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WARRIOR SOUL
Out On Bail
Livewire/Cargo Records UK

It goes without saying that we all get long in the tooth, some wear better than others and as the elitists of the world will immediately announce a particular band or artist's weaknesses when they show any faults or frailties that deviate from that 1 moment in time that in that elitist's mind is the bar, and anything less is unlistenable and a bashing follows. Such has been the unfortunate mantra from those non-fans at the mere mention of new music from WARRIOR SOUL and Kory Clarke. There are a couple ways to look at this: One, you can light artists afire for no good reason and hide away behind your keyboard in your grandma's basement 'cause you can (even though you shouldn't) and of course because you never had the gumption to stick your neck out and make art. The second is to take an honest, meaningful approach to the art and offer a more positive assertion on the blood, sweat, beers and tears of that performer. I prefer to assume positively as my glass is normally half full and then some.

As for Kory and his many prolific outings, solo, with WARRIOR SOUL or otherwise, he has held the brass ring and then bopped that ring aside the heads of those that deserved it, amassed a discography to be rivaled by few and has done so for the past 30 some odd years with his head held high, stiff middle finger at the ready and a chip the size of a Chrysler on his overburdened, but incredibly talented shoulders. Over those years the creativity hasn't faltered, whereas at times the voice may have. But again, when you leave it all on the stage (of life and otherwise), you'll get two fistfuls of battle scars.

All that nonsensical prattling aside, and being what can only be described as a Kory Clarke fanboy, I must admit I was still a little bit apprehensive and a little worried about reviewing the new outing from the living legend that is Kory Clarke and his current iteration of one of the most underrated, influential and down right quintessential bands that has ever been recorded.

Trepidation be damned! After 30+ full album listens (full immersion for days) I will admit the entire Out On Bail album, all 8 tracks are downright perfect. Now before you get all holier than thou with proclamations of nothing justifiable, stop your internal dialogue and please refer to the first 3 paragraphs of this review and then relisten, but REALLY listen.

Right out of the gate, Track 1, "We're Alive", takes you roaring back in time and grabs you by the arm dragging you into the future. This song, with its 'Four More Years'-inspired intro and its phased guitar outro, easily could have slipped in alongside "Jump For Joy", "Rocket 88" or just about any other track from Last Decade or Drugs, God. "One More For The Road" doesn't waver far from the first couple WARRIOR SOUL releases again, which is a great thing. Kory's voice on this one is as raw and strained as can be but still holding true to what once was. Of note is the very crisp high hat mix, real raw and out front in the mix, but a nice touch and one not used often enough. "Hip Hip Hooray" is another early WARRIOR SOUL-influenced rocker with some very Kory-esque lyrics dabbling into current affairs with a swagger and snark that are staples for Mr. Clark. "Out On Bail" dials back the old school WARRIOR SOUL vibe and goes for the later punky, AC/DC, 2's and 4's of some of the newer materials, not a rub and certainly a nice song that would fit the arena rock mold very well. "Canceled Culture" obviously relates to current affairs and the song is reminiscent of some of the Space Age stuff, a real nice strut of a verse guitar lick makes one want to slither about and you can't help gyrating along with this one, certainly infectious and the bass line pre-solo breakdown adds to the fire and then the solo, oof, very nice one here kids.

"End of The World" time warps again to the earlier works with its surreal space odyssey musical presentation that pairs well with the heavy lyrical content, but in true WARRIOR SOUL style you don't get lost in the heaviness, think "Superpower Dreamland" or "The Golden Shore" for this one and the outro verse and guitar harmonics are attention getters for sure. "Yo Yo" is another uptempo, earlier WARRIOR SOUL fueled rocker with complex guitar rhythms and a really heavy marching drum beat that aids in this "Charlie's Out of Prison"-esque track. This one is a current favorite, but that is like picking a favorite kid. Last but certainly not least is "The New Paradigm", which again culls from those earlier triptastically styled WARRIOR SOUL staples with an aurally pleasing verse setting the stage for the punch in the neck coming but it still stays midtempo, segues into an equally ethereal solo and outro verse where Kory screams "Paradigm" like his life depends on us hearing it and I for one am listening. Certainly worthy of mentioning are the players on this release, Dennis Post and Christian Kimmet, of whom are more than competent and seem possessed by the spirit of the old WARRIOR SOUL and maybe a little infused by Kory as well.

Clocking in at a little over 30 minutes Out On Bail would never be accused of being a long play, but the methodology certainly holds strong to what once was, when we'd grab the latest cassette or album from the record store of our heroes and blaze through the release, loving every second and then yearning for more, not unlike what Kory and WARRIOR SOUL has done with Out On Bail. They got in, laid waste, got out and left us ears ringing, clamoring for our clothes and begging for more.

In Conclusion (get it ;)), if you appreciate all things that are WARRIOR SOUL and in particular the mad genius that is Kory Clarke, Out On Bail will not disappoint as in this writer's opinion this has been as close to a vintage WARRIOR SOUL as a whole as we have seen. Sure we've gotten glimpses of it, but nothing this complete and again, Kory has his battle scars but still brings his 'A' game and I am grateful and appreciative of his tenacity and passion for continuing the legacy in any form. Thank you Kory!

4.5 Out Of 5.0

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"We're Alive" (Video)
"Out On Bail" (Video)