Whitecross - Unveiled (Re-issue)

Back in the day, Whitecross was one of my favorite bands.  Their first 3 or 4 albums constantly found themselves in my stereo...usually at very high volumes.  However, as the band aged, their sound just didn't do it for me anymore.  Somewhere around High Gear, I really found myself getting big time bored.  In fact, High Gear was the last Whitecross album I ever bought.  A few years after that release, was the release of this album...Unveiled.  Listening to this album makes me remember why I started to get bored with Whitecross.  The band just had nothing left in them at this time in their career.  They completely lost their metal edge and they just wondered aimlessly in mediocre, barely hard rock territory.  Maybe it was the absence of Rex Carroll, who knows?  Scott Wenzel was obviously still around, but his whiney, nasally vocals just didn't cut it anymore.  Too many commercial, sappy sounding songs (like "Angel's Disguise") also made me cringe upon hearing them. 

So...with all that being said, I don't have much of an idea as to why this album was re-released.  Maybe it's been hard to find, but then again...I'm not sure why too many people would be looking for it.  About the only bright spots of the album are the gritty, bluesy tune, "Goodbye Cruel World" and the southern-flavored "Salt City".  Other than that, there isn't a song on this disc that does anything for me.

With this being a Retroactive Records re-release, the record label added two bonus tracks to the end of this album.  The songs are "He is the Rock" and "Lookin' for a Reason" from their 1986 demo that got them signed to Pure Metal Records.  While those songs were cool on their debut album, with sub-par demo production here, I don't see this being much of an incentive for long-time Whitecross fans to buy this below average release.

Rating: 49/100

Review By: Matt Morrow

Label: Retroactive Records

Total Songs: 14

Total Time: 51:09

Tracklisting: 1. Frank, 2. If You Believe, 3. Home in Heaven, 4. Goodbye Cruel World, 5. Angel's Disguise, 6. I Keep Prayin', 7. Come Unto the Light, 8. Groove, 9. King of Angels, 10. Salt City, 11. Right Before Your Eyes, 12. No Other Love, 13. He is the Rock, 14. Lookin' for a Reason.

Best Songs: Tracks 4, 10, 13, & 14.

Band Lineup: Scott Wenzel - Vocals/BGV, Barry Graul - Guitar/BGV, Tracy Ferrie - Bass/BGV, Michael Feighan - Drums/BGV.

Band Website: http://www.whitecross.com