Journеy - Eclipsе (2011) [Japan Press with Bonus track] re-up

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Journеy - Eclipsе (2011) [Japan Press with Bonus track] re-up

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This is an utterly classic album. I could leave it at that…review over! I would however, be lynched by melodic rock fans for not explaining just why.
Journey is so many things to so many people, every note of every song of every album is scrutinized beyond reasonable sanity sometimes, so I expect this to be the most debated full score review of those that I have posted over the years.
The band achieved a perhaps surprising amount of success with their last album Revelation – the debut of Arnel and his story, plus the great value package at retail - made it a winner amongst both die-hards fans and those that appear to have been on the sidelines for other post-Perry releases.
Revelation was outstanding in all departments, so it would not have been any surprise to see the guys attempt to duplicate that success with a very similar album here.
But, this is quite often where things fall over for many artists. Acceptance that such success cannot just be manufactured or automatically duplicated the next time around is the first step to creating that great next record.
It is quite obvious that guitarist Neal Schon had a plan. I'm going to ask him just how long that plan has been with him, as an album like this just doesn't appear out of nowhere. This is not a 3-minute/instant chorus album. In a world of one hit wonders and single track downloads, thank God a band of this stature has stood up and declared the art of creating an album is not dead. The art of writing songs that form a cohesive story and a multi-layered sensory trip for your ears can still be delivered in 2011.

Neal Schon took control of the writing and recording process. I see this album as a result of his single minded vision and I see it as the most powerful, inspired and dominating performance of his career.
This is a true guitar record. This is a guitarist's record. I haven't heard such inspired riffing, soloing and shredding one track after another on a melodic rock record since…well, maybe ever. The solos just keep coming and not content with just one, some songs have several going on at once. It really is guitar overdrive, but never once do I feel that it is at the detriment to the song, the melody or the expectations of what Journey is all about. Not for me at least.
And producer Kevin Shirley and mixer David Kalmusky shared the vision and ensured their roles helped bring all of this craziness together to sound as good as it should. I do see some folks having a hard time with this record. There is a certain pink and fluffy Journey that some love and not having that sound featured here is going to put the lighthearted off.
This is also a long album. It takes you on a journey (excuse the pun). I love the fact that the songs change direction and I love that there seems no hurry to fade them out or bring them to an early close, by extending musical parts, extra vocals and lengthy solos. But Neal is not alone in deserving praise.
Drummer Deen Castronovo is in perfect step with Neal's vision and energy and quite simply, delivers a brutal performance, belting the drum kit to within an inch of its life here. His power is obvious, but he should also be credited for his moments of true finesse, used when subtlety was more important than power.
Jonathan Cain deserves praise for a different reason. It is quite clear he stepped back from the prominent position his keyboard parts normally take within a Journey album. But they are still there. Very much so. They add texture and additional layers to the songs that otherwise would feel to be missing if not there. Plus there is more variety in his performance this time around. And his grasp of the theme of the record has allowed him to stretch out lyrically and truly be part of this amazing record.
And what can one say about Arnel Pineda. He has a lengthy career already behind him, but we still haven't heard a whole lot from him when it comes to studio work. That no longer matters. Let anyone who ever stood in his way with unwarranted criticism or a particular dislike for his delivery, step aside and marvel at the power, control and passion behind the vocals on Eclipse.
His performance blows everything previously documented away and can now be set as a new benchmark in melodic rock vocals. Ross Valory of course does what Ross does and that means that along with Deen, the rhythm section behind this record is nothing short of amazing and helps kick these songs into full overdrive.

– from review at http://www.melodicrock.com/reviews/reviews.html

lossless
http://filepost.com/files/3583fa13/Jour2011JL.part1.rar
http://filepost.com/files/2f723abf/Jour2011JL.part2.rar
http://filepost.com/files/b4ea45mm/Jour2011JL.part3.rar

Scans
http://filepost.com/files/4m18a4bd/Jour2011JC.part1.rar
http://filepost.com/files/9bca6mb8/Jour2011JC.part2.rar

MP3 CBR 320
http://filepost.com/files/83ddm798/Jour2011JM.part1.rar
http://filepost.com/files/mf19me42/Jour2011JM.part2.rar