You have to figure that any band with gall enough to take the name of a continent isn't going to settle for a modest musical approach. That was true of Asia – perhaps the most elephantine exponent of pomp rock – and now it's the case with this equally continental Swedish quintet. In fact, it's a fair bet that Europe was inspired by, if not modeled on, the formulas Asia concocted.

Although Europe echoes Asia in execution, the band's sensibility has more in common with the more modestly named Boston. Like Boston's Tom Scholz, Europe's Joey Tempest sees no point in innovation for its own sake, preferring instead the proven pleasures of accessibility. So Tempest doesn't invent – he distills, taking this bit from Asia, that bit from Foreigner, until the end result leaves no cliché untried in its pursuit of the perfect hook.

Tempest's approach doesn't pay off in his lyrics, in which his lack of ideas is most painfully evident. He has obvious sympathy for pomp-rock iconography, and he tries desperately to attach his soaring vocal lines to some sort of epic tradition. Trouble is, the lyrics of songs like "Ninja" and "Cherokee" express little more than the titles alone do.

Then again, the vocal harmonies and instrumental arrangements say far more than either the lyrics or the titles, and maybe that's the point. The words to "The Final Countdown" make almost no sense whatsoever on paper, but there's genuine drama to the way Tempest's keening vocals surge through the mock-orchestral morass of synths and guitar. Maybe it's trite, maybe it's derivative, but it's also undeniably effective. From the stirring stadium schlock of "Rock the Night" to the self-indulgent melodrama of "Love Chaser," the best moments here are insidiously catchy, leaving you humming along against your better judgment. (RS 499)

J.D. CONSIDINE