SANTA CRUZ – The Return of the Kings (2022)

Helsinki, Finland’s hard rock / glam metal troop SANTA CRUZ are back into the scene, and have set August 26th as the official release date for their new studio album “The Return of the Kings”.
The new 2022 lineup of Santa Cruz – which sees Finnish frontman / guitarist and founding member Archie Cruz now joined by the talented Los Angeles-based trio of guitarist Jerry Jade (Bad Gvy), bassist Tommy Bradley (Revelry Gang), and drummer Randy McDemian (Abrahadabra Clothing) – showcases the band with refreshed energy and rocking riffs & melodies to boot.
Archie Cruz adapted to the challenges of 2020 and 2021 by continuing to work on the music that would become “The Return of the Kings”. The new songs are hot, with the killer ‘street-level’ the band was known for, glamorous and dirty at the same time. On of course, you have their classy melodic rockers, like the Def Leppard influenced midtempo ‘Disarm Me’.

The first 4 tracks are the best in our opinion. ‘Here Comes the Revolution’ is a bruising, aggressive hard rock number like WASP on steroids, and while the chorus is modern ala Rob Zombie, the whole song takes you back to the Sunset Strip.
‘Take Me to America’ is sleazy, sleazy-dark and menacing, and works very well. Then ‘Under the Gun’ is driven by a guitar riff circa Ozzy / Jake E. Lee era, and you really enjoy the gang vocals and the dirty chorus. Perhaps the best song on the album.

As said, next ‘Disarm Me’ completely changes direction for a sweet poppy midtempo melodic tune. It seems a completely different band, but the songs is very good, with nice harmonies.
‘Standing My Ground’ and especially ’10 Shots’ – a highlight for me – returns to classic glammy hard rock with an updated production. It must be said Archie Cruz recruited very talented new musicians, especially guitarist Jerry Jade serving some killer riffs and clean swirling solos.

Then something happens with the last 3 songs… with ‘1000 Cigarettes’ the band tries modern rock ala Maroon Five. What? I don’t like it. Next ‘Would You Believe It’ is insipid poppy. Not bad, but this isn’t Santa Cruz. Then closer ‘Stay’ is the worst… modern-punky-pop crap?
Honesty, I don’t get what Archie Cruz is looking for with the last 3 tracks… fortunately all-3 are at the end.
For me, album ends with track 9.

It’s nice the see and hear Santa Cruz back with a new album. It’s varied, well composed & recorded, and the new guys in the band – all American – are excellent. The new songs rock hard, vibrant and energetic. The ‘experiment with modern rock’ at the end of the album fails in our opinion, so we recommend press ‘stop button’ after track number nine.
Highly Recommended

01 – Here Comes the Revolution
02 – Take Me to America
03 – Under the Gun
04 – Disarm Me
05 – Standing My Ground
06 – 10 Shots
07 – Another Round
08 – Gunshot
09 – 1000 Cigarettes
10 – Would You Believe It
11 – Stay

Vocals, guitar – Archie Cruz
Guitar, Backing Vocals – Jerry Jade (Bad Gvy)
Bass, Backing Vocals – Tommy Bradley (Revelry Gang)
Drums – Randy McDemian (Abrahadabra Clothing)

Pre order:
www.amazon.co.uk/Return-Kings-Santa-Cruz/dp/B0B4GDB158