You can't keep a good Rock n Roller down. Vocalist Buddy Hughes loves his band. Coming out-  of the Minneapolis/St. Paul club scene of the mid 1980's CRAVING ANGEL re-located to LA and played all the Sunset Strip clubs from 88- 94. So, if you are a rocker of certain vintage in LA, you probably saw these guys at Gazzarri's, The Whiskey, The Roxy or The Troubadour. Playing classic Rock in the style of AC/DC, LED ZEP and UFO, the band garnered a decent following. CRAVING ANGEL was courted by Geffen and Capitol but didn't secure a record deal although plenty of demo material was recorded. After much partying and rocking out, the band returned to Minneapolis. Buddy eventually secured a distribution deal with Minotauro. Real life got in the way for several members before the "Dark Horses" album was released in 2014.

So, what about their 2017 follow up album "Redemption"? Well it's long, 17 tracks long. It rocks out for sure and it takes you back to the 80's which is no bad thing. There are some cool tunes but I'm a bit old school in terms of keeping a Rock album to 10 songs or so. The vocal production or mix doesn't help some of the songs which is a shame as Buddy has great delivery. However, the echoey vocal sound adds a bit of a Jizzy Pearl Love/Hate feel to some of the tracks.

"Chicaboom", the third track has a catchy chorus and some nice long guitar chords. "Hells Waiting" follows with some banjo style picking and the vocals are more spoken which gives a better sound. There is a nice solo near the end, too. Next, "Roses Are Red" is perhaps the best track on the album. Acoustic guitars flow with a nice riff and good vocals. Sort of LED ZEP and perhaps a bit like THUNDER. The fully acoustic version is good, too.

"Bad Voodoo" is a stand out track. With its jaunty riff and metallic soloing, it reminded me of certain Megadeth tracks. "Everything I Do" is a nice ballad. "Dirty Little Secret" is a stand out rocker with a nice riff and, again, Buddy sounds slightly Dave Mustaine like. "Primadonna" finishes the album nicely with a PRIEST style riff. The acoustic version of "Roses are Red" is tagged on the end which is not quite as good as the alternative version.

CRAVING ANGEL hit lots of good Classic Rock moments on this album. Perhaps a bigger production budget would have elevated this collection from good to really-good, solid Rock. Buddy and his band mates are already six or seven tracks into the recording their third album. Although not outstanding, "Redemption" is a decent rock out.