In the pantheon of classic hard and heavy music, House of Lords is perhaps best known for being a rebrand of 80s AOR vehicle Giuffria, founded by former Angel keyboardist and namesake Gregg Giuffria. As the story famously goes, upon signing a management and record deal with Gene Simmons, the Demon demanded a name and singer change from the band. Hence Giuffria became House of Lords and James Christian replaced David Glen Eisley. In the decades since, House of Lords have toured and recorded in various incarnations, Christian remaining the sole original member. Considering how common it is for these 80s bands to spawn spinoffs and offshoots and multiple incarnations, I’m surprised how long it took for a House of Lords offshoot.
Named after their third album, Demons Down is led by the original House of Lords rhythm section of Chuck Wright on bass and Ken Mary on drums. Joining them for their debut outing, I Stand, is rising star vocalist James Robledo, as well as guitarists Francesco Savino and Jimi Bell, the latter of whom plays guitar in the current incarnation of House of Lords who are ALSO signed to Frontiers Records. It begs the question: Why couldn’t have Christian just made a HoL album with Bell, Wright, and Mary? Maybe I’m the only one asking these burning questions. Now for those who’ve lost track, we now have an offshoot of House of Lords, who were a rebrand of Giuffria, who formed out of the ashes of Angel, who are still touring today sans Gregg Giuffria. You follow? Good!
While House of Lords tends to release a new album every other year, their recent output has been hit or miss for my taste. Sure, some songs are great, especially the heavier, Deep Purple-esque cuts, but others fall victim to the usual melodic rock clichés that are now all too common. Meanwhile, Demons Down have managed to put together an album that sonically comes pretty damn close to the glory days of the late 80s and early 90s. As with most Frontiers releases, I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume my buddy Alessandro Del Vecchio handled the bulk of the songwriting. After all, he produced the album and contributes multiple instruments, but I digress. IF he did in fact write most of these songs, he sure did his homework and studied those first three HoL albums ardently.
For the most part, I Stand consists of moody melodic hard rock with emphasis on lush atmosphere and precise musicality. My favorite cuts are those on the heavier side, such as the power metal tinged “Disappear”, the ominous “Follow Me”, and the dramatic title track. It’s on these songs that the band really gets to flex their musical muscles, specifically Bell and Savino, who lay down blistering solos with the same conviction of prime Blackmore and Malmsteen. Other songs like “Book of Love” and “To the Edge of the World” boast that feelgood energy characteristic of the era, while power ballad “Where Will Our Tears Fall?” and atmospheric rocker “Search Over the Horizon” sound simultaneously retro and fresh.
With the exception of a few songs that drag this release out to nearly 50 minutes (Filling the CD anyone?), I Stand is a mostly enjoyable listen, and most definitely a cut above the usual star-studded studio projects that are all the rage these days. It’s also cool to hear Mary holding down the beat for a band of this nature again, especially since he spends most of his time today battering the skins for Flotsam and Jetsam. There’s no doubt in my mind that classic metal and hard rock aficionados (such as myself) are bound to get a kick out of this nostalgic slab of melodic rock mania.
7 out of 10
Label: Frontiers Records
Genre: AOR
For fans of: House of Lords, Rainbow, Night Ranger
Fans of ANGEL