As the first decade of the new millennium draws to a close, is it possible for a band to embrace both studio musician professionalism and the mainstream rock radio sounds of yesteryear (specifically, the sound/approach of
Survivor)? It takes very little time listening to
House of Lords' sixth studio album overall,
Come to My Kingdom (how's that for a heavy-duty album title?), to realize that the group has certainly accomplished the aforementioned musical description -- for better or for worse. Founding member/keyboardist
Gregg Giuffria is still nowhere to be found (he hasn't been a member of the group since around 2004), but the bombastic yet melodic style that
House of Lords have always specialized in remains on display throughout, especially on a triumphant-sounding track like "In the Light" (listen to this ditty and ask yourself if it wouldn't have fit perfectly in Rocky IV, during an intense fight training sequence), the soft rocker "I Believe," and the singsongy "I Don't Wanna Wait All Night." Everything about
Come to My Kingdom screams "1980s." Too bad it's two decades too late.