RTZ – Return to Zero    
Rock Candy Records
www.rockcandyrecords.com

Rating: B

Rock Candy Records is the number one place to find those cool ass albums that time forgot.  They come up with diamonds in the rough time and time again.  This time, with RTZ, they have unearthed an album Boston fans drool over. 

In 1991, Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau teamed up with Boston vocalist Brad Delp to create RTZ.  The timing could not have been worse.  This was the era of Nirvana and Pearl Jam so a melodic rock album by what the youth of the day considered AOR dinosaurs went mostly unnoticed.

Thank goodness for Rock Candy Records!  They have resurrected a great collection of tunes from the dust bin.  This album is as solid as it can get.  It is not a Boston clone, but these tracks stick close to the roots of the genre.

Delp, such a nice man, and sorely missed by the entire world, turned in a great performance.  There were fewer high / outta this world notes, but all in all, he showed a different side of his personality.  The result is a killer album that fans of that particular genre love.  Now, the rest of us can get a peek into what we missed.

Rock Candy does not just stop at releasing the music, however.  They have released this album as a Special Deluxe Collector’s Edition with fully remastered sounds.  There is a great essay in the booklet that features a new interview with Barry Goudreau and previously unseen photos.

“Return to Zero” TRACK LISTING:
1. FACE THE MUSIC
2. THERE’S ANOTHER SIDE
3. ALL YOU’VE GOT
4. THIS IS MY LIFE
5. RAIN DOWN ON ME
6. EVERY DOOR IS OPEN
7. DEVIL TO PAY
8. UNTIL YOUR LOVE COMES BACK AROUND
9. LIVIN’ FOR THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL
10. HARD TIME (IN THE BIG HOUSE)
11. RETURN TO ZERO

By Jeb “Just another band outta Boston” Wright