I woke up early this morning, with the thoughts of getting this review written and pressing on with my day. As I am in the habit of doing, I threw on the new record from CONFESS, "Burn 'Em All," just as a final listen before cementing any kind of opinion I had formed already... and promptly fell asleep (it was 3:30AM, Eastern Standard Time, so cut me a little slack). I dreamed it was 1987. Grunge had never happened, and we metalheads were still the Kings and Queens we had always been in the musical world. As a matter of fact, I remember distinctly hearing someone utter the words "Kurt fucking who?" as the dream was winding down; then Lita Ford came along with a huge smile on her face... and I woke up. Dammit. That's what this record will do to you.

CONFESS is a five-piece Hard Rock/Sleaze Metal band out of Stockholm, Sweden. "Burn 'Em All" is their third official studio record, following up 2014's "Jail" and 2017's "Haunters," and their fourth overall. They are great musical craftsmen, have a reputation as an incredible live act, and all things said, are just the thing the metal world needs to kick it in its ass and get the train rollin' one more time.

This record kicks off solidly with "So What?", which has a feeling not unlike what you would get from a GUNS 'N ROSES or later KIX record. It has that kick, with amazing guitar work and the swaggering vocals that we have all come to cherish from those mid to late eighties' releases. The band holds nothing back whatsoever; diving in head-first and never looking back.

The second track, "Malleus," centered around the witch hunts of Europe and the Puritan "New World," is full of dark imagery and is certainly VERY heavy. It is also one of the most musically impressive cuts on the record. In particular, I found the keyboard-like guitar leads running through the chorus an amazing touch. The guitar work throughout this tune is also fantastic, especially in the twin solo section. Both guitarists are fast, melodious, and nasty enough to get the point across. The writing on this one is certainly of note as well.

Progressing on, we have the softer feel of "Welcome Insanity," a particularly well written piece, and an opportunity to hear Pontus and Blomman take their foot off the gas, ever so slightly, for a moment. As mentioned, the writing here, as well as on the other tracks, is very solid. This song follows with a tad more of the dark imagery of the aforementioned "Malleus," with the noted difference being the palette it is presented upon.

There are several highlights to be found here. "Is it Love" is another power ballad, featuring a tasty guitar solo; and from the moment the first riffs of "My Vicious Way" sounded, I was completely hooked. To sum it all up, I bring the song "A Beautiful Mind" to your attention. When a song this heavy opens with the lyrics "Hey, motherfucker, if we wait too long, now we will see if we were right or wrong..." and carries that title, you can't possibly go wrong. There is some great shit coming out of Sweden these days. CONFESS, in my opinion, could be the ringleader.