Pawns & Kings (Alter Bridge - VII)

[joshuabeau]

All my stuff has shipped now. Thank god.

[peapod0609]

https://boolintunes.com/2022/10/11/albu ... wns-kings/

ALBUM REVIEW: Alter Bridge – Pawns & Kings
October 11, 2022Maximo David
“A raging fire from the depths of hell, a wicked foe.”

While I’m not totally convinced by the concept, I think if I had to define what my biggest guilty pleasure is, it would be what is most affectionately known as butt rock.

I'm I the only one who feels like calling AB "butt rock" is a huge insult? When I think butt rock, my mind goes to bands like Twisted Sister and Poison, not Alter Bridge.

Butt rock is bands like Skillet, Five Finger Death Punch, Nickelback or Three Days Grace in my book. But to be honest, there are tracks on The Last Hero that sound dangerously close to this.

When I read the article I was about 99% sure he was talking about Creed during that part, not Alter Bridge lol. The article references Creed right after. And Creed was definitely butt rock.

[Dan Dando]

The Dead Among the Living one is awesome.

It’s criminal that the folks who work on the merch side of things haven’t slapped that design on a t-shirt. Likewise the Holiday and Pawns and Kings (single) designs.

Edit: I’m exaggerating when I say criminal, but you get what I mean

[joshuabeau]

The Dead Among the Living one is awesome.

It’s criminal that the folks who work on the merch side of things haven’t slapped that design on a t-shirt. Likewise the Holiday and Pawns and Kings (single) designs.

Edit: I’m exaggerating when I say criminal, but you get what I mean

Oh man, I know. I’d kill for a tshirt with the Pawns & Kings single art on it. Wish the hoodie they’re selling had that instead of the skull from the album art.

[Whitebird]

The scores of the reviews have been incredibly high in general

[AB4Lyfe]

Shit, boys and girls. We’re 36 hours out.

Let’s go!!!!!!

[Ubik]

Was hoping mine would arrive the day before release again but looks like the shop let me down

[Dolo]

When I read the article I was about 99% sure he was talking about Creed during that part, not Alter Bridge lol. The article references Creed right after. And Creed was definitely butt rock.

Some tracks off of Weathered come in that territory. Aside from that, not really.

[joshuabeau]

Was hoping mine would arrive the day before release again but looks like the shop let me down

Looks like they let almost everyone down. Sad.

[WaywardOne]

Oh man, I haven't been on here in weeks for a variety of reasons, shocking to think right before an album release but I'm caught up now and am LOVING all the posted interviews/reviews and general hype! This is War is the first time I was able to resist listening to a pre-release single - no idea how, I must be getting old. But damn, the most wonderful time of the (every three) year(s) is upon us!

[AB4Lyfe]

Oh man, I haven't been on here in weeks for a variety of reasons, shocking to think right before an album release but I'm caught up now and am LOVING all the posted interviews/reviews and general hype! This is War is the first time I was able to resist listening to a pre-release single - no idea how, I must be getting old. But damn, the most wonderful time of the (every three) year(s) is upon us!

No This is War? Damn man, power to ya. My opinion - best set of pre-releases since Fortress and AB3.

[fix]

Oh man, I haven't been on here in weeks for a variety of reasons, shocking to think right before an album release but I'm caught up now and am LOVING all the posted interviews/reviews and general hype! This is War is the first time I was able to resist listening to a pre-release single - no idea how, I must be getting old. But damn, the most wonderful time of the (every three) year(s) is upon us!

Zero pre-releases? Damn man, power to ya. My opinion - best set of pre-releases since Fortress and AB3.

Only This is War right? I tried the same, but couldn’t resist and listened once haha. Liked what I heard though.

[CrowsOnAWire]

https://wallofsoundau.com/2022/10/12/al ... um-review/

Alter Bridge – Pawns & Kings (Album Review)
Posted on October 12, 2022

There are a lot of bands that you could say are synonymous with the hard rock genre, including the Florida quartet of Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall, Scott Phillips, and Myles Kennedy, aka, Alter Bridge. Formed in 2004 in Orlando, Alter Bridge have spent the last 18 years going from strength to strength and in July of 2022 they announced their new record Pawns & Kings, due to be released this Friday, October 14 via Napalm Records.

The record kicks off with ‘This Is War’, and right from the first note you know that you’re in for a wild ride. It’s definitely a heavier Alter Bridge that we’re being introduced to here, and personally, I’m living for it! It’s a great opener and it’s got heavy guitars, it’s got double kick, and it’s got Miles going absolutely OFF with that signature voice that makes the band just that little bit more interesting. ‘Dead Among The Living’ is track two and it’s got one of my new favourite lyrics. Specifically, ‘You are so much more than who you chose to be’, and as someone who has struggled with self-confidence, it really resonated with me, especially when it’s followed up with ‘You are the dead among the living’ and it definitely got me thinking in a good way. The breakdown in the latter part of this is also sick and I can see people really moving to it.

‘Silver Tongue‘ opens with heavy, chugging guitars that continue throughout the track, joined by gut-busting drums and a complimentary bass riff throughout. The instrumental on its own would be a great standalone, but Miles’ voice just really elevates the whole thing. Next up is ‘Sin After Sin’ and while it has a much calmer vibe than the previous 3 songs, it’s still just as heavy. It’s also one of the longest offerings on the record and comes in at just under 7 minutes, but somehow manages not to sound repetitive. There’s two things I particularly enjoyed about this track, the first is Scott Phillips’ drums, and the second is how hauntingly beautiful the vocal performance is.

The halfway point of the record is marked by ‘Stay’, which has Mark Tremonti taking on the lead vocals and it’s a really nice change of pace that brings just a little bit more to the track. It’s quite a happy sounding release, but lyrically it’s not what you think it’s going to be. ‘Don’t wait, it won’t last forever, and allow your heart to heal’ is one of the stand out lyrics for me and all up it’s just a really beautiful song. ‘Holiday’ follows and that calm you felt listening to ‘Stay’ is shattered almost immediately as the heaviness and the pace kick back in. It’s also the shortest on the record, but still has a run time of just under 4 minutes. That 4 minutes still manages to get in some punchy drums, with Scott Phillips really getting to show his raw talent with a solo in the second half that will have you doing your best air drums while you’re jamming to it.

‘Fable Of The Silent Sun’ is an eight-and-a-half-minute journey that could have been broken up into a couple of separate songs but somehow works as one. The first part is a ballad that is slow and soft before the heavier guitars kick in and the instrumental takes centre stage whilst underpinning the vocal. The next part of ‘Fable Of The Silent Sun’ continues on with the heavier vibe given throughout the record and there’s a great guitar solo in the later part of it that leads into the final section of the song. The last 2 or so minutes shift between being softer with almost spoken vocals, and being harder and heavier. It’s a great journey that doesn’t feel as if it’s 8 and a half minutes, which is definitely a good thing, as you never really want to feel as if you’re slogging through a trackthat long and waiting for it to end. ‘Season Of Promise’ hits your ears next and it’s in my opinion anyway, the only ‘bad’ track on Pawns & Kings. There’s nothing that makes it ‘bad’, it’s just not as strong as others on the record and feels a bit flat after ‘Fable Of The Silent Sun’. It’s got a great guitar solo right at the end, but overall it just feels a little repetitive.

Second to last is ‘Last Man Standing’, and the overall vibe of it is a little dark, but in the best way. There are two heavier parts to this one that I wouldn’t call breakdowns, but they stand out in the mix, as does my favourite guitar solo on the album that I could listen to on repeat and not get bored of it. Rounding off the record is the title track, ‘Pawns & Kings’. It’s easy to see why this was chosen as being the final song on the record, even though it was the first single to be released back in July when the album announcement was made. Musically it just really feels like a closer, especially when there are several sections throughout that are just instrumentals that break up its 6-minute run time nicely.

It’s obvious that Alter Bridge have been together for 18 years because sonically they are really cohesive as a unit and just gel really well together. Pawns & Kings is a solid album that shows why Alter Bridge have an almost 20-year career that doesn’t seem to be coming to an end any time soon. It’s a great balance of light and shade throughout that further cements the band as one of the best in the alt rock scene.

[CrowsOnAWire]

Good interview with some comments on the new album:

ALTER BRIDGE ON THEIR LACK OF MAINSTREAM RECOGNITION, 15 YEARS OF BLACKBIRD AND WHY THEY NEED A GIMMICK

https://guitar.com/features/interviews/ ... blackbird/

[CrowsOnAWire]

https://allmusicmagazine.com/alter-brid ... r-14-2022/

True since their formation in 2004, Alter Bridge has released a studio album like clockwork every three years. From the ashes of the band Creed, this Orlando band’s latest, Pawns & Kings showcases the bands heavy, yet melodic style with Tremonti’s guitar work blistering on all tracks. Myles Kennedy shows why his range and tone are unequaled in the rock or the metal world. Each track is held together by the glue of bassist Brian Marshall, the drumming of Scott Philips, and Myles Kennedy’s rhythm axe work completing the overall flavor of each track.

Alter Bridge is no longer a progressive metal band as Pawns & Kings is a true metal album complete with a ballad, “Stay”, in the middle. Your attention is immediately grabbed from the start by the first track, “This Is War”, a song about the inner daily struggles of human kind and how we respond to the choices we make. Track two “Dead Among The Living” continues with how we respond to the choices we make. Both tracks have incredible vocals from Kennedy and blistering guitar riffs from Tremonti. They are great listens and satisfying for the most sophisticated heavy metal palate. Oh but don’t stop there, keep going there is so much more.

“Holiday” track 6 is an anthem of sorts with an upbeat rhythm about starting over. “I Spread my wings and fly” is the key lyric to the song. The eighth track, “Fable Of The Silent Son”, is the longest song on the album and starts out acoustically, then a tempo change in to a heavy hard rock song. The complexity of the piece is mesmerizing to the ears!

The bravado of Pawns & Kings is off the charts and marks a deeper and heavier metal path for Alter Bridge in this 10 song masterpiece. Pawns & Kings punches you right in the teeth from the start with the first track, “This is War“, and follows through with a punch to the back of the head, ending the album with the title track “Pawns & Kings.” I believe this is the best of Alter Bridge, and this album marks greats things moving forward!

In looking to find a theme to the overall message of the album, it’s clear the hidden message ingrained within this heavy metal album is beware of the choices you make!

I choose a rating of

9/10

[benjoAB]

And so the leaks begin…

[joshuabeau]

Starting my listen…
Edit- the little riff we heard from Brian’s Instagram story was Dead Among The Living.

[MylesKennedy69]

What a fantastic album. Miles better than Walk The Sky. The boys are back and better than ever.

[joshuabeau]

I’ll say this..

Myles is on another level on this record with his lyrics.

But yes, blows Walk the Sky out of the water. This record is incredible. Wow, blown away.

[benjoAB]

The bridge in Stay is brilliant and the solos in Fable are a delight!