Sweden must have something in the water -- or at the very least, something near Gothenburg -- when it comes to creating brilliantly exuberant, happily trashy, devil-may-care metal and hard rock that never, ever, misses a great hook, and
Spiders are just another excellent entry into the country's, and that particular city's, overall legacy. But saying "just" understates a bit -- part of the charm of
Flash Point is how with the help of
Ann-Sofie Hoyles on vocals they find a sweet spot between early-'70s heavy riffage and mystic singing -- the impact of
Jefferson Airplane and Coven continues after all this time -- and barnburning NWOBHM efforts like the mighty
Girlschool. (If anything the connecting factor might just be
Lemmy -- the opening of "Hang Man" suggests that much -- and what better person to have as a totemic figure, after all?) Everything crashes into gear with the good-time rock & roll of "Weekend Nights," all tight grooves and flair, exuberant singing, and
Spinal Tap soloing -- and that's meant very much as praise. There are chunky and spiky numbers like "Love Me," the energetic kick of "Fraction," and the great swagger of "Loss and Trouble" when it comes to singling out some stand-out choices. A song like "Above the Sky" brings out the slower, doomier side of the band a bit -- not too much, but just enough to add some extra atmosphere -- but it's hard to stay gloomy when "Hard to Keep True" busts out the harmonica on top of everything else. ~ Ned Raggett