Arguably,
'Revelation' is the sound of
Journey trying to reinvent the wheel in the sky. As in "Perry broke it and we've been trying to fix it ever since".
It's a full blown tilt at turning back time. Dog eared copies of the
'Raised On Radio' and
'Escape' songbooks have clearly been thumbed through vigorously.
I will tell you this though: Arnel Pineda is one classy vocalist. My cynical comments about his vocal resemblance to Steve Perry were misplaced, and judging by this album in its entirety, totally unfounded
Kevin Shirley has dirtied up the production in places, occasionally adding grit to the mix. Maybe it's just me, but I want
Journey to have a crystal clear sound. Pristine, polished, shining. Glowing even.
If the music's strong enough, the right treatment in the studio will make it three dimensional.
Partly due to that, this is a frustrating album.
We catch only glimpses of the band's previous greatness. A chorus, a verse, a hook, a guitar lick, a piano motif. The awesome melodic rock for which they are known and loved is clearly there, but never totally revealed in all its former splendour.
The first half is patchy. The occasional burst of colour shines through.
'Like A Sunshower' is twee, but it's a bright and breezy poprock song nonetheless, with a neat hook. '
After All These Years' is a worthy
Journey ballad. Not great, but it demonstrates what Pineda brings to the table.
Perversely, the album works best toward the end, when the band abandon the time machine and return to the here and now.
'What I Needed' has a ringing grown up resonance. Muscular yet tender. It condenses confused human emotions into a compelling five minute rock song.
'Faith In The Heartland' (from Generations) goes under the scalpel to emerge as a truly magnificent listen, again thanks to Pineda's conviction and growing confidence, but perhaps moreso due to a fabulously inventive, 60 second coda.
'What It Takes' is a powerful, driving rock song that follows a melodic road less travelled. Pineda's voice stands tall, emoting soulfully and indeed, convincingly. Candidate for standout track.
The baladic,
'Turn Down The World Tonight' is sketched skilfully around Cain's piano. It's a set up that's quite conventional, but the result is a gloriously romantic, multi layered melodic rock song.
Schon and Castronovo positively shine on the instrumental track '
The Journey', trading singing guitar licks and thunderous percussive blows on a memorably melodic piece de resistance.
No question then,
'Revelation' is a more than slight return to form.
When Pineda has truly settled in, they might just surprise us.
Written by
Brian Sunday, June 8, 2008
Show all reviews by BrianRatingsBrian: 7.5/10Members: No members have rated this album yet.
This article has been shown 7697 times. Go to the
complete list.
