The Justice League of Rock - Black Swan - Shake The World

     When an 80’s rocker like me hears of four heavy metal heroes coming together to form a Justice-League of musicians, my attention is instantly arrested. When I then hear a track or two, and it totally blows past all expectations I may have had, I can’t help but to jump aboard. When the album comes out and is such a solid piece of work, start to finish, I have to write about it.

     Bass guitar champion Jeff Pilson (Dokken, The End Machine, Dio, Foreigner, etc.) and the president of the Frontiers record label kick-started the union, based on their shared vision of a dynamic project featuring the powerful vocals of Robin McAuley (MSG, Survivor). They brought together what can only be called an all-star cast, adding the shredding skills of Reb Beach (Winger, Dokken, Whitesnake, Alice Cooper) and the intricate skin-pounding of Matt Starr (Mr Big, Ace Frehley).  When brought together, the world is truly blessed to have Black Swan.

     The album that results is an amazing fusion of talent.  The entire “Shake The World” disc (recorded in Pilson’s personal studio) is cohesive and potent from start to finish. It is driven by prominent and intricate bass lines and drum-tracks, which lay down a phenomenal bed for the complex guitar work of Beach, and the compelling vocals of McAuley.

     Let’s take a look at the tracks:

• The record opens with thunderous drums (you can actually envision the curtain coming up, as the title track kicks off the disc. “Shake The World” is a high-speed and intense rock-anthem, and definitely lets the listener know that this is an album to be enjoyed at high-volume.
• “Big Disaster” launches with a prominent, and very bluesy bass line. The track is 100% attitude and swagger. Big harmonies (no surprise, with 2 former Dokken members playing the strings, and a drummer who has been a lead-singer) raise the chorus you’ll be singing in your head all day long.
• “Johnny Came Marching” features a plodding, marching rhythm, and carries a guitar riff that almost speaks with a voice of its own. It’s a musical tribute to victims of PTSD, and the lyrics give voice to the daily internal struggle faced by young soldiers who have seen far too much by the time they return from the front lines.
• A hard and heavy bass riff introduces us to “Immortal Souls,” before giving way to one of the most vocally intense tracks on the record. McAuley’s voice soars, and harmonies abound on this forceful bass-driven symphony.
• The fifth track on the album is the 3rd single, and the rock-ballad of the disc.  “Make It There” is a mournful, contemplative admission that relationships are hard, and sometimes we don’t have what it takes to make them work. Heavy with vocal slides and minor-key harmonies, this is a musical piece of art.
• Immediately following the softest track on the record is probably the heaviest. “She’s On To Us” kicks off with a metal guitar riff that is thick with grit and gravel. The edge is carried into the vocal track – of course, the Dokken-esque harmonies punctuate the tune well.
• The most anthemic song on the record has to be “The Rock That Rolled Away.” This is an up-tempo, fist-pumper that will get every ass in the arena up off the seats and rocking along. Coming on the back-side of the track-list, this is the song that tells you the record is far from over.  Keep listening!
• Reb Beach launches “Long Road To Nowhere” with Van Halen-esque pinch harmonics, and then presses right into the hard-driving track, charged with electricity. This is another powerhouse head-banger, heavy on harmonies and melodic-metal guitar.
• “Sacred Place” slides in with a blues guitar riff, and then launches into a mid-tempo melody, with more than a nod to 80’s rock. This song is begging mercilessly for a music video shot walking in the rain.
• As we approach the end of the album, “Unless We Change” opens with the soft sounds of violins, and then proceeds to jump back and forth between high-voltage up-tempo hard-rock and ethereal prog-rock. The track is driven forward by an all-out assault from Pilson’s bass guitar, as the mood of the song slides as if bi-polar from pounding rock to contemplative and back again.
• “Divided/United” was influenced mightily by Queen (you can’t miss it). The 6-minute symphony is more like 2 songs in one. The “Divided” first half opens with piano and vocals (you could almost imagine Freddy Mercury singing), before guitar joins in a minute later, and the drums/harmonies hit after another 30 seconds. Half-way through the song, we get the evil-twin “United.” The band kicks it in the ass, with an entirely different energy, giving us an anthemic finish to the record. We get almost 2 full minutes of heavy-metal shredding by Beach, before the disc fades out, and the curtain comes back down.

    Driven mightily by Pilson and Starr from start to finish, with some of the best work I have heard from Beach over the years, and topped with the phenomenal vocals of McAuley, “Shake The World” is one of my favorite new albums in years. Fans of rock & roll from the 80’s to today are in for a treat when they crank up this disc. I’ll let you decide who is Superman on the record, but one thing is certain; these songs are going to be a treat to hear in the Hall Of Justice – and arenas across the globe.

Some information sourced from Blabbermouth