.

Scorpions - Return to Forever


by Kevin Wierzbicki

.
Hey, didn't these guys retire? Rock and rollers are nothing if not mercurial and legions of Scorpions fans the world over can be thankful that the band changed their mind about calling it quits. The fact that the band's 50th anniversary is this year probably had something to do with that decision; it would have been a shame for the guys to go silent before reaching that rarely-attained milestone. Clearly though some of the album's songs reference the fact that the end is near, including opening track "Going Out With a Bang" and it's lyrics of "No sign of slowing down" and "We're never losing touch." In typical Scorpions fashion the song has a killer sing-along chorus and is likely to become the latest beloved anthem in the band's already substantial canon. Some may see "We Built This House" as another reference to the band's career but a close listen to the lyrics reveals that the song is about a long-running personal relationship. But with a generous 19-tracks on tap here, there is of course lots of mindless rocking going on, like on the guitar-laden highway song "Rock My Car," the strutting "The Scratch," "The World We Used to Know" which true to its title sounds like a throwback to the 1980s (not too surprising since the band has indicated that much of this material was originally written long ago) and "Delirious" with it's extremely punchy drum line. The quieter side of the band is represented by quite a few songs; among the subdued highlights are "Eye of the Storm," "House of Cards" and "Who We Are." One thing Scorpions have not done here is try to reinvent their sound; if you like the majority of their past work you will like Return to Forever too.

Get your copy here.

Scorpions - Return to Forever
Rating:

Share this article

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Pin it Share on Reddit email this article



advertisement