ALCATRAZZ: Take No Prisoners (HARD ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

By firing Graham Bonnet at the end of 2020, Alcatrazz shot themselves in the foot and ruined a successful comeback. The Doogie White-led "V" album was nothing great, relegating the band to the status of a lambda heavy band. But the musicians don't seem to want to go back on their crazy idea, and are already back with "Take No Prisoners".

If curiosity may have been replaced by indifference, we mustn't condemn the new album out of hand. So it's with pleasure that we see Alcatrazz rediscovers his identity on good heavy tracks tinged with neo-classicism ('Gates Of Destiny', 'Alcatrazz', 'Salute The Colours'). The keyboard contributes to this, as do the riffs and soli of a virtuoso Stump. White will never replace Bonnet, but he gets the job done with his high notes and powerful choruses.

But not everything is perfect. White drags the band into generic hard rock on a number of occasions on tracks that are listenable but quickly forgettable ('Little Viper', 'Battlelines', 'Power Of Numbers'). If the dynamism is there, we regret a lack of originality. Stump is freewheeling, with melodic speed soli that have little to do with the hard rock feel of the tracks. In this 70s-style genre, only 'Strangers' comes off well. Very close to Dio, the track is epic and powerful, with a well-crafted melody and Deep Purple-style soli.

"Take No Prisonners" isn't the disaster we feared it would be, even if its flaws remain. Alcatrazz slowly climbs back up the slope, turning the lights back on in an interesting way. - Official website

ALCATRAZZ

TAKE NO PRISONERS

SILVER LINING MUSIC

HARD ROCK