Well, Journey are at it again….over a decade later! Not since 2011’s Eclipse have we gotten an album of all-new songs from this band that made the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018, has enjoyed 25 gold and platinum albums, came to prominence with MTV, and remain an American institution despite many personnel changes.
For 2022’s Freedom, the lineup includes bassist Randy Jackson (the former American Idol judge played on the band’s 1986 release, Raised On Radio), drummer Narada Michael Walden, keyboardist Jonathan Cain, vocalist Arnel Pineda, and guitarist and lone founding member Neal Schon. From opener “Together We Run,” a classic-sounding Journey power ballad, to the chunky guitar-arpeggiated synth-heavy “Don’t Give Up On Us,” onto the soft swing of “Live to Love Again,” featuring Pineda at his most restrained — Freedom comprises much of that familiar mid 80s territory.
But then there are the heavy tunes. “Come Away With Me,” the superbly growly “Let It Rain,” and the groovin’ “All Day and All Night” shows this band at the height of their powers. Led by Schon’s wild flights and Pineda singing his Steve Perry-like high flights of vocal spikes, these songs provide a sly and clever contrast to the softer material the band is best known for.
Mellower fare like “After Glow” (sung by the band’s one-time drummer Deen Castronovo), “Don’t Go” and “Life Rolls On” wind the record down before a pretty acoustic plucks under Pineda where we are swept into the catchy chorus of “Beautiful As You Are.” You have to applaud any classic rock band still making new music. With Freedom, you get exactly what you’d expect from Journey. Plus there’s those deeper tracks you wouldn’t expect. Altogether, it makes for a satisfying listen.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
