The Gathering

by Stewart MasonJorn Lande, a journeyman power metal singer from Norway, has recorded and toured with a wide variety of metal bands since his professional debut in the early '90s, along with his own on-again, off-again solo career. The Gathering, as its title implies, is a collection of remixes and re-recordings of solo material from the early years of Jorn's career. Given that Lande is working in a deliberately restrictive musical style -- pre-thrash classic-style metal -- that by design has not really changed much in sound or musical approach since before Metallica's Kill 'Em All came out, the age of this material is basically immaterial. Even the songs that are merely remixed from the original masters sound completely of a piece with Jorn's unapologetically retro vocal style, making The Gathering a perfect way for relative newcomers drawn in by Jorn's many stints as the lead singer of various metal bands to get caught up with the man's own metal muse.