**FLASHBACK** HOLY SOLDIER "Last Train"

 

(c) 1992 Word Records

1. Virtue & Vice
2. Crazy
3. Hallow's Eve
4. Gimme Shelter
5. Love Is On The Way
6. Dead End Drive
7. Tuesday Mourning
8. Fairweather Friend
9. Last Train

Steven Patrick--Vocals
Jamie Cramer--Guitars
Scott Soderstrom--Guitars
Andy Robbins--Bass
Terry "The Animal" Russell--Drums

The 1990s were rough for pretty much any hard rock/hair metal band around, and the Christian rock industry was not immune to the damage inflicted by the Nirvana/Pearl Jam/Alice In Chains crowd.  However, as is frequently the case, the backlash against more melodic genres was a bit slower to hit the Christian scene, and several big-named Christian metal bands managed to release some killer albums during the first part of the 1990s.  Holy Soldier was definitely one of those bands.

Michael Cutting is gone, and Scott Sonderstrom is in on guitars, but other than that change, the Holy Soldier train kept rolling along with this, their sophomore release.  Sure, there is a bit more of a bluesy sound to this effort and a tad bit less "hair", but there is no mistaking that this is still Holy Soldier (trust me...there would be PLENTY of mistaking that fact on the next studio album when the "grunge factor" would kick in).  Steven Patrick's soaring vocals are still in top form here, proving equally powerful on hard-edged rockers like "Virtue & Vice", "Crazy", "Hallow's Eve", and "Dead End Drive", as well as the soaring ballad work of "Tuesday Mourning".  It's interesting to hear Patrick tackle the Rolling Stones classic, "Gimme Shelter", and I really enjoy the Holy Solider spin on this song, but I am willing to bet that most Stones fans would shudder at the band's approach.  But, to my ears, nowhere does Patrick deliver a more complete performance than on the album-closing title track, "Last Train", which finds the singer delivering a mournful, bluesy moan approach he had not shown before.  When combined with the exceptionally powerful lyrics of this song, I think this last track, with this line-up, is truly the pinnacle of the band's career.   They even managed to get their label to put together a video for this stellar song.  Check it out below...

Musically, I think the band really found their sound on this disc, finding that perfect balance between the Sunset Strip sound that got them their record deal and the blusier work that they incorporate on several tracks.  They do nothing to alienate their fan base, and, much like Cinderella and Great White altered their approach as they matured, incorporating more of a bluesy style, Holy Soldier sounds more like a band who is growing than they do a band in some sort of transitional or experimental phase (again, that would come later).  Soderstrom holds his own on guitar, and he and Cramer again deliver a brilliant axe-tandem that could compete with any duo of this time period in the genre, in my opinion.  Robbins and Russell provide a solid backbone for the music to be built upon, as well, and, as a band, these guys can write and execute a hook as well as anyone at the time.  In fact, had these guys been on a major label at the time, instead of the Christian-only label they were signed to, I find it hard to believe these guys would not have been all over hard rock and Top 40 radio, as well as MTV.  They had the look, the sound, the style, and, at one time, the fan following that major labels were after...they just also had an uncompromising message that they were not willing to sacrifice.  Remember, there was just Stryper out on the frontline as far as Christian hard rock and metal being accepted by the mainstream at this time; there was no Skillet, no Red, no 12 Stones, no Thousand Foot Krutch, and no Brian "Head" Welch at this time to garner mainstream radio or video play.

Produced once again by David Zaffiro, this album has a killer sound with nice, full production and a solid mix.  Band pictures and lyrics are included in the packaging, which is always a nice touch.  Overall, this is an excellent album from one of my favorite bands of the genre, Christian or secular.  Sadly, this would be the swan song for Patrick, who would exit the band for a solo career, taking with him several song ideas that would have made for a great third Holy Soldier album (several end up on his solo record, Red Reign).  As it stands, the band...ahem...soldiered on without Patrick, releasing the heavily grunge-influenced Promise Man album and a live record (which actually saw the surprise return of Patrick on a couple of classic-era songs), before disbanding.  Fortunately, this album, and the band's also-excellent debut record are still out there, reminding fans of the genre that Holy Soldier was truly a force to be reckoned with at one time.

Rating:  Crank this one to a most excellent 9, with only nine songs likely being the reason it's not a 10!

Back To Reviews Index