First release on Roadrunner's new offshoot label Loud & Proud for releasing 'heritage artists' - not sure that's a good a term as 'cassic artists', heritage always brings to mind old buildings... Anyway this is the latest solo album from Sammy Hagar and he has some top names along for the ride.

This is a straight hard rock record from Mr Hagar, no fuss and no frills. The title track was written online with Iraqi rocker Steven Lost and starts the album off in solid hard rocking style. Hagar renews his partnership with Journey's Neal Schon on 'Peephole', a nice little rocker.

'Loud' features fellow ex-Van Halen bandmate Michael Anthony, Billy Duffy (The Cult) and Matt Sorum (Velvet Revolover/ex-G'N'R) and as the title suggests is a loud hard rock anthem. Duffy gets to unleash a couple of very tasty solos on this song.

The album does drop towards the end with '24365' sounding bizarrely like a Dave Lee Roth solo song with its almost spoken lyrics. 'I'm On A Roll' gets the album back but the live acoustic Van Halen duo of 'Dreams' and 'Cabo Wabo' is not great and not helped either by a lengthy spoken intro which wears thin after repeated plays. Doubtless sounded great if you were there but loses something along the way on a CD.

One neat curveball is the cover of the Beastie Boys classic 'Fight For Your Right To Party', done like it was recorded at a party and a fine version.

A good, solid hard rock album from Sammy Hagar and it will certainly keep the fans happy until the Chickenfoot 'supergroup' album lands sometime next year.

****

Review by Jason Ritchie