01. Promised Land
02. Walk
03. Afterlife
04. Make Your Mark
05. Tried & True
06. Unified
07. Find Your Way
08. Heart Of Fire
09. Bridge Of Broken Lies
10. Better Man
11. Live To Die
Unified is the second album from Sweet & Lynch. I bought the first one, 2015's Only To Rise, which had some great tracks on, so I was really pleased to hear that it wasn't a one off, and they would be releasing a new album together.
For those unfamiliar with the duo, George Lynch was the guitarist with Dokken, and played on pretty much everything that band released that's worth listening to. Michael Sweet is best known for being the lead singer in Stryper. Yes, the Christian Metal band who wore those stupid yellow costumes in the 80's, and handed out bibles to their fans. I can't listen to Stryper, and everything about them makes me want to vomit into a bucket and pour the contents onto the nearest nativity set. Fortunately, George Lynch is an atheist, so, on the debut anyway, there's no obvious God-bothering lyrics to ruin my listening pleasure.
I have to admit that Michael Sweet's voice is still in great shape. In fact, he sounds amazing. Personally, I find the appeal of these Sweet & Lynch records is that, to my ears, they sound like what I'd want a new Dokken record to sound like. Let's be honest, Don Dokken's voice was shot a long time ago, and he sounds like an incredibly poor version of his former self, as well as being utterly incapable of doing any of the classic Dokken material justice. George Lynch writing this style of music with a vocalist who is of the calibre of Michael Sweet is a far more appealing prospect.
This new album kicks off with the full on 80's Metal of Promised Land, with some awesome guitar work and vocals that show off Michael's impressive range. Walk is a funkier number, with a chorus that's so overblown and pompous, it makes me want to reach for the skip button.
Afterlife is a mid-paced track with a riff as dark as some of the slower Slayer material, mixed with some Bluesy Hard Rock. Tried & True is a ballad that Whitesnake or Thunder would have been proud to have written.
My favourite tracks on here are the uplifting title track, and the well-crafted ballads, Bridge Of Broken Lies and Better Man.
Unified has some great moments, and a few 'not-so-great' ones, but overall, it's certainly a good album. I think their debut was a stronger record, but I like this new one enough to give their future ventures a listen.
Afterlife is a mid-paced track with a riff as dark as some of the slower Slayer material, mixed with some Bluesy Hard Rock. Tried & True is a ballad that Whitesnake or Thunder would have been proud to have written.
My favourite tracks on here are the uplifting title track, and the well-crafted ballads, Bridge Of Broken Lies and Better Man.
Unified has some great moments, and a few 'not-so-great' ones, but overall, it's certainly a good album. I think their debut was a stronger record, but I like this new one enough to give their future ventures a listen.
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