Riley's L.A. Guns Dark Horse Review

After waiting for FOREVER, I’ve finally decided to go ahead and review/talk about the latest release from Riley’s L.A. Guns – The Dark Horse and of course I’ll talk some L.A.G. and Riley jive too. It wasn’t my intention to wait this long, I wanted to have the physical product in my hands as opposed to the purchased download. Physical releases tell you so much – who produced, wrote and so on, those of you who prefer physical media get it. The physical release of this album has been a debacle from the word go – see Golden Robot Records for that travesty. I’ve seen some of the talk about it, but no matter what, it’s a poor look – this was Steve Riley’s last release EVER, his swansong and this kind of stuff should never have happened. Riley deserved more respect and reverence than that! I’m pissed about it; we should’ve been able to relish in it and celebrate him through it. Supposedly, the physical releases happened back in August, but I didn’t get mine. But I’m not here to cry over spilled milk, if Amazon is worth their salt, I’ll at least get the vinyl release toward the end of the month. I’ll say this and leave it be; I wish the band had been on a label like Perris or Cleopatra, those labels wouldn’t have dropped the ball with something this important.
 
I know L.A. Guns fans have been divided on there being 2 versions of the band and a great deal of them have trash talked this version – I’m not one of those people. Steve Riley is the reason I ever gave the band a chance to begin with – Riley has long been a favorite drummer of mine, the work he did in W.A.S.P. was flawless and he did even better with L.A. Guns. Next to Charlie Watts, Riley has always been one of my favorite drummers, I’ve studied his work ever since I started playing drums. L.A.G. has been a sincere favorite of mine since the release of Cocked and Loaded. The band’s discography is legendary give or take a few missteps. For me, the best albums are the ones that feature the classic line up, the rest are decent, just not on the level of the first few. And let me say this loud and proud, if Steven Riley didn’t play on it, it’s slack in the drum department – I said it. Riley was always the driving force behind the band, his approach was magical and he never waivered nor cheated the band, his tone was always there, and he never tried to overplay and play outside of himself. You can’t say that about the other players that have taken his place. To be fair the last 2 albums from Lewis/Gunns version have been better in the drum department, but it’s still not Riley. I’d been hoping that they would’ve made amends, and Riley would’ve joined back up with the band – that would’ve been great! Even better would’ve been if he could’ve re-joined W.A.S.P. for their latest resurgence, that was a deserved chance too. Alas that wasn’t meant to be, and Mr. Riley left this world in October of 2023, I’m still saddened by the loss, it pains me deep in my soul. At least we have all the brilliant music he left us – Roadmaster, The Lawyers, The Bzzz, Keel, W.A.S.P. L.A. Guns and of course Riley’s L.A. Guns.
 
The Dark Horse… Appropriately titled to say the least. This album sees the band returning with the same members as they had on the previous effort, Renegades. The songs on The Dark Horse do seem a bit more cohesive and rehearsed this time out. While Renegades was good, some of the songs felt rushed, like the band didn’t have time to gel and live with them a little before recording. This isn’t the case at all here. The Dark Horse is a brilliantly recorded and produced album, its jaw dropping! Lead single “Overdrive” gets this album off to a blazing start with catchy riffage and some great melody lines. Vocalist, Kurt Frohlich’s voice stands out here, he’s no slouch. Scott Griffin’s guitar work on this track is fantastic too, kind of makes me wonder why he wasn’t let loose when he was in L.A. Guns – he was underutilized for sure. Title track “The Dark Horse” is the best track on the album to me, its feels urgent/important, as if this is something you should be listening to – it's a confession that you NEED to hear. This is one of those tunes that you turn up when you’re in the car and you press the gas pedal to the floor and just drive until there’s no road left. This track has been my mantra this year, I’ve been burning the roads up just cranking it and getting lost in the words and music. The melody is insatiable, and Riley’s pulsing drums stand out front and center along with Griffin’s guitar work. Frohlic’s vocal work and his approach here is top-notch! The next track “Somebody Save Me” has a vibe like “Over the Edge”, that ‘falling’ feeling is all over this tune – I’ve always appreciated Riley’s Drum work on songs like this. The pocket is deep and he’s playing a little behind the beat, and it feels good. Of course there’s a ballad on the album, “Sweet Summer Girl” (Florida). I like this tune a lot, it has a 70’s vibe to it, much like something you’d hear on a Raspberries album and that’s not a bad thing at all! We’re not looking at a Power Ballad here, Jayne’s nowhere to be found. The lyrics are heartfelt and for lack of a better word, they’re sweet. For those of you looking for some Kelly Nickels bass fury will be happy with the song “The Truth”. Nickels’ bass lines drive the song and they’re upfront in the mix. I’ve always enjoyed his playing, I really liked his work on Renegades too, it’s great to see him back playing again.

There are ten tracks on The Dark Horse, I didn’t cover them all here, not because they aren’t worthy, they are. As a die-hard Steve Riley fan, I have to say his drum work and drum tone on this album is some of his finest ever put to tape. Riley deserves all the accolades, the pageantry and the hoopla, he was just that DAMNED good. There’s not an album in his discography that’s slack in the drum department. And while The Dark Horse was his last, he certainly went out on top with some world class players/bandmates that he admired, it showed in his playing and in his some of his later interviews. Riley was a Drum God… While he never got the credit he deserved, I know there are tons of other drummers like me who admired him deeply and we will continue to sing his praises and do our best to keep his memory alive for the next generation of drummers. And if anyone from Golden Robot Records reads this – there’s still time to make this album a bigger deal – CELEBRATE the last work of Steve Riley and his incredible bandmates in Riley’s L.A. Guns! Riley put his faith and trust in you that his work would be released and celebrated. Selling streams on download sites isn’t celebrating, that’s cheap and it’s phoning it in, do the right thing.

This album should be talked about incessantly, it’s 2024, albums this good are a rarity for real. Short of a miracle, this will be my number one album of 2024. The vinyl release should be available via Amazon in a few weeks – I pre-ordered it. I can’t speak on the CD; I didn’t get the one I ordered. I’m hoping someone else will release it somewhere somehow, maybe the band? If not, I’ll fight the bidders on eBay if it shows up there. We'd certainly be interested in releasing it here at Black Angel Promotions!

Godspeed Steve Riley, thank you for the love and dedication you gave to your craft and to your fans, we’re humbled and grateful for your contributions to music.

~Black Angel