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CANEDY
Warrior
2020 Sleaszy Rider Records

Legendary metal drummer and producer Carl Canedy (THE RODS) has returned with his second solo album, titled Warrior. Carl consciously put together a proper band this time around, and was able to find three other local musicians that shared his vision in writing and recording these songs. Joining Carl are former members of Scranton, PA’s TLC (TOTALLY LOST CAUSE): vocalist Mike Santarsiero, bassist/keyboardist/vocalist Tony Garuba, and guitarist Charles Russello.

The album kicks off with the advisory “Do It Now”, a driving song about “workaholics with children”. Carl supplies the engine that powers this song, and augments it with some killer drum fills. Charles adds a nice guitar riff throughout, mirrored by Tony’s bassline which will have your head banging. I dig Mike’s vocals here, especially the chorus. “Not Even Love” nods at ‘80s metal to a degree, with a melodic chorus to boot. This song is about an artist who regrets his life, and wants to go back in time. Religion vs. science rocker “Lies” picks up the pace to a near speed metal tempo and finds Carl utilizing his double bass drums more often. Charles adds an excellent solo to this song. The apocalyptic “Hellride” is real fun and features lead vocals from Tony.

The title track, “Warrior” is a proud metal hymn and acts as a centerpiece of the album. This is a standout track, and you can view the video for the song on KNAC.COM HERE. “3rd Time’s A Charm” is a relationship based song and has some nice speedy parts; this is definitely an uptempo blaster. “In This Sign” is one of the more epic sounding tracks on the album, and is described as “the story of emperor Constantine and Rome embracing Christianity.” This song, along with “Attia” has a Roman-inspired storyline. “Attia” might be the most commercial song here, and is a potential single. Some nice bass playing and backing vocals can be found on the song. “Out For Blood” totally kicks ass and definitely draws blood, while “The Prize” is more introspective and has an ‘80s metal edge.

Despite being a group of seasoned metal veterans, CANEDY’s sound is mostly modern. As I mentioned, there are definitely nods to ‘80s metal sprinkled throughout this album, and I think that adds tons of appeal. Surprisingly, this band doesn’t remind me much at all of THE RODS. Carl is definitely doing his own thing with this band. Mike is a great choice as singer, Tony only adds value to the lineup, and Charles has some very expressive guitar work on the album. And Carl? Well, he’s one of the best drummers around. You’ll enjoy his playing here for sure. Warrior was of course produced by Carl and was mixed by Chris Collier (KORN, PRONG, LAST IN LINE). It has 10 tracks and clocks in around 45 minutes. And check out that cover art by Eric Philippe, it’s pretty damn slick!

Warrior is available for streaming now at: https://canedy.hearnow.com
and will be available on CD and vinyl on August 7th from Sleaszy Rider’s website. Pre-order HERE

4.5 Out Of 5.0