Journey - Eclipse

[Balance]

Well, for conversations sake I'll throw out that my least favorite tune so far is "She's a Mystery" The vocals are fine but I don't like the arrangement very much. Sometimes the guitar work seems like it's aimed at a Zeppelin style! Anyone else will have to tell me if they agree!

Also the transition to heavy is anything but seamless! Not very good songwriting there IMO!

Hello folks.. just adding my two cents for all it's worth. She's a Mystery is actually my favs. The vocals at the end is incredible in my humble opinion. Pineda reached highs so beautifully without calling it borderline screaming.

Happy to finally get my hands on this jewel (or thick folded cardboard for that manner). The Amazon site that played samples did not really do justice to these songs as sitting at home listening to it on your favorite surround sound, headphones, or car stereo will really give each and every song that umpth missing from your laptop or desktop speakers. I'm on my 4th spin on this CD and find myself skipping tracks.

The first 8 seconds of HUMAN FEEL sort of-kind of sounded like Journey's version of HOT FOR TEACHER by Van Halen.

All in all.. I'm diggin' the CD and can't wait to get off work and listen to it again in my commute home.

 

[LG]

Just listened to Eclipse for the first time.

I am really surprised, the vocalist while not sounding like Steve Perry fits seamlessly with the band. The last Journey album I bought was "Departure" after that I didn't follow them at all.

To pick up this album and just listen without any preconceptions was fun, and I think this album is really good. Of course I like to listen to anything at least a half dozen times before making any definitive statement.

As far as Neal Schon being overlooked, I liked him back in his Santana days and with Journey.

 

[Mr. T]

^^^ Glad you're on board LG.

Here's a link to a review that expresses my feelings about this album better than any other I have read yet.

CD Review: Journey, "Eclipse | Popdose

 

[LG]

That was a good read, and first class summary.

 

[Soot and Stars]

I'm just wondering why so many people are so down on ballads. Oddly enough I think this album has a lot of balladic elements and moments anyway but I think having ballads included help the balance of an album. I'm all about hard and soft sounds on an album myself. Often times for me it's the ballad that hooks me first and then I transition into the rest of the album. I don't know if ballads make an album lack testosterone or something but to me it's a crucial element. I don't want an album full of them but I do love them as part of the package. Not saying this album suffered because of it because like it said it had plenty of elements but it would be far from my selling point to say "Whoo hoo, thank God there's no ballads!"

 

[METALPRIEST]

I'm diggin' the whole disc! So far so good on this end!

 

[Rockperson]

So far so good, really enjoying this, a pretty rocking album, loving the guitars, Schon seems to be having a blast.

There is nothing I don`t like and some real highlights at the moment though that will keep changing no doubt.

When the five songs were played live and posted on Youtube, I played them a lot so I was pretty used to them even though the album versions are far superior.

 

[Hardnecker]

I'm just wondering why so many people are so down on ballads. Oddly enough I think this album has a lot of balladic elements and moments anyway but I think having ballads included help the balance of an album. I'm all about hard and soft sounds on an album myself. Often times for me it's the ballad that hooks me first and then I transition into the rest of the album. I don't know if ballads make an album lack testosterone or something but to me it's a crucial element. I don't want an album full of them but I do love them as part of the package. Not saying this album suffered because of it because like it said it had plenty of elements but it would be far from my selling point to say "Whoo hoo, thank God there's no ballads!"

Part of it from my perspective is that songs like Open Arms and Faithfully have been beaten to death and represent Journey to a lot of people, not the song's fault I know. There are songs like Send Her My Love, After All These Years and When You Love A Woman that I do like. I just prefer the rockers more mainly because I'm a Schon nut and partially because of the testosterone.

 

[Hardnecker]

To those ppl, I'll offer them something to drink...

Well put!

 

[LG]

Sooty brings up a good point, and personally I have no problem with ballads, even when one of my hard rockin' metal bands does one.

I'll use Slayer as the antithesis for variety on most of their albums, I don't play their music very often because it all blurs together after a while. When I am feelin' aggressive then it's perfect for that mind set, as a steady diet it wears me out really fast.

Journey when Steve Perry was in the band was famous for their ballads, I will leave it for TUNEZ or Hardnecker to correct me but I think most of their biggest hits were ballads. So when the new singer does a ballad a lot of hard core fans will take umbrage, at least that is the feeling I get for the criticism unfairly leveled at the new line-up.

Eclipse is Neal Schon's album, I haven't heard him play this inspired in a long long time.

I have to say my favorite track so far, is "Human Feel"...I played the new album on my Reference system last night and it sounds fabulous.