The Resurrection Kings debut (released in 2016) was one of those frustrating albums that showed great promise, but was ultimately flawed. Ex-Dio band members Craig Goldy (guitar) and Vinnie Appice (drums) played up a storm throughout, but their best efforts were often drowned out by vocalist Chas West, a man who insisted in bellowing his way through the bulk of the material at full volume, making it a hard listen. As proven by his own West Bound project, it’s not that Chas doesn’t have a voice; he just needs the music to be in tune with his sometimes overbearing tones.
The flaws of the Resurrection Kings debut are evident once again here. For some reason, Goldy’s best efforts don’t always seem to be on quite the same wavelength as West’s huge performances. Or maybe West’s all or nothing approach doesn’t quite fit with some of Goldy’s more varied ideas. Whatever it is, there’s still something that feels a little off-balance and requires a fair bit of tuning in and patience on behalf of the listener. However, if you can tune into everything, the album features a selection of solid, old style metal tunes that definitely seem to have a little more drive and focus compared to their previous work.