THOBIAS WIKLUND [Goran Edman & Johnny Gioeli lead vocals] – The Gates Of Heaven (2026), MP3+FLAC

Swedish guitarist and songwriter THOBIAS WIKLUND is member of classic metal bands Twilight Illusion and Nozanopra, but has a strong solo career as well. Straddling the line between melodic hard rock and neo-classical metal, the September 11, 2026 released third solo album from Wiklund, ”The Gates Of Heaven”, offers a new collection of classic material ranging from high-energy anthems to soulful ballads.

Aside from guitar, Wiklund handles almost all instruments, and this time the lead vocalist is the awesome Johnny Gioeli (Hardline, Axel Rudi Pell), and the great Göran Edman returns as ‘guest’, performing lead vocals on 3 songs.
When guitarists make solo records, instrumental tracks are close at hand. But there’s only 1 instrumental on ”The Gates Of Heaven” the rest of the songs features Gioeli & Edman, elevating the album’s quality.
Album opens to what in our opinion is one of its choice tracks, “The Light Streaks From The Sky”. The song takes a neo-classical melodic metal approach, dazzling with its lustrous harmonies and engaging hooks of a refuse to go away variety. Gioeli rocks as usual.
“Waiting On A New Day To Dawn” embodies ”The Gates Of Heaven” melodic hard rock side. It traverses at a measured midtempo clip, boosting heaviness as crisp rhythm guitar and substantial low-end take hold but stays true to the classical themes revealed in a symphonic keyboard touch.

Album’s title track “The Gates Of Heaven” carries over the Eighties themes – a regal and distinguished bearing touching upon the anthem like – while also incorporating neo-classical aspects, the practiced guitar work continues to shine through. Three songs in and it cannot be denied how Gioeli proves an asset with his distinctive mid-ranged vocal abilities.

First of three songs fronted by contrasting classic tenor Edman ensues in “Only You And Me”. What we have is five and half minutes of riff driven melodic hard rock – song upholds some of the catchiest guitar harmonies you will hear – innate to polished commercial variances indicating a sweeping semi-ballad form.
“I Will Always Remember You” takes a full on ballad heading. Lightened with acoustic tincturing, it seamlessly flows to satiny melodies and sleek harmonies in revealing a commercial nuance, albeit not to fault in that decided rhythm guitar periodically rises to the forefront.

“Holy Water And The Holy Cross” return to a heavier heading as Gioeli lowers his vocal register with a swarthy Dio-ish form as classic metal style guitars and glistening keyboards build upon the dark semblance. The violin throughout lends an extra dimension of creativity.
Album moves on to lone instrumental “Empty Room”. It proves harmony driven as opposed to Eighties shred based, starting to a few seconds of orchestration and acoustic guitar ahead of effortlessly rippling forward to catchy guitar melodies – played in expertly emotional fashion – interspersed with periodic lighter piano fused passages.

Wiklund exhibits his creative versatility with bluesy melodic rocker “The Harmonica Man”. This is the album most outside the box track, staying true to its namesake with ample doses of harmonica alongside a shuffling guitar and bass presence and all the melody bluesy grit you could ask. Edman lends aspects of grit to his register for great effect.
Things return to upbeat territory with closer “Gather Your Strength”, a burnished five minutes of expeditious melodic heavy metal intrinsic to sophisticated hooks and outbursts of double kick drum aggression. Distinct AOR tinged arena rock tincturing rises to the forefront in the process.

”The Gates Of Heaven” equates to a strong amalgamating of melodic metal and hard rock meets neo-classical propensities. Songwriting extending into instrumental and bluesy melodic hard rock territory lends to the album a well-rounded feel and builds upon its diversification in the process.
Credit the artist for his multi-instrumental flair – although a more varied drumming would have been welcomed – not to mention bringing in two equally good vocalists Edman and Gioeli.
Highly Recommended

01 – The Light Streaks from the Sky (feat. Johnny Gioeli)
02 – Waiting on a New Day to Dawn (feat. Johnny Gioeli)
03 – The Gates of Heaven (feat. Johnny Gioeli)
04 – Only You and Me (feat. Goran Edman)
05 – I Will Always Remember You (feat. Johnny Gioeli)
06 – Holy Water and the Holy Cross (feat. Johnny Gioeli)
07 – Empty Room
08 – The Harmonica Man (feat. Goran Edman)
09 – Gather Your Strenght (feat. Goran Edman)

Johnny Gioeli – Lead Vocals
Goran Edman – Guest Lead Vocals
Thobias Wiklund – All Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Drums
Ulf Wahlberg – Harmonica, Drums, Keyboards

MP3 FLAC