Review: Arkado – III

Pride & Joy Music – November 13^th, 2026

Reviewer – Jason Hopper

Arkado is a band that I would consider to be new to the ever-growing Swedish melodic rock scene, but their roots go back 40 years to the early 80s. A group of friends playing locally that disbanded in 1988, then all reuniting and naming the band Arkado in 2018. They are set to release their third album in the span of four years. If you like the sound of bands like Crowne, H.E.A.T., and Nitrate, then this band is going to be right up your alley.

I usually start my reviews with the opening track, but I gotta put the best track at the top here.  ‘Forever Younghearts’, which was wisely released as a single, will surely make the Top 10 songs list of most lovers of the genre. A spectacular chorus that will activate a dopamine spike in your brain, and that’s a guarantee! Go check it out immediately after reading this review to see what I’m talking about.

Back to the beginning, opener ‘A Little Too Late’ is Swedish melodic rock at its finest form. It has everything you want from a band from this region. A fabulous high energy rhythm, stand out key strikes at just the right moments, and a chorus with a hook so big you could hang your clothes on it.

I’m going to reference a newer band with Track 2’s ‘We Keep Climbing’. The construct has a Levara feel to it. It’s the first band that came to mind when I heard the track. More AOR and not as bombastic as the opener, it’s still rocks with a bit of a darker chord progression that wisely uplifts at all the right moments.

‘Crown of Lies’ speeds things back up with an intense keyboard and powerful drumming to open the track and the intensity only periodically lets up to add the proper dynamics to the track. Another winning track here.

As of this writing, the band just released ‘Victoria’, which like many songs on this album, has that uplifting, higher key chorus which is an aural sweet spot. This juxtaposition between the verses and chorus is what makes me love this style of music as much as I do.

‘Sad Clown’ is the one ballad, placed smack in the middle of the album, that breaks up the album nicely. Unfortunately, it’s also the weakest track. It’s got good lyrics and a decent rhythm.  It’s one of the few songs that has a weak chorus.  Not all the words rhyme and there’s a bit too much emoting for my taste.

The second half of the album contains the superior track ‘Forever Younghearts’ and has songs that are just as strong as those on the first half. Some favorites include ‘Phoenix & Stardust’, which features a duet with Zhiva singer Anette Johansson and their voices mesh well together.  Admittedly it was hard to pick one more track to brag about as they’re all great, so I’ll go with ‘Heart Full of Thunder’ as it’s a powerful closer to an incredibly strong album.

This is premium Swedish melodic rock. What is most impressive is how this is a band that all have ties together going back to the 80s and have never lost that sense of melodicism from that decade.  I’m reminded of the band Nestor, which has a similar backstory. If you love that keyboard laden, guitar blazin’, hard rock sound made by all those other Swiss bands, then add one more to your repertoire. This is an album that needs to be owned by you for sure.

Track list: 

1. A Little Too Late
2. We Keep Climbing
3. Crown of Lies
4. Hourglass
5. Victoria
6. Sad Clown
7. Phoenix & Stardust
8. Forever Younghearts
9. Too Much To Handle
10. Rockstar
11. Heart Full Of Thunder

Line-up:

Philip Lindstrand – Lead Vocals & Acoustic Guitar

Tony Rohtla – Lead & Rhythm Guitar

Patrik Svärd – Lead & Rhythm Guitar

Mikael Svensson – Keyboards

Christer Engholm – Bass

Mikael Skafar – Drums

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