ALTER BRIDGE

Pawns And Kings (Napalm)

With their, intentionally, heaviest album to date, Orlando rockers Alter Bridge prove themselves bulletproof once again with Pawns And Kings. And with Myles Kennedy, the best voice in rock, fronting the band and Mark Tremonti’s incendiary guitar playing burning across these 10 tracks, it’s no wonder.

The first four songs are full-on in their level of attack, but Kennedy’s soaring vocals and melodic writing always bring a moment of musical bliss amongst the riffage. Stay the first to feature Tremonti on lead vocals, and the later Season Of Promise offer the lighter, singalong, post-grunge feel that many of their fans love. But these are all huge songs that can fill stadiums, let alone the arenas of their UK tour; none more so than Fable Of The Silent Sun their longest, and probably proggiest, song to date.

Pawns And Kings may not win Alter Bridge any new fans, like the last half-dozen progressively have, but it will help them climb even further to the top of the rock family tree.

words JOHN-PAUL DAVIES