_{Sometimes you hear a cover version of a classic rock track and the response could range from cringing a little to outright revulsion. Other times, it can be almost a revelation, and sound as good, or even better than the original. My response to Jorn’s album “Heavy Rock Radio” which was released by Frontiers Records on 3rd June, definitely falls into the latter category. Having listened to previous cover versions released by Jorn over the years, I was expecting no less. In other words, there are cover versions and then there are Jorn Lande cover versions!!}

_{In my humble opinion, Jorn Lande must have one of the best voices in rock music and his name is a frequent feature in the album recommendations that I’ve been posting for the past four years. The Norwegian started off in the band Vagabond in the early 90’s before going on to form The Snakes with former Whitesnake guitarists Bernie Marsden and Micky Moody. He joined Masterplan in 2002, has been involved in Avantasia since 2007 and released a Dio tribute album in 2010 just before joining Heaven & Hell onstage at the High Voltage Festival for their tribute to RJD. Jorn has released 4 albums with Russell Allen from Symphony X (between 2005 – 2014) and a Dracula themed album with Trond Holter in 2015.}

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_{“Heavy Rock Radio” is the 11th Jorn solo studio album since 2000. There have also been a few ‘greatest hits’ albums and three live releases. A previous album of cover versions in 2007 was called “Unlocking The Past” and included 10 tracks originally by bands that Jorn Lande identified as influences – Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Bad Company etc.}

_{There are 12 tracks on the latest album and again it includes tracks by Deep Purple (“Stormbringer”) and Black Sabbath (“Die Young”) as well as a track by Dio (“Rainbow in the Dark”). There are also tracks by artists you might not expect, such as “I Know There’ Something Going On” by Frida (from Abba), “Live To Win” by Paul Stanley and “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush. I played the latter track on the Friday NI Rocks Show on 10th June and “Don’t Stop Believin” (Journey) on the Show on the 17th June.}

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_{The other 5 tracks on the album are “Rev On The Red Line” (Foreigner), “You’re The Voice” (John Farnham), “Killer Queen” (Queen), “Hotel California” (The Eagles) and “The Final Frontier” (Iron Maiden).}

_{Check out the Jorn Lande website - http://www.jornlande.com/}

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_{About “NI Rocks Recommends”}

_{The simple idea behind “NI Rocks Recommends” is to acknowledge and promote some of the great music being submitted to Rock Radio NI. I'll not be giving marks or ratings or analyzing the tracks in great detail; just telling you something about the artist and the album. It’s a personal recommendation to go check something out, not a traditional “review”!}

_{My musical tastes cover most things rock; from the not too melodic to the not too heavy. The albums that I’ll be recommending are those that you’ll hear me playing tracks from on my shows on Rock Radio NI.}

_{Check out NI Rocks on Facebook – www.facebook.com/NIRocks or Twitter - www.twitter.com/NIrelandRocks}

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