Revival is the third studio album from Irish rockers The Answer. For a lot of people their first exposure to the band came when they supported ACDC on their last world tour – an opportunity that saw them play in front of over a million fans around the world. Although the bands previous album ”Everyday demons” was released during the tour, it had been recorded before the tour so this new album, ”Revival” is the first chance we have of seeing what if anything the band learnt from their time with ACDC. From listening to the album, I think the answer is clearly ”a lot” – this is the bands best album yet by far.
At this time of year there is huge competition with album releases with what seems like three quarters of the worlds rock bands all releasing albums in a two month period in the peak touring season and the run up to Christmas. Given this then The Answer’s album will have to be pretty damn good to stand up against the competition, and fans of the band will be pleased to know that the album is definitely strong enough to stand comparison to other bands releases.
Comments on a few of the tracks…
”Nowhere freeway” features guest vocals from the very talented Lynne Jackaman from Saint Jude which helps inject a bit of additional variety into the album and makes the track stand out.
”Vida (I want you)” and ”Caught on the riverbed” are both hard rocking tunes. Vida is the first single to be released from the album and is a track well worth listening to.
”Destroy me” has a more laid back 70’s experimental rock feel mixed with the bands more usual high spirited hard rock.
Picking out a favourite track isnt easy – the whole album is at a very high standard, but for me its a choice between ”Vida (I want you) and ”Nowhere freeway”.
”Revival” is being released in two versions – the standard version with a single CD of the album, containing 12 songs, and a Limited Edition which includes the full album plus an extra CD containing extra tracks and alternate versions of some of the songs from the album. I’d certainly recommend the Limited edition version – for a minimal price difference there’s a lot of extra stuff here, and its all really good stuff too, including several tracks that the band must have hated having to cut out of the album, but sadly they can’t fit all the good stuff in a single album, but at least they’ve given fans a chance to hear them as part of this limited edition version of the album.
The packaging is good too – none of this 2 page CD booklet stuff that is becoming common – Revival comes with a 24 page CD booklet packed with glossy photos.
This album is a must for all fans of the band and is highly recommended for fans of bands including Led Zeppelin, ACDC and Thin Lizzy.
Revival will be released on 3rd October through Spinefarm records.
The Answer are:
Cormac Neeson – Vocals
Paul Mahon – Guitar
Michael Waters – Bass
James Heatley – Drums
Track listing:
Disc 1: Revival
1. Waste your tears
2. Use me
3. Trouble
4. Nowhere freeway (featuring Lynne Jackaman)
5. Tornado
6. Vida (I want you)
7. Caught on the riverbed
8. Destroy me
9. New day rising
10. Can’t remember, Can’t forget
11. One more revival
12. Lights are down
Disc 2: After the revival (Deluxe edition only)
1. Piece by piece
2. Faith gone down
3. Nowhere freeway (live acoustic)
4. Tailspin (Renegade demo)
5. Fire and water
6. What I am (demo)
7. Caught on the riverbed (Alt. steel version)
8. The enemy (point demo)
9. Show me the world (Point demo)
10. One more revival (live acoustic)
11. Lights are down (vocals and piano)
