When I heard the announcement of a new LILLIAN AXE record a few months back I looked forward to it as the band has always been a favorite and have released two solid (and somewhat underrated) albums since new vocalist Derrick LeFevre has entered the fold. What I didn’t realize is that the new record is more of an EP of sorts, which features five new tracks and four re-makes of past catalog tunes. A decent enough concept but it makes you wonder what the motive was. Making matters more clouded was the announcement last month that LeFevre was leaving the band (amicably) and being replaced by former METAL CHURCH shouter Ronny Munroe. I think LeFevre was a near-perfect replacement for original singer Ron Taylor as their vocal tones were uncannily similar. I’ll hold judgment on Munroe until I hear him with the group.

The new record opens with “Under The Same Moon” and is pretty indicative of the bands current sound but with a little twist. It goes from a rough and aggressive almost modern metal feel to a more traditional LILLIAN AXE arrangement. Lyrically, it tells the story of a person becoming a vampire and the curse of immortality that comes along with it. At over seven minutes in length it is an epic track.

The next new track (and first single) is “47 Ways To Die”. It’s a decent enough song and again features the typical LILLIAN sound of their modern era. Even if I won’t say it’s one of the strongest of the LILLIAN AXE catalog. I can also say that Blaze and the band never really written a bad song. Let’s face it LILLIAN AXE has always come under that second tier of bands in the hair era based on their commercial success but make no mistake this is and has always been one the better to be lumped into the category. Their records have always been a cut above and even as they have embraced the modern sound a bit more over the years the songs have remained solid.

“The Quenching Of Human Life” is a cool modern rocker with some great guitar work from Blaze. It’s aggressive and filled with attitude. It’s maybe the song I would have chosen as a first single but with a length of 6:19, I can see where that would be a hindrance. Still it’s a highlight track and one to check out for sure. The same can be said of “A Minute of Years”, as it again touches on the theme of immortality, but at almost nine minutes long it is another epic LILLIANtrack with plenty of twists and turns along the way. I could say the band has always had a bit of a progressive flair running through their music and it is never more evident than on this track.

The “covers” portion the record is now up with a tune from the self-titled debut. “Nobody Knows” has always been a great song and this new acoustic treatment shows it is as solid as ever. LeFevre shines on this one and I for one will miss his vocals as they tied in with the bands past so well. Hopefully Munroe will be an ample replacement and continue the bands legacy. The bands’ “Psychoschizophrenia” album is given a nod with the track “The Day I Met You”. This has always been one of the classier and more commercially viable tunes from the band. If you never heard the song I would compare the vibe to the hugely successful “More Than Words” by EXTREME mixed with “Love Is On The Way” from SAIGON KICK. Yeah, it’s that good! It’s pretty much a faithful rendition to the original but it’s such a great song it fits in perfectly with the new record.

Next up there are two songs from the band’s last album “Sad Day On Planet Earth”. The title track is up first and this all-acoustic treatment is close to the original except it never really kicks in like its predecessor. “Nocturnal Symphony” is featured next and I may like this fully striped version more then the somewhat heavier original.

“Deep Red Shadows” closes with the instrumental title track and it is a nice way to close out the record. As much as I thought this would be a stopgap type release or nothing more than an EP with a few new songs, it really does have the makings of a solid full-length record if listened to in that context.