For the first time in sixteen years, the original four members of Mr. Big, Billy Sheehan, Pat Torpey, Eric Martin and Paul Gilbert have recorded and released an album of new material. The energy of the four musicians is apparent from start to finish, as this album drips with hard rocking power.

Torpey, always the guy never mentioned in the press, does a fine job keeping the engine running smoothly, as pretty boy vocalist, Eric Martin, still sounds much larger than his small frame. Sheehan and Gilbert, arguably two of the best ever in their genres, took over this album and breathed fire into the belly of the dragon. Their playing is ferocious and, at times, must have even amazed themselves.

“I Won’t Get in the Way” should be an FM hit but radio stations in America are still too scared to put anything new into rotation. Fuck em, this is good shit, so do whatever is necessary to acquire this music for yourself (legally, of course). “Stranger in My Life” is another strong track that harkens back to the first two Mr. Big albums while “Once Upon a Time” sees Sheehan and Gilbert simply knock everyone’s dick in the dirt with their passionate jamming. The talented duo trot out a tune titled “Unforgiven” that is simply one of the best songs Mr. Big has ever written. The solo section in this one is a lesson in shredding as Gilbert pushes himself to the limit. The song “Undertow,” called a bonus track, can be checked on in video form on the band’s official site.

At the end of the day there is not a weak track on the album. The good ones are good and the rest are great. Mr. Big remind of us a time when music still mattered despite all of the hairspray in the air. If all groups from the Hair Band era were this talented then hard rock would have never been replaced by grunge.