Jono - Silence

Jono Silence cover
Jono
Silence
Jono Music
2015
9
This was one of the finest surprises of this summer. Jono returned with their third (and most important) album, 2 years after “Requiem”. The band is fairly known for their musical blending of Queen, ELO, Pink Floyd, Supertramp & Toto among others. In other words, just imagine symphonic rock, with progressive, AOR and classic rock elements along with theatrical & pomp sensibilities. I know it sounds rather promising but believe me the final outcome is even more enthralling than any description…
 
These Swedish guys have topped the game with “Silence”. The Queen lovers will be captivated and even feel somehow nostalgic. One of the band’s strongest points is the catchy hooklines on every track. Sometimes more AOR-like, others more bombastic and theatrical but all you get is strong melodies to sing along. The band has also worked meticulously on the song arrangements as well. Of course, their production is crystal clear and full. The album was produced by the band itself and mixed by their guitarist Stefan Helleblad (Within Temptation).
 
Once again the band’s mastermind, vocalist and songwriter Johan Norrby has come up with some amazing song ideas… on which they worked all together with the other guys from the band so that the outcome can be absorbing in the end. All the 10 tracks are carefully arranged to get the best out of them musically and lyrically. My beloved track is probably “Opus”, which it is an opus indeed! This is one of the very few times that 40 minutes of music seem too little … thank God there’s the choice of going all over it again and again. That’s another way to know when an album is truly worth your time & money… when you can’t get enough of it!
 
From the moment you play this album, you will go all the way for each new track will offer you something different and flavorsome. Aside from the great performances, the songwriting is consistent, creative and artistic in any way. It’s not that easy to find such great music in our time; music that has something of the charm that mostly rock albums in the 70s/80s had! All in all, “Silence” is a splendid album… among the top rock albums of 2015!