Revolution Saints: Light in the Dark (Frontiers)

Melodic rock supergroup Revolution Saints is back with a new album, their second, titled Light in the Dark. The band features Deen Castronovo (ex-Journey) on vocals and drums, Jack Blades (Night Ranger) on bass and vocals, and Doug Aldrich (ex-Whitesnake) on guitars, with Frontiers go-to guy Alessandro Del Vecchio handling keys, production and the lion’s share of the songwriting.

The Frontiers label has really hyped this project, and given the players involved that’s understandable. Castronovo was a key part of what made recent Journey albums so good, and he’s a hell of a singer in his own right. Aldrich is a fantastic guitarist, and Blades needs no introduction. A collaboration between these guys should be amazing. And that’s why Light in the Dark is so frustrating. It doesn’t feel like a Bad English or Damn Yankees; it feels like yet another Del Vecchio factory release that just happens to have some big name talent attached to it. It’s missing the heart and soul that it needs in order to go from good to great.

That’s not to say Light in the Dark is a bad album. Far from it. The musicianship is sharp and Castronovo sounds really good, the production is pristine, and the songs are solid enough. There’s just not much that sets this apart from any other Journey-style band on the label. Castronovo is doing his best Steve Perry, and Aldrich is working from the Schon playbook in a big way. And I’m sorry, but if Jack Blades is in the band you need to take advantage of that fact and get his voice front and center on a few songs.

Again, Light in the Dark is not a bad album. It’s really solid, and has some good tracks. If you liked the Revolution Saints debut (or the last two Journey albums), you will no doubt enjoy this. And if you dig the “Frontiers sound” in general, this is absolutely worth hearing. It should be great though, and it’s frustrating that after two albums this band hasn’t reached its obvious potential.