We’re up to album #3 from the superstar trio Revolution Saints, in operation since 2015, and depending on who you talk to here – they’ve been a bit ‘hit and miss’.
Written by: gdmonline
ARTIST: Revolution Saints
ALBUM: Rise
LABEL: Frontiers
SERIAL: FRCD 1011
YEAR: 2020
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: 
LINEUP: Deen Castronovo – drums, lead vocals * Jack Blades – bass, lead vocals * Doug Aldrich – guitars
Additional Musicians: Alessandro Del Vecchio – keyboards, backing vocals * Lunakaire – duet vocal (#7)
TRACK LISTING: 01 When The Heartache Has Gone * 02 Price To Pay * 03 Rise * 04 Coming Home * 05 Closer * 06 Higher * 07 Talk To Me * 08 It’s Not The End (It’s Just The Beginning) * 09 Million Miles * 10 Win Or Lose * 11 Eyes Of A Child
RATING: 
WEBLINKS: Site Link
Background
We’re up to album #3 from the superstar trio Revolution Saints. They’ve been in operation since their 2015 debut, and in terms of the Glory Daze coverage, and depending on who you talk to here – they’ve been a bit ‘hit and miss’. There is no questioning the merits and prowess of all three members. It goes without saying that their past accomplishments is a testament to that fact. I won’t repeat their past deeds here, you are all seasoned trainspotters and historians here at Glory Daze.
Though this is a side-gig for the trio, an album every two years or so is enough to keep the audience and record label happy. Certainly, 2017’s ‘Light In The Dark’ did well commercially, entering the Billboard charts and maintained healthy positions on the sub-genre albums charts as well. Anyway, we are here to discuss the merits of the songs on this latest talbum, so let’s go.
The Songs
Firstly before I start. What’s with the overdone album title ‘Rise’? Surely a more compelling and imaginative name could have been used? This really is a hackneyed title, on a par with ‘Born To Rock’, ‘Power of Rock N Roll’ and (dare I say it) ‘Danger Zone’. A point deducted already.
‘When The Heartache Has Gone’ leads off, a rampant opener, Deen’s vocal and Doug’s guitar work to the fore, the pre-chorus and chorus is so Journey. Good start, point redeemed immediately. ‘Price We Pay’ is a co lead vocal between Deen and Jack, they do tend to compete which was probably unintended, however all round the song works because of its easy to remember chorus.
The title track ‘Rise’ is another upbeat number, the rhythm section driving things along at a good clip, plus the addition of organ from Alessandro keeps things in legacy mode. ‘Coming Home’ includes a strong piano presence, it’s all very Journey-ish, Doug’s guitar work adds the sting in the tail.
It took the band five tracks to hit the ballad button, so good on them for deferring to the mid-album stage to release ‘Closer’. I’m kinda all over ballads, they don’t do a lot for me anymore, so I won’t really comment on this one. On the other hand, ‘Higher’ is a go-to track, with the same cranky attitude as the opener, though the chorus followed the pre-chorus too closely in pitch, and could’ve benefitted from an upward pitch-shift.
I quite liked the moody ‘Talk To Me’, the trio jumping into the chorus quite early on. The song was embellished by the co-lead vocal from guest Lunakaire who I know nothing about. ‘Not The End (Just The Beginning)’ is a bit of a deceptive track. It starts out with a plaintive piano then forges into what is probably the heaviest track on the album. Doug unleashes full fury at the end.
Continuing the melodic surge, ‘Million Miles’ has the tempo and firepower all in check, the chorus again bonafide Journey but I’m not complaining. ‘Win Or Lose’ keeps the momentum going, and as much I like it, I don’t think I can discern the similarity to some of the tracks that went before. Just an observation.
‘Eyes Of A Child’ is the second and final ballad, and I like this one a lot. Jack sings lead, and though this is mostly an unplugged effort, it does feel more authentic; not wishy-washy as most rock ballads tend to be. So there we go.
In Summary
The first album had a strong opening half, then faded badly toward the finish. The second album from 2017 I didn’t really latch onto perhaps unfairly because mid 2017 was a hectic year for me, Jeff343 instead reviewed that one (click tag below). It was only out of curiosity that I decided to cover this one, to see if it was similar or different to what we’ve heard before.
The verdict? Yeah, it stacks up OK. Certainly the energy and interest is retained through to the end, which is good. There were some niggly things but nothing of note. Outside songwriters include Dan Rossall (from Passion) and Tommy Shaw who co-wrote ‘Eyes Of A Child’ with Jack. Overall, the album gets a solid 85/100.
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When The Heartache Has Gone
Price To Pay
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[Jeffrey343] I think 8.5 is accurate for this one. It’s not grabbing me as much as the previous one did. It’s totally competent, with several very good moments. And it is good to hear Jack Blades handle more vocal duties, which is what I believe we all had envisioned for these guys all along. I can easily listen to the whole album straight through, but I lose focus as it goes on, and I don’t want to immediately play it again. That’s different from the albums that I have really loved over the past several years. The songs and vocals are plenty good enough that this will stay in the rotation, but probably more in playlists where I play them in shuffle mode.