Ken Hensley is a true artist who does not sacrifice his musical vision for anyone. His solo efforts have included concept albums, singer/songwriter albums, rock albums and everything in between. Thankfully, for the Uriah Heep brethren out there, this time out Hensley chose to rock it up. The opening track, “Let Me Free (from Yesterday)” sounds as much like Uriah Heep as anything Hensley ever wrote while in that band. The rest of the album does not quite live up to this excellent song, but that said, each song is still very good. The entire album is void of clunkers.

“The Curse” features an excellent guitar solo, while “Beyond the Starz” features some more Heep style themes. Hensley wrote in the rock style on purpose and his backing band, Live Fire, understood what their role was and fulfilled, and even exceeded, the songwriter’s expectations.

This is a return to the style of music that Hensley’s biggest fans have been waiting for. If you love classic Uriah Heep, or even guitar driven 1970’s hard rock with a twinge of prog, then this one will satisfy. Ken Hensley remains a top-notch songwriter and performer who is defying age with his talents. Lets hope Live Fire keeps him hopping and into creating the style of music that he does best.