| Musical Style: Melodic Metal/Hard Rock | Produced By: Alessandro Del Vecchio & Michael Sweet |
| Record Label: Frontiers | Country Of Origin: USA |
| Year Released: 2023 | Artist Website: |
| Tracks: 12 | Rating: 90% |
| Running Time: 51:09 |
Forget the dynamic joining of accomplished vocalist Michael Sweet and legendary guitarist George Lynch. Forget the all-star lineup to include also bassist Alessandro Del Vecchio and drummer Jelly Cardarelli. And forget what amounts some of the years most eye catching cover art. What really grabs you about the spring of 2023 Frontiers Records third Sweet & Lynch album Heart & Sacrifice is how it embodies the best elements to the bands in which Michael Sweet and George Lynch are renown, Stryper and Dokken.
Yes, 2015 Sweet & Lynch debut Only To Rise (also Frontiers) ‘draws heavily from the eighties with a melodic hard rock based sound in which commercial hooks and accessible melodies prevail’ (quoting the 90% Angelic Warlord review). Likewise, sophomore effort Unified (Frontiers) from 2017 points to the seventies from ‘reflecting nuances as diverse as classic rock, blues-rock, straightforward hard rock and even progressive rock’ (quoting the 85% review). Heart & Sacrifice represents all this and more in that while still rooted in the seventies meets eighties hard rock to its predecessors, ups heaviness by also branching into straightforward and melodic metal territory.
Lynch plays no small role in this regard, referencing how he imbues added edge and bite to his rhythm guitar playing while unveiling the full breadth to his licks and chops soloing wise, particularly from a traditional blues standpoint. I always felt his performance on Only To Rise and Unified was amazing, but Heart & Sacrifice finds him literally taking things to the next level. In similar fashion Sweet remains at the top of his vocal game, albeit lowering his register and lending some fitting soul to his soulful delivery not unlike his performance on fourth Stryper full length Against The Law. Also akin to previous Sweet & Lynch releases, he continues to make his faith known lyrically even if subtly so.
Albums title track gets things going as a quintessential example of the newfound heavier Sweet & Lynch sound. Drums pulsate from the get go, bolstering the elevated tempo as Sweet lets loose with several far-reaching falsettos and Lynch dominates with his in your face riffing and electrifying soloing. Lyric snippet:
This is my heart and my sacrifice
Standing tall
Glory covers me
In the dark I’m a Shining Light to see
No matter
Or what may change
There’s one power
That stays the same
“Where I Have To Go” slows tempo in further upping the guitar inclining, reveling in appreciable hooks and bluesy guitar leads speaking of the earthy and gritty. Albums transparent production stands apart in allowing Del Vecchios’ presence filled bass and Cardarelli’s frenetic double kick drum to shine. Lyric snippet:
Where I have to go
And what I’ve got to do
Is fight for my own soul
And seek out the Truth
I want leave the past behind
Emotions always burn
I’ll build tomorrow differently
From all the things I’ve learned
“Miracle” traverses melodic hard rock territory, as found in guitars that do no make quite the singular impression as those on the two that precede but proves esteemed all the same with its draw you in mentality. An extended lead guitar run rounds out one of the albums lighter tracks. I see it fitting in on Only To Rise.
With drum solo to start, “Leaving It All Behind” gives prominence to a bluesy metal feel from upholding laid back verse sections (to see guitars take a reduced role in the mix) and forwardly exacted refrain (in which guitars make an impactful statement). There is an almost semi-ballad leaning here.
“You’ll Never Be Alone” impresses of the determined and forthright, hulking with its bass driven semblance but victorious in light of the uplifting demeanor bolstered by unambiguous rhythm guitar. This is one of several songs to see Sweet exhibit that soulful edge to his deliver in question.
I take to the bluesy guitar opening “After All Is Said And Done”, a slower track with a plodding demeanor to further elevate melody and point to the Sweet & Lynch seventies roots. Group, however, failed to forsake heaviness as rhythm guitar makes a decisive statement. Lyric snippet:
When you and I learnt to forgive
Life and love, we’ll hold onto
Though you’re no longer close to me
And I’m no longer close to you
There always something to believe
No matter what we may become
Restoration’s we need
After all is said and done
“Give Up The Night” traverses burnished melodic metal territory. A signature falsetto gets things going ahead of swirling guitars with a psychedelic aura and occasional double bass underpinnings. The brisk fingered soloing mirrors the neo-classical. Lyric snippet:
My own desires
Can lead to nothing
But then there’s my soul
That can know everything
Who wants the rain
When the suns burning bright
The light of the day
Is my salvation
I’ll give up the night
“Will It Ever Change” separates as one of albums heaviest and finest. The open-air guitar at the beginning foreshadows the songs darker vestiges, realizing an interspersing between moody passages in which lighter guitar holds sway and others of a staunching form to see sledgehammer guitar dominate. Again, melody is of an inviting form and aligns with the pointed setting at hand.
“It’s Time To Believe” is first of two shorter songs in the three and half minute range. It proves lithe and rollicking, home to a bounding rhythm section, adherent hooks and added soulful vocals. Second “Every Day” is cut from a similar mold, groove driven with its funky guitars but also gripping when factoring the forthright hooks to hold sway. Against The Law comes to mind either way. Lyric snippets:
It’s time to believe
From everything to rise
And every time you breathe
Remind yourself it’s time to believe
What good is selling your soul
When you lose eternity
If you’re blinded by wrong lights
Then it’s darkness you will see
Distorted bass and open-air guitar followed by an ooh-yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah, a perfect start to “It Rains Again”, an authoritative hard rocker dripping with draw you in faculty and imminent walls of guitar driven faculty to match. Layered vocal melodies serve to elevate further one of albums most distinguished refrains.
Talk about saving the best for last with the traditional blues of “World Full Of Lies”. Lynch proves blues is his natural element, divulging his full repertoire of bluesy riffs and harmonies to speak of the melodically reserved, as is Sweet, stretching with his signature expansive vocal delivery. This one if for fans of Glenn Kaiser Band and Stevie & The Saints. Lyric snippet:
I’ve gotta fight
Take back my life
Never surrender
To a world full of lies
I won’t break – I won’t bleed
I know truth will set me free
I will open up my eyes
I won’t stay, no I won’t hide
If Heart & Sacrifice is not the best Sweet & Lynch album, it at the very least rivals Only To Rise in this capacity. Whereas overall heavier than Only To Rise and to a lesser extent Unified, Heart & Sacrifice shares with its predecessors front to back musical consistency in that while some songs are better than others, there are none in which I skip either. The Michael Sweet and George Lynch partnership remains formidable, with each contributing the type of top of the line performance one expects either way. If a fan of the previous Sweet & Lynch albums and/or the bands in which Michael Sweet and George Lynch are best known, I cannot see you being disappointed in Heart & Sacrifice.
Review by Andrew Rockwell
Track Listing: “Heart & Sacrifice” (3:21), “Where I Have To Go” (4:10), “Miracle” (3:59), “Leaving It All Behind” (4:59), “You’ll Never Be Alone” (4:17), “After All Is Said And Done” (4:51), “Give Up The Night” (5:06), “Will It Ever Change” (3:54), “It’s Time To Believe” (3:39), “Every Day” (3:34), “It Rains Again” (4:08), “World Full Of Lies” (5:05)
Musicians
Michael Sweet - Lead Vocals
George Lynch - Guitars
Alessandro Del Vecchio - Bass
Jelly Cardarelli - Drums
