Joe Lynn Turner – Belly Of The Beast
Joe Lynn Turner – Belly Of The Beast
Music Theories Recordings/Mascot Label Group
Release Date: 28/10/22
Running Time: 50:11
Review by Simon Black
10/10
Joe Lynn Turner is, like fellow under-rated lungs man Graham Bonnett, a man known first and foremost for his contribution to the revolving door that was 70’s and 80’s supergroup Rainbow, which made everyone passing by the mike stand into a global name no matter how brief their stint behind that mighty stand (although to be fair he lasted as long as Dio did and was there for their biggest chart success in ‘I Surrender’). Both though, have suffered from the millstone that was success with that act and the fact that it eclipsed anything else either of them did before or after.
To be fair the last time Turner crossed my radar was during his stint with Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force – a match apparently made at label Polydor’s suggestion and not one driven by any love between the two. My overarching memory I have from a live show from the “Odyssey” tour at the fag end of the 80’s was Turner came across as immensely frustrated on stage, whilst singing his heart out and trying to act like a professional whilst a petulant Malmsteen hogged the limelight. Expecting to be given a bit more of an equal billing given his pedigree, he found himself constantly pushed to the edge of Rock City in Nottingham’s tiny stage by Malmsteen’s ego and theatrics, lest he end up losing an eye to a machine head. Or indeed a hair piece as it turned out…
Although to be fair, at that point I have to confess to being more interested in watching the interplay between Malmsteen and the utterly fantastic Jens Johansson in their heyday (not to mention an unknown support band from Newcastle called The Quireboys who blew all of them offstage), but Turner was top notch live and at the time it was the stimulus to go and listen more to his period with Blackmore, which had largely passed me by at that time rather than anything by Malmsteen.
So, sorry Joe, but I’ve had some catching up to do, and I suspect a few of you may too. So, you may well have noticed from the header of this page that I have chosen to give this release one of my scarce and precious top dollar scores – something I don’t do often, and with good reason. He’s been releasing solo material for a while, and a quick spin through the back catalogue indicates exactly what you would expect, but why is this is special enough to deserve that score?
For a start, this sounds deeper, darker and heavier than anything I have heard Joe Lynn Turner put his name to before. The reason for that, and the lynchpin of this release, is that it’s a collaboration with the versatile Swedish multi-instrumentalist and producer Peter Tägtgren (best known for his contributions to Death Metal act Hypocrisy, Industrial act Pain and the other founding half of what Rammstein frontman Till Lindemann does when he’s bored). In many ways this is more of a supergroup project than a Turner solo album when you look at everyone the pair of them have worked with between them, but I don’t care how they market it, because it’s a fantastic piece of music from start to finish.
It is perhaps apt that at this point in his career, Turner has chosen to ditch the trademark coiffured barnet wig and embrace the reality of his bold, brave and beautifully bald bonce. And all power to him for doing so. What I had not appreciated until this point, was that actually he has been suffering with alopecia all the way through his life and career, and not felt confident enough to be himself until now.
Good for you mate. And do you know what? This album feels like a celebration of that self-worth.
Like I said, it’s not what you expect and therefore unlike anything else in his back catalogue. It feels like this collaboration has unleashed a deep, dark and rich vein of profoundly raw, personal emotion and damned fine song-writing that has lain untapped for too long, for fear that it goes against the establish JLT brand and sound. Well, it’s never too late to realise your true potential, and this album most spectacularly does that.
Musically the influence of Tägtgren hits you in the face from the get-go, fusing uniquely the kind of Hard Rock arrangements and riffage with a dark, down-tuned and dirty Industrial flavour that punches you round the head with a couple of dirty gold bricks exactly the same way the best of Nine Inch Nails or Killing Joke do when their on top of their game. That means catchy hooks and arrangements, in a dark and brutal oily Industrial sauce, whilst still sounding like a Hard Rock / Melodic Metal album. That massive contradiction is no mean feat to pull off, creating darkness and depth whilst still retaining poignant Melodic catchiness on each and every song.
And then there’s Joe’s performance itself.
Like the music, he has taken a gruffer and rougher style of delivery, whilst losing not one iota of his significant vocal range. Yes, the clean notes scale beautifully high and melodically, but there’s a rough ‘n’ roll gruffness to the delivery that comes completely from left field, fits the musical tone like a hand in a dirty leather studded glove and punches you on the chops when you least expect it. From the dark and brutal opening title track, a song born out of the feelings of fear and apocalyptic gloom the pandemic brought, this album does not let up for the whole of its 50 minutes. Even the more slow and moody closer ‘Requiem’ packs a punch, despite being possibly the weakest song on here, but you neither notice or care by this point because this absolutely does not feel like it’s coming from a man who has clocked up a whopping total of 40 album releases up to this point.
What it is a deep, dark and utterly wonderful rebirth of a man who has been overlooked for far too long. Now please get out on the road soon and prove it to us. So, do I regret my ten out of ten score? Yes, I do, and that’s only because I cannot turn it up to 11…
‘Belly Of The Beast’ Official Lyric Video
TRACKLISTING:
01. Belly of the Beast
02. Black Sun
03. Tortured Soul
04. Rise Up
05. Dark Night of the Soul
06. Tears of Blood
07. Desire
08. Don’t Fear the Dark
09. Fallen World
10. Living the Dream
11. Requiem
LINE-UP:
Joe Lynn Turner – Vocals
Peter Tägtgren – Guitars, Bass & Programming
Sebastian Tägtgren – Drums
Love Magnusson – Guitar solos
LINKS:
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