"Yesterday's News" - This is the first song that the whole band wrote together. Everybody contributed, but the original idea was John Levén's. It was written during our down days and included many issues. It was heavily influenced by the 70s. There is a guitar solo and a keyboard solo. A long but powerful song. I think Japanese and European fans will like it.
"Seventh Sign" is a good song with a strong rhythm. It sounds like "The Final Countdown" although we didn't intentionally imitate it. The lyrics were inspired by the movie, "The Seventh Sign." The music was written by Mic and Kee.
"Bad Blood" - The idea came when we were rehearsing in Los Angeles. I outlined the main theme and I finished it with Kee. The content is about the life of travelers. Anyone who has been living on the road would have that kind of life in his body and mind that he cannot stop or resist.
"Homeland" is about being away from one's homeland and losing one's roots. It is a very sad ballad, but it also has hope and beautiful memories. I felt the things that I had held on to as roots seemed to be disappearing, too. I miss them.
"Sweet Love Child" - This song is a brand new style for EUROPE. I wrote it during sound-check in Delhi. It was written with positive attitude and natural circumstances. It's a ballad about a special period of life.
"Mind in the Gutter" was Kee's idea. It was originally called "Voodoo Vibe" but I didn't like it. Beau had some good ideas so I worked with Beau and changed it to a cool sexy, bluesy song. I like this kind of music so I convinced the others in the band and finished it.
"Mr. Government Man" - This is a different song. People will be surprised!
"Break Free" is very Thin Lizzy. It's the fastest song on the album. A lot of people go to "High Vodorom" Disco's rock night every Wednesday to get drunk. This song is about that, totally break free and have fun.
"Here Comes the Night" was written a year ago in London. It combined the essence of the music that I have listened to since childhood, Queen, the Beatles, Mott the Hoople, and David Bowie. It's a pleasant song. I am quite happy with it.
"Girl from Lebanon" was written in Stockholm last summer. I was enjoying the sun in the park and an inspiration suddenly hit me. The melody floated in my head and I could almost see a Middle Eastern girl. It's about the series of independence and peace movements last year; but the world is hard to predict, now the Middle East is in war.
"'Til My Heart Beats Down Your Door" is also a very good song. The music was written by me and Mic. The lyrics were written by Beau's wife. At that time I really couldn't think of any lyrics. Using other people's lyrics is a first this time. It's weird but you can't do everything yourself. It's not a problem if EUROPE gets better results with others' help. Of course, I still hope everything is done by the band ourselves.
"Give a Little Bit of Loving" - This is one of my favorites. It's on the same track as "Rock the Night"--it has the EUROPE harmony. This and "Girl From Lebanon" are my favorites.
"Talk to Me" was a ballad but later became a totally different song. It's one of the single standbys, too.
Besides these 13 songs, you seem to have some more. How many will be chosen?
Joey: "We've pretty much decided which songs, but it was difficult. Now there are 16 songs in total and we've talked about which ones would be the B-sides. If we write some more, we can release a double album. Perhaps right after this release, there will be a second one! (laughs)"
