By Andrew Bansal
It is not often that Los Angeles metal veterans Armored Saint release a new album, so when they do, it’s a highly anticipated event among old-school metalheads across the globe. The band’s previous album ‘La Raza’ (2010) was ten years in the making, and fans hoped that the next album would not take as long. Sure enough, Armored Saint worked on their seventh full-length studio album ‘Win Hands Down’ for about five years, and the output is ready to be unveiled on June 2nd 2015 via Metal Blade Records. They’re the kind of band that maintain a stronghold in people’s minds and memories even when they’re not active or in the news, and as a result, expectations surrounding this new record in the lead-up to its release have been sky-high.
The album starts out in top gear with the skillfully composed, high-energy title track, followed by an equally catchy and a more progressive composition called ‘Mess’. But track #3 ‘An Exercise In Debauchery’ is where Armored Saint settle into a solid groove and express themselves to the fullest in all aspects of their musicianship, which they continue to do throughout the remainder of the record. This 51-minute, 9-track endeavor comprehensively exhibits John Bush’s vocal range as he adjusts beautifully to the varying rhythms and instrumental patterns, specially on tunes like ‘Muscle Memory’ and ‘In An Instant’ which constitute some of his best work till date. As expected, Joey Vera and Gonzo Sandoval excel on bass and drums respectively, but more than anything else, ‘Win Hands Down’ boasts of outstanding guitar work by Phil Sandoval and Jeff Duncan, with the duo expertly laying down all the riffs, harmonies and solos.
With the album comprising only 9 tracks spanning 51 minutes, the average song length is larger than it’s ever been on an Armored Saint release, but not for a single moment do any of these tunes seem overly long or unnecessarily drawn out, as John Bush and Joey Vera have clearly pushed the boundaries of their songwriting abilities to come up with some of the longest, richest and most powerful instrumental sections they’ve ever put down for this band. Every layer of the music finds itself absolutely crystal clear in the mix and adds positively to the impact of the sound as whole, owing to ideal production values. Besides, the Saint also break new ground here by featuring Pearl Aday as guest vocalist on ‘With A Full Head Of Steam’ and employing the usage of lead piano on ‘Dive’.
‘Win Hands Down’ is Armored Saint’s most melodic yet heaviest creation, a record that adheres to the band’s classic metal roots but simultaneously also renders them powerfully relevant in the modern era. A winner from the first note to the last.
Rating: 9.5/10
Record Label: Metal Blade
Release Date: June 2nd 2015
Track Listing:
01. Win Hands Down
02. Mess
03. An Exercise in Debauchery
04. Muscle Memory
05. That Was Then, Way Back When
06. With a Full Head of Steam
07. In an Instant
08. Dive
09. Up Yours
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