Revolution Saints: Revolution Saints

Have a look through the booklet of most Frontiers Records releases and you'll find the name Alessandro Del Vecchio somewhere. Odds on he's produced the album in your hands. Maybe he's played keyboards or sung a bit of vocals. He might even have written all the songs. Here he's done all of that and yet his contribution seems to be hidden under the big personalities and names who've been brought together to perform his songs under the guise Revolution Saints. To be fair, there won't be many albums released in 2015 which will be able to boast an ex-Whitesnake guitarist (although, when I think about it, there's quite a few of them about...), the bassist from Night Ranger and drummer of Journey as its main players (alongside Alessandro of course). However factor in that said drummer, Deen Castronovo, handles lead vocals alongside his more expected percussive role, and then add on top of that guest slots from Journey's Neal Schon and Arnel Pineda and it's hard not to be dazzled by this release's star power.

Even harder however is to not be impressed by an album that may well just qualify as the one of the best Journey albums Journey didn't record. Dip into this album anywhere and you'd be hard pressed to tell the oozing smoochie "Don't Walk Away", the melodically thumping "Strangers To This Life" or sparking "Turn Back Time" from anything from the latest couple of Journey efforts. Arnel Pineda shows up on the power ballad "You're Not Alone" and yet Castronovo's superb vocals are so similar, if a little grittier, to Pineda's that telling the difference can be a challenge. Schon however shines on his "Way To The Sun", an unmistakable solo announcing his contribution loudly and proudly, while the addition of vocals from Jack Blades (that's the Night Ranger bassist) and Del Vecchio adds a little variation. In fairness to our drummer turned singer, he does a fantastic job throughout, the suggestion that his "guest singer" slots in every Journey show would transfer superbly to a full on front man role, proven to be true. Doug Aldrich (and that's our ex-Whitesnake guitarist) gives his all, his style meatier and fuller than most AOR albums will ever experience, yet it works a treat, adding a ballsy attack to "Locked Out Of Paradise", "How To Mend A Broken Heart" and the Journey meets Whitesnake of "Better World".

It's the star power and the story of a drummer turned singer that will bring most of the rightly deserved attention to this album. However hats off to Alessandro Del Vecchio, for Revolution Saints is a top notch slice of muscular AOR where a set of excellent songs are excellently produced and superbly performed by a truly stellar cast. Really, you can't ask for much more than that.

Track Listing
1. Back On My Trail
2. Turn Back Time
3. You're Not Alone
4. Locked Out Of Paradise
5. Way To The Sun
6. Dream On
7. Don't Walk Away
8. Here Forever
9. Strangers To This Life
10. Better World;
11. How To Mend A Broken Heart
12. In The Name Of The Father (Fernando's Song)

Added: February 15th 2015
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Revolution Saints on Facebook
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Language: english

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