In 2007, they gained energy as an opening act to Toto, and the following year they got a massive break serving as an opening act to heavy metal legends Alice Cooper and Sabaton. The band performed at the Sweden Rock Festival that year as well. Their sound earned them the Årets Nykomlingar award, given out by the Swedish radio station P4 Dist for the best new artist as voted by the listeners. In 2009, the band played at the Melodifestivalen 2009, the Swedish qualifier to the annual Eurovision Song Contest, and made it to the final round with the song "1000 Miles". The band also toured around Europe as an opening act to Edguy that year.
The 2008 release of H.e.a.t was followed up by 2010's Freedom Rock. Continuing their high-energy yet slick style, it was ranked in the "Top Ten AOR/Melodic Rock Albums of 2010" by Classic Rock Magazine. Vocalist Kenny Leckremo's departure from H.E.A.T in mid-2010 brought a major change as retro-rocker and TV star Erik Grönwall became the band's new frontman. The singer had won the program Swedish Idol in December 2009, playing material by the likes of Iron Maiden and Skid Row (a huge change from the mellow pop ballads often seen on Swedish TV).
The groups's first two albums with Grönwall on the mic, 2012's Address the Nation and 2014's Tearing Down the Walls, earned a positive fan response and international acclaim. Sleaze Roxx remarked that if "you haven’t yet heard Tearing Down The Walls yet, give yourself a... present by purchasing what is sure to be a contender for record of the year." The guys' latest release is 2017's Into the Great Unknown, their third with vocalist Erik Grönwall. The album saw the return of former guitarist Dave Dalone, who rejoined the band after the departure of Eric Rivers in 2016. Dave Ling of Classic Rock Magazine published the following quote in his review of Into the Great Unknown: "H.E.A.T. have just made the most complete album of their career. Watch their rise continue."
H.E.A.T released H.E.A.T II on 21 February 2020, returning to their heavier sound. On 30 October 2020, the band announced via their official Facebook page that original singer Kenny Leckremo has rejoined the band replacing the departing singer Erik Grönwall.
The current members of the band are:
Kenny Leckremo – lead vocals, guitar (2007–2010, 2020-present)
Dave Dalone - Guitars
Jona Tee - Keyboards
Jimmy Jay - Bass
Don Crash - Drums
Former members:
Eric Rivers (Erik Hammarbäck) – guitars, backing vocals (2007–2016)
Erik Grönwall – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica (2010–2020)
Studio albums
H.E.A.T - (2008)
Freedom Rock - (2010)
Address the Nation - (2012)
Tearing Down the Walls - (2014)
Into the Great Unknown - (2017)
H.E.A.T II - (2020)
Force Majeure - (2022)
Their official website is at: www.heatsweden.com
Straight Up
H.E.A.T Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cause things would always be the same
Years went by and we fought it a little longer
And now we have ourselves to blame
I would always be there for you
And I gave up my love
Straight up what have we become
Straight up together we'll make it, together forever
Straight up what have we become
Try to be strong yes I tried to rode on
But we have been damaged far too long
Still I remember how it felt to have you near
But when I held you you said there was nothing left to feel
I would always be there for you
I've tried to change and I wish you'd have done the same
Straight up we'll never stop lovin, we'll never do
Straight up what have we become
Straight up together we'll make it, together forever
Straight up
On and on I've had this fantasy
We felt so in love
We had a house, we had a family
Won’t you stay, stay
[Solo]
Straight up we'll never stop lovin, we'll never do
Straight up what have we become
Straight up together we'll make it, together forever
Straight up what have we become
Straight up, straight up
The lyrics of H.E.A.T's "Straight Up" talk about a relationship that was once strong and loving, but has now become damaged and unrecognizable. The singer reminisces about a time when they never had to worry about their love because things were always the same. However, as time went by, the couple fought and struggled to maintain their connection. Now, the once-loving couple find themselves in a place of self-blame and uncertainty about what they've become.
Despite their struggles, the singer promises to always be there for their partner and professes their unwavering love. They lament the fact that they've been damaged for too long and express frustration that their efforts to change have not been reciprocated. The lyrics end with the singer dreaming of a future where their relationship is restored, where they have a family and a home together, begging their partner to stay.
Overall, the lyrics of "Straight Up" are a reflection of the ups and downs that relationships can face. It showcases the difficulties that couples may encounter, but also the love that still exists despite those challenges.
Line by Line Meaning
There was a time when we never ever wondered
We used to live life carefree and without any doubts or worries.
Cause things would always be the same
Because we believed that things would always remain constant and never change.
Years went by and we fought it a little longer
As the years passed, we struggled and tried to hold on to the past.
And now we have ourselves to blame
The current state of our relationship is due to our own actions and choices.
I would always be there for you
I promised to stay loyal and support you through thick and thin.
And I gave up my love
I sacrificed my own desires and feelings to prioritize you and our relationship.
Straight up we'll never stop lovin, we'll never do
We will always love each other, no matter what.
Straight up what have we become
What happened to us? How did we end up in this situation?
Straight up together we'll make it, together forever
We will face all obstacles as a team and stay together through it all.
Try to be strong yes I tried to rode on
I attempted to stay strong, even when the situation seemed impossible to bear.
But we have been damaged far too long
Our relationship has suffered for too long and the damage may be irreversible.
Still I remember how it felt to have you near
I still hold onto the memories of how it used to feel when we were together.
But when I held you you said there was nothing left to feel
When I tried to reconnect with you, you said that the spark was gone and there was no more love left.
I've tried to change and I wish you'd have done the same
I have put in effort to make things work, but I wish you would have done the same.
On and on I've had this fantasy
I have held onto a dream of us being together and happy forever.
We felt so in love
We were once madly in love and felt each other's love deeply.
We had a house, we had a family
We envisioned a future where we would have a home of our own and raise a family together.
Won’t you stay, stay
Please don't leave me and let's try to work things out.
Straight up
This is the truth and what we need to face head-on.
Straight up
This is the reality that we cannot ignore.
Contributed by Caleb R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.