. The playing goes from impeccable to  impressive and the rather catchy melodies are brilliantly carried out by Tobias Jansson. Even the sound is perfect. So why don’t I sing along? Why don’t I pick up my air guitar?

Well, I am not sure that perfection is what rock music is all about. Sure, in my opinion timing and pitch is quite important to make a song come across. But perfection also kills surprise. I would love to see these young Swedes dare a little bit more, cross some lines and take me by surprise on at least one of the eleven tracks. At the end of the day, rock is about breaking some rules, isn’t it?

Artist: Saffire
Title: Where Monsters Dwell
Stand out Track: Hard To Keep, Hard To Find
Label: Perris Records
Date of release: 20/4-18
Rate: 6/10