WOW!! I’m going to have to give this a 4.5 out of 5. That’s on a strict scale too. I’d even go as far as to say that it’s one of the greatest hard rock/heavy metal albums ever. The only reason is that there are two songs that aren’t quite on the same level as the rest: ‘Calypso’ and ‘Together’. That’s pretty fucking good for a 13 track record though. It’s certainly one of the strongest releases of 2017. 2016 was a crazy good year for heavy metal releases. 2017 by contrast has been slow and this album is exactly what heavy music needs right now. The debut album by the super-trio, consisting of Dug Pinnick (bass, vocals), George Lynch (guitars, backing vox) and Ray Luzier (drums, backing vox), was frankly a little lackluster. It fell fucking short for sure. When I heard the first single off of the new album consisting of the same title I was floored. I knew instantly that this album was going to be different. The busy, yet catchy riff circles around a pit of dark, anxious, heaviness. George Lynch proves he’s all about finding new outlets for his playing instead of writing the same song over and over. He gets better and better as the years go. And this album is one of his true guitar showcases. Then the second single ‘Breakout’ came out and I flipped. I figured if King’s X wasn’t going to release any new material this was as good as it’s going to get. Then ‘Voices In the Sky’ was released and I said “I’ve got to get this fucking album”. It’s a terrific track about our walk through revelations. The consistency of sheer badasserey on this record is remarkable. ‘Not a Single Word’ has hit screaming all over it. ‘Big Sky Country’ is a clear political point of view on the middle lands of the United States. It also sounds like it could be on Metallica’s ‘Hardwired…To Self Destruct’ album. Deep, heavy groove with great melody and a catchy as fuck riff. ‘Obsession’ out does all of the competition. It’s record of the year material!! But my favorite song is a classic King’s X sounding, heavy funk track called ‘It’s Never Enough’. A perfect combination of fun, funky music with reflective lyrics about our greedy society as well as basic human urge. Just perfection. Even the deeper tracks are strong. ‘True Deceivers’ is classic Dug getting personal with his spiritual beliefs. And ‘Stand’ is just fucking killer. A masterful progressive groove piece of epic proportions. The final track on the record and only ballad ‘Angel’ may be one of the greatest ballads ever written. You have to hear it for yourself. All in all this album is a must to own. All the way through it holds up. And the songs are long. The record clocks in around 64 minutes! That’s a lot of high quality jammage. Do yourself a favor and GET THIS ALBUM!!
Knockin’ it outta the fucking park!
A hair raising ballad.
“Keep what makes it right”.
