A total of five different vocalists have lent their, err… talent to the band since 2010, with James Durbin being the one to release anything with the band. Durbin still performs on Hollywood Cowboys even though he’s since left the band, being replaced by Jizzy Pearl who was in the band between 2013 and 2016. So, why’s it so hard to be unbiased? Simply put, because all they’ve put out after Alive And Well (1999) has been shit. Previous album Road Rage (2017) even more so. All right, so Hollywood Cowboys open up on Don’t Call it Love; a run of the mill, inoffensive rocker that’ll satisfy your Bon Jovi needs (category: needs no one has). And that’s about it. The rest of the album is slow to medium paced rock with hardly audible guitars, devoid of any power, joy or emotion.

The songs are all fairly short, except overlong Roll On, and the vast majority of them lack any distinguishable features, interesting hooks or even any riffs or vocal melodies of note. They all lead nowhere; when it seems like they’re coming to a bridge for a solo to take off, they abruptly end without highlights or climax. The stagnancy in the music is also carried over to vocalist Durbin’s effort, which is about as interesting as beige wallpaper (which I guess is awesome if you love beige walls). The only song worth hearing (once) is Last Outcast, a slightly faster number that introduces a little bit of the power sorely lacking on the rest of the album. The guitars get a little grit and the solo is actually pretty sweet. Even Durbin sounds into it for the two and a half minutes the song lasts. Whatever Hollywood Cowboys is supposed to be, it fails, because there’s no emotion put behind the effort. Whatever it could have been, it never reaches, because no one is interested in the art. Don’t call it love, because all this is, is a cash grab with the name of a once great metal act slapped on top.

Standout tracks: Last Outcast