T&N / SLAVE TO THE EMPIRE (2012)

No doubt George Lynch is one of the leading figures in the hard rock scene. His guitar playing was the influence for thousands of guitarists worldwide. Personally I believe that Lynch created his own guitar sound. With Dokken peaked in the 80's and early 90's but also with Lynch Mob released two amazing albums. A huge fantastic solo in the 90's, several participations in various projects and a couple of releases that he would not like to remember is the outcome of this great guitarist in the last two decades and something.


The "T & N" is the brand new project / band that Lynch created with the participation of his two old friends from Dokken, Jeff Pilson and Mick Brown. George Lynch said about the T & N project: "Essentially, we made two albums, the first is going to be released in OCTOBER 2012 and the second disc next year. In the meantime, the band will go out on tour in America, Asia and Europe!" In fact, the band was called Tooth And Nail but due to copyright issues they became T & N!!! The "Slave To The Empire"  includes new versions of classic Dokken songs and some new material that will satisfy (?) fans of George Lynch. Apart from the three ex-Dokken members, we will see some guests like Brian Tichy, Doug Pinnick, Robert Mason, Sebastian Bach and Tim 'Ripper' Owens.

The vocals on all songs, except the guest list, undertaken entirely by Jeff Pilson who's doin' a really good work. The title track moves into Lynch Mob - Dokken's style with a more modern approach with a huge solo!!!! In "Sweet Unknown", we have, unfortunately, Lynch's obsession with some more 'dark' and modern sound. Average!! "Tooth & Nail" and Doug Pinnick on lead vocals and another disappointment in this classic song!!  In "It's Not Love" we have Robert Mason and captures fantastic my favorite Dokken song! The "Rhythm of the Soul" and "When Eagles Die" and move them to moderate levels to get to the good "Into The Fire" and "Alone Again" (Sebastian Bach). Of the remaining songs there is not a single track that impressed me ......

Disappointment, that's the word that comes to me! I had great expectations from this specific release. There are some good moments but unfortunately not enough to save the final result. Pity, because George Lynch has always been my biggest influence and the reason why I started to learn guitar. The only positive is the solos and riffs that are breathtakin'.
Heavy Paradise's Rating : 5/10

Track List :
01 - Slave To The Empire
02 - Sweet Unknown
03 - Tooth & Nail
04 - It’s Not Love
05 - Rhythm of the Soul
06 - When Eagles Die
07 - Into The Fire
08 - Alone Again
09 - Mind Control
10 - Kiss of Death
11 - Jesus Train
12 - Access Denied