Album Review — Vandenberg

Vandenberg — 2020

Some more new music this week. This time it’s from Vandenberg, an 80s band that has reunited after being away since 1985. The band released three albums between 1982 and 1985 before Adrian Vandenberg joined Whitesnake. More recently, Vandenberg’s MoonKings released two studio albums and an acoustic record.

For 2020, Vandenberg brought in Ronnie Romero on vocals. Romero spent the last four years in Richie Blackmore’s Rainbow. You also might have heard him sing on the Michael Schenker Fest album “Revelation”.

I wasn’t very familiar with Vandenberg before 2020, but as expected, they sound quite a bit like Whitesnake. Romero sounds closer to Robin McAuley than David Coverdale, but you can hear the Coverdale influences.

“Shadows Of The Night” starts off the record and sounds very Whitesnake. A fairly heavy riff runs through the verses and the chorus is a little more catchy. A good start.

“Freight Train” is a little heavier at the start and stays fairly heavy all the way through. Another decent track.

“Let It Rain” is an album highlight. It starts off slower and settles mid-tempo. This one could have been a hit in the late 80s.

“Ride Like The Wind” has another great hook running through the track. It has that Whitesnake guitar sound but it’s definitely not a clone. Heavy and melodic.

“Light Up The Sky” is the most Whitesnake sounding song on the record. The opening track sounds like it could have been on “Slide It In”.

“Burning Heart” was probably the band’s biggest hit and we get a re-recorded version. I like the idea and it’s done well. It ties the old band with the new and gives the listener an idea of what they will sound like live doing the older songs.

I have no complaints with this record other than naming it after a terrible year. The songs are high quality. Lots of guitars that remind me of my favorite Whitesnake era. Romero has a unique voice that works here and keeps the songs from sounding too Whitesnake.

I like it. I think Whitesnake fans will also enjoy it and especially fans of the late 80s/early 90s era of the band. After a long drought of new music, this is a welcome release in my book.

90 out of 100

Track Listing

1. Shadows Of The Night *
2. Freight Train
3. Hell and High Water
4. Let It Rain *
5. Ride Like The Wind *
6. Shout *
7. Shitstorm
8. Light Up The Sky *
9. Burning Heart — 2020
10. Skyfall

*Best Songs