Eclipse

Eclipse is an ambitious late-period work on which Journey pushes Neal Schon’s guitar more to the fore and supports its native arena-rock melody with sturdy, powerful riffs. While inheriting the revival welcoming Arnel Pineda on the previous Revelation, it boldly strengthens a harder rock color. Pineda’s singing runs up powerful high ranges, and Jonathan Cain’s keyboards add a flamboyant, sure expanse to the songs. From the powerful drive of the opener “City of Hope” and the drama of “Edge of the Moment” to cuts like “Anything Is Possible,” “Resonate” and “Chain of Love,” the songs keep ballad beauty yet the whole album has a sure rock weight more than before. Content in which Schon’s guitar is powerfully in sharp form throughout. An ambitious record letting you fully enjoy both appeals at once — melodic Journey and a harder, heavier Journey. It shows the band’s sure underlying strength as a rock band, not staying within the frame of arena rock. Showing further fullness and evolution in the new lineup welcoming Pineda, it is an engaging, powerful work — a record where Schon’s guitar is the star.