The extraordinary, uber-versatile Jeff Scot Soto has taken this opportunity to run over 10 tracks from his very varied and distinguished career in “unplugged” form.

Unplugged may be the easiest term to describe this, but it’s a little simplistic for what this actually is. The 10 tracks have been re-envisioned and totally re-worked to the point where a couple are almost new tracks.

Every track is a winner – not hard when you’re picking 10 amazing songs – but even then, some stand out as really surprising and might even rival their original versions for passion and performance.

JSS’ vocals here are nothing short of amazing and give the stripped back nature of the songs, you really get to hear him wail. For me, the voice is the lead instrument on this release.

As JSS fans, you’ll know the songs – but special mention goes to:

Eyes Of Love was one of the big songs that really launched JSS as a solo artist and it sounds fresh and vibrant here.

The big ballad If This Is The End is simply sublime here. A vocal that defies gravity and so much passion.

Holding On was another key solo track and here features an even more soulful touch.

Till The End Of Time is re-made for acoustic guitar and sounds great.

Don’t Walk Away is perhaps the biggest left-turn of this release – re-imagined here as a R&B soul anthem….very cool.

Somebody 2 Love from the original Eyes album is another twisted gem. Soulful vocals, acoustic guitars and…a twang? Love it.

In a year of financial hardship and lack of tours, support the artist with a digital download purchase: https://music.apple.com/us/album/revision/1544421246 or https://www.amazon.com/Revision-Soto/dp/B08QFW2XNL/ref=sr_1_1

Great fun, relaxed and laid back, soulful and passionate – lots to love about these 10 songs and the production behind the re-thinking is well worth the investment here.

I’ve actually passed the point of being sick of hearing Ronnie Romero’s name connected with every damn release coming from the metal world. In the last year or so we’ve had Vandenburg, Rainbow, Magnus Karlsson’s Freefall, MSG, Core Leoni, The Ferrymen and now in 2021 he’s fronting another project. Enough already?

I think so, but Lords Of Black is actually his band and Ronnie (together with guitarist Tony Hernando) is back where he started here and this is where I want to hear his voice and where think he sounds most natural. After all, he does have a killer voice.

The 4th Lords Of Black album is an onslaught of classic European melodic metal – mixing Dio, Maiden, Helloween and the other usual suspects into a nice blend of high octane, guitar and rhythm fuelled, uptempo metal with a strong commercial bent, not to mention offering both traditionalists and contemporary metal fans something to like.

It’s a very well-produced and mixed sounding record. Its frustrating to hear metal so well executed when so many AOR records have questionable production quality. Of course, that is a side issue to this. Can’t fault it – Lords Of Black deliver once again.

Unruly Child are one of those bands that should have received more due. Marcie Free is an international treasure and the core duo of Guy Allison and Bruce Gowdy are two very fine musicians who deliver every time.

A band who started with a hard edge but veered more AOR and were accused by some of being too soft have found their grunt again, with this being the heaviest album since the classic major label debut back in 1992.

I love that there’s almost a prog edge to some of the band’s material, their songwriting definitely holds more complexities than the average melodic rock outfit. 12 tracks at 60 minutes means there is a lot to absorb. 10 brand new tracks and two semi-acoustic remakes of To Be Your Everything and Let’s Talk About Love.

What I find distracting is the production quality. The mix is muddy and the programmed drums lack punch and well, lack authenticity. There’s no replacement for a real live drummer.

Playing the album at high (really high) volume, as it deserves, isn’t very easy on the ears.

I love that the album has the moody groove of the debut and there’s some great lyrical angst and antagonism as has been scattered throughout.

Of course, when you think Unruly Child you think hooks and they are delivered throughout – just not as quite as obvious as the past, but a few listens and you can hear them all over the place.

Lots to soak up here and a lot of music to appreciate. Not an instant record, but I like the kind of albums that grow over time much better. If only the production quality was that somewhere close to the debut – then this would have been a monster.

What a way to make your solo debut. Overshadowed by the recent death of his legendary father, Wolfgang Van Halen has to balance shifting focus on to his own long planned career, while still in deep mourning for his dad – his biggest fan. Helping the two worlds connect is a very personal single, clearly written with Eddie in mind.

What pressure it must be to have literally millions of Van Halen fans standing by to critique every second of your first solo offering to the world.

I think some of that angst is wrapped up in this song, which I honestly think is remarkable for all of the above reasons, and for the most important reason – it’s a fucking great song.

‘Distance’ features a warm vocal with Wolf’s own unique tone immediately evident. There’s some space for it to soar towards the close, a very melodic yet powerful sound on offer, mixing acoustic and electric guitars with a modern beat, yet a very classic rock feel. Its modern rock with a huge commercial edge. Great production too.

There’s a lot to absorb here – all of it good. Can’t wait for the full album, I love songs like this.

A nice nod to the past with the name also.