L.A.Guns - The Missing Peace
Frontiers Records
www.frontiers.it

Rating: A

The history of the band L.A Guns is one of the most convoluted in rock ‘n’ roll. They are one of the first of the spandex and hairspray era to tour and record as two separate bands due to legal and creative differences. That is until now…

Tracii Guns and Phil Lewis were the nucleus of the classic era of the band that churned out classics such as “The Ballad of Jayne” and “Never Enough.” They have reunited for the first time since the beginning of the millennium. The result is the strongest set of tunes they have pumped out since their hair metal heyday. This is a true slab o’ sleaze titled The Missing Peace. The album features a set of tunes that recall their fortunes of earlier times yet still fit into today’s current musical landscape. 

The album kicks off with “It’s All The Same to Me.” A slab of true Sunset Strip sleaze!  Seriously, this one sounds like it should be blasting from a club in 1989! The song contains all of the punk and metal elements that molded their sound from the very beginning.  Following this is “Speed” which is a muscle car of a rocker in its own right. “A Drop of Bleach”, “Baby’s Gotta Fever” and “Sticky Fingers” are all great tunes that will please the fans of old, yet can easily appeal to new fans as well.

As much as the band is known for their rocking side, it was the power ballad that got them airplay. There is no shortage on The Missing Peace as there are four. The best of them is what closes the disc, the haunting “Gave it All Away” with its acoustic intro and Lewis’ passionate vocal. “The Flood’s the Fault of the Rain”, “Christine” and the title track are all great too with “Flood” being the best of those three.

Many bands reform only to stagnate with their new material. That is certainly not the case here. The time Lewis and Guns spent apart did the two some good. This twelve-track platter of tunes easily stands with their classic catalog of Hollywood Vampires and Cocked and Loaded.

Like The Cult’s Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy,  L.A.Guns is the sum of its two parts. In both cases, two proves definitely better than one!

TRACK LIST:
1. It’s All the Same to Me
2. Speed
3. A Drop of Bleach
4. Sticky Fingers
5. Christine
6. Baby Gotta Fever
7. Kill it or Die
8. Don’t Bring a Knife to a Gun Fight
9. The Floods the Fault of the Rain
10. The Devil Made Me Do It
11. The Missing Peace
12. Gave it All Away

By Jay Horrocks Jr.