ARMORED SAINT

THE SETUP

Armored Saint is a band of five highly regarded musicians with a reputation for releasing high-quality albums. And that is because they ARE great musicians, and they HAVE released some excellent albums. So when they release a new album, the hopes are predictably rather high. And that brings us to now, where Armored Saint has a new album entitled Emotion Factory Reset. So let’s dive into it right now.

THE REVIEW

A couple of things come to mind right away. Emotion Factory Reset has that classic Armored Saint sound and feel with their strong songwriting, along with the supreme musicianship you come to expect. But it also represents how they sound today, with some extra elements. There are spots on the album that give an almost jazzy feel, but they’re sprinkled in rather than the centrepiece of the song. It works quite well while still maintaining that strong metal presence. Emotion Factory Reset has some great riffs throughout the album, with a variety of up-tempo and mid-tempo compositions, plus a slower-paced track to round out the mix. The opening track, ‘Close To The Bone,’ is a ripping track that flexes some Armored Saint muscle, and the equally heavy ‘Hit A Moonshot’ is a great track with some impressive lead guitar. ‘Ladders And Slides’ changes things up a bit with a different flavor. This band makes their music easy to like and enjoy; it’s all great stuff.

THE VERDICT

All told, this is indeed yet another excellent Armored Saint album, very much in line with the standard they have set in their long, consistent recording career. This band is as good as they ever were, and quite possibly even a bit better. Great album by a great band.