House Of Lords
Indestructible
Frontiers Music Srl
2015
House Of Lords did almost break in a major way in their short lived mid80s-early 90s formations, that included former Angel keyboardist Gregg Giuffria among a shifting line-up of famous, hair metal players that went through the bands ranks.
About a decade later the band reunited with their original line-up which fell by the wayside, after the relative “failure” of their comeback “Power and the Myth” but they have maintained a relatively stable line-up since 2006, releasing some six studio albums, this one inclusive, as well as a live one from their performances around the globe. So it’s like their tenth one (?)…
“Indestructible” comes in swift succession of last year quite qualitative “Precious Metal” and does seem to be a little more confused, over its direction, while the band always combined, strong rocking bases and generous amounts of melody, here, there seems to be more of a polarization with some songs being quite heavy and rocking and others quite “soft”. It’s not as if the project lacks cohesion, it’s just that it’s probably not “as” cohesive as some past efforts…
“Go to Hell” is a very typical HOL rocker, with discreet, but well places keyboard splashes and James Christian sounding as good as ever belting out, its big chorus… James Bell’s playing is quite economical, but his playing has been a pillar, upon which much of the “Lords” post millennial output has been based on. His riffing is quite impeccable and whenever he solos he’s spot on. It would be unfair not to mention the rhythmical contribution of BJ Zamba and Chris McCarvill, here... which becomes even more dominant in “Indestructible” a rather joyous number that gorges in the gorgeocity of its main riff, before Christian takes off, to sing his heart out on the chorus. Funky.
“Pillar of Salt” cuts back on the rocking, more acoustic and temperate, but also very good and somewhat of a nod/throwback to the HOL of old, but without sounding dated. And what a nice solo, it has…
“100 Mph” seemed to have the potential to be the first sign of “fluff”/filler, but a good riff and a big chorus, complete with a big bridge, compensates for the unimaginary conclusion of shouting out, the title, during the chorus! Not too bad and with its harder edge it’s quite welcome.
“Call My Bluff” seems hesitant between rocking up and keeping to its more temperate nature and doesn’t release, until the chorus, which is way more powerful than the rest of the song. J.Bell, chimes in (pun intended) with another one of his signature solos and it's a pretty good one...
“We Will Always Be One” by its title alone should warn you it’s a song of the ballad variety and a good one at that, strings and some pretty soulful singing from JC, make it quite irresistible. While the band has penned, some impossibly beautiful ballads, this one doesn’t fare quite bad at all compared to them;
“Die to Tell” is another rocker, with some pretty nice verses and a chorus that sounds a bit too personal, especially after Christian’s recent health scare.
“Another Dawn (Dance with the Devil)” continues the introspection, but in a heavier and more melodic way with some pretty simple but domineering keyboards, characterizing large portions of it. It takes a while to reach its release and chorus, which aren’t too bad as they combine melody with a heavier approach.
“Eye of the Storm” is cut of similar cloth, but more melodic and not as heavy, certain verses and its bridge/chorus are quite irresistible. I could do without that small and rather odd break that feels a little out of place before the songs conclusion, but it ain’t too long and the song easily redeems itself on its strengths.
“Ain’t Suicidal” is quite profound and has some nice key/guitar riff and a pretty cool set of verses, but it’s chorus, isn’t as immediate as others here, but still, to a “survivor” this song will probably mean twice as much.
Last but not least “Stand and Deliver” is quite ungent and rocking and while it has a few flaws, they are not as marring as to drag it down.
If I need to question something is the somewhat “dryer” sound that’s not due to a bad mix, but possibly the way the mastering made this sound, I wouldn’t have minded a bit more cohesion here... but maybe then the mix would have affected negatively. Overall “Indestructible” shows a band that through trials and tribulations of various sorts perseveres and delivers almost on every case... what’s not to like?
About a decade later the band reunited with their original line-up which fell by the wayside, after the relative “failure” of their comeback “Power and the Myth” but they have maintained a relatively stable line-up since 2006, releasing some six studio albums, this one inclusive, as well as a live one from their performances around the globe. So it’s like their tenth one (?)…
“Indestructible” comes in swift succession of last year quite qualitative “Precious Metal” and does seem to be a little more confused, over its direction, while the band always combined, strong rocking bases and generous amounts of melody, here, there seems to be more of a polarization with some songs being quite heavy and rocking and others quite “soft”. It’s not as if the project lacks cohesion, it’s just that it’s probably not “as” cohesive as some past efforts…
“Go to Hell” is a very typical HOL rocker, with discreet, but well places keyboard splashes and James Christian sounding as good as ever belting out, its big chorus… James Bell’s playing is quite economical, but his playing has been a pillar, upon which much of the “Lords” post millennial output has been based on. His riffing is quite impeccable and whenever he solos he’s spot on. It would be unfair not to mention the rhythmical contribution of BJ Zamba and Chris McCarvill, here... which becomes even more dominant in “Indestructible” a rather joyous number that gorges in the gorgeocity of its main riff, before Christian takes off, to sing his heart out on the chorus. Funky.
“Pillar of Salt” cuts back on the rocking, more acoustic and temperate, but also very good and somewhat of a nod/throwback to the HOL of old, but without sounding dated. And what a nice solo, it has…
“100 Mph” seemed to have the potential to be the first sign of “fluff”/filler, but a good riff and a big chorus, complete with a big bridge, compensates for the unimaginary conclusion of shouting out, the title, during the chorus! Not too bad and with its harder edge it’s quite welcome.
“Call My Bluff” seems hesitant between rocking up and keeping to its more temperate nature and doesn’t release, until the chorus, which is way more powerful than the rest of the song. J.Bell, chimes in (pun intended) with another one of his signature solos and it's a pretty good one...
“We Will Always Be One” by its title alone should warn you it’s a song of the ballad variety and a good one at that, strings and some pretty soulful singing from JC, make it quite irresistible. While the band has penned, some impossibly beautiful ballads, this one doesn’t fare quite bad at all compared to them;
“Die to Tell” is another rocker, with some pretty nice verses and a chorus that sounds a bit too personal, especially after Christian’s recent health scare.
“Another Dawn (Dance with the Devil)” continues the introspection, but in a heavier and more melodic way with some pretty simple but domineering keyboards, characterizing large portions of it. It takes a while to reach its release and chorus, which aren’t too bad as they combine melody with a heavier approach.
“Eye of the Storm” is cut of similar cloth, but more melodic and not as heavy, certain verses and its bridge/chorus are quite irresistible. I could do without that small and rather odd break that feels a little out of place before the songs conclusion, but it ain’t too long and the song easily redeems itself on its strengths.
“Ain’t Suicidal” is quite profound and has some nice key/guitar riff and a pretty cool set of verses, but it’s chorus, isn’t as immediate as others here, but still, to a “survivor” this song will probably mean twice as much.
Last but not least “Stand and Deliver” is quite ungent and rocking and while it has a few flaws, they are not as marring as to drag it down.
If I need to question something is the somewhat “dryer” sound that’s not due to a bad mix, but possibly the way the mastering made this sound, I wouldn’t have minded a bit more cohesion here... but maybe then the mix would have affected negatively. Overall “Indestructible” shows a band that through trials and tribulations of various sorts perseveres and delivers almost on every case... what’s not to like?