Hey, what has ten legs, a hundred hooks, a scarab beetle, and more platinum than a junkyard full of hard drives? Yeah, that's an easy one. And while Steve Perry sulks at home, the band plays on. We've already been served one full-length and an EP by the the Steve Augeri-fronted JOURNEY project, and now this latest album delivers another batch of croony, melodic desserts from your favorite prom theme penners. Overall "Generations" is worth the price of admission, but it won't replace your favorite guilty pleasures of yesteryear.

Despite Augeri's warm, Perry-inspired vocal confections, it's drummer Deen Castronovo that steals the show, delivering two standout cuts that recall the "Raised on Radio" era. "A Better Life" is a chillbumper that remarkably finds Castronovo sounding more like Perry than Perry. The same can be said for the soaring closer "Never Too Late" (co-written with Jack Blades). Those are the tracks to be added to the ever-growing greatest hits package the band reissues every year, and those are the tracks that are worth the price of the disc.

The rest of the album revolves around the buttery, ERIC JOHNSON-esque guitar tones Schon has been dishing out of late, as well as more revolving-vocalist experimentation. As grateful as you'll be for the Castronovo tunes, the bulk of the remainder could pass as a compilation, with assorted bands submitting original compositions based on the idea of JOURNEY. From the Greg Rollie-esque barrelhouse piano of the title track to the dance-with-your-mom sappiness of "Knowing That You Love Me", it's all a lot of fun, but nothing to trade your fringy white jacket over. There's something about that corny, white-guy R&B bounce of Steve Perry that can't be cloned. It's also kind of amusing that all these talented songwriters and musicians are laboring so intensely to duplicate the style of one man, who has decided to "take his ball and play somewhere else". Truthfully, if you're looking for the HALL AND OATES kind pulse of "I'll Be Alright Without You", you may want to skip this one. But if you're a metalhead looking for a decently rocking album to help recall those years of beer parties and backseat fumblings , you'll be quite pleased with "Generations".

- Marchman

OFFICIAL SITE: www.journeymusic.com

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