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L.A. GUNS
The Missing Peace
Frontiers Records 2017

It’s been ages since singer Phil Lewis and guitarist Tracii Guns appeared on an album together. For those keeping track it was 2002's Waking The Dead. Guns left to take part in [the short lived] BRIDES OF DESTRUCTION with MOTLEY CRUE’s Nikki Sixx. Phil Lewis and Steve Riley [drummer] pressed forward with various incarnations of the band for 13-14 more years before Phil announced his departure from L.A. GUNS. Once this had taken place Tracii Guns re-entered the picture and a new L.A. GUNS was formed.

It was inevitable that Guns and Lewis would reunite again at some point. There was a time when there were two L.A. GUNS on tour at any given time. To top it all off there were Tracii Guns solo shows, LEAGUE OF GENTLEMEN and then GUNZO--it was so ridiculous that there were even incarnations with two different contestants from the Rock Star reality show. The brand name was so diluted there was no question, their credibility was shot. This brings us to Missing Peace, which is a pleasant surprise given the ups and downs since the 2002 musical divorce.

The Missing Peace in this writer’s opinion might be the best thing L.A. GUNS have released since the ‘Self-titled’ album. It captures the urgency of a band that is hungry to make their mark...something they’ve been missing since roughly around Cocked And Loaded. The Missing Peace was launched with the driving rocker “Speed” which was our first taste of the reunited Guns/Lewis. The Missing Peace is a workshop in gritty, melodic hard rock with tracks like “Don't Bring A Knife To A Gunfight”, “The Devil Made Me Do It” and “Kill It Or Die”, which are amongst some of the most memorable stuff Guns & Co have written and recorded to date. In a perfect world L.A. GUNS should have been an arena act. They should have been right there alongside GUNS N’ ROSES, but instead they've been relegated to the role of ‘little brother’. I like rooting for the underdog, don't you? On The Missing Peace kid brother proves to have a hell of a punch.

4.0 Out Of 5.0

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