If you are a fan of Journey, you must be itching right now to get hold of their latest album — Revelation, featuring Filipino singer Arnel Pineda.

Well, Schon and Cain obviously put so much effort to make ‘anthemic’ songs, the way they titled the songs — designed for adaptation. The Schon songs are usually the rock-beat and with classic 80’s guitar wail. Schon is so talented with guitar he couldn’t help but record a guitar solo piece entitled “The Journey” (Revelation) — the last piece in CD 1. Must be on his mind for so long and needs to be released. Neal Schon is a guitar monster and great songwriter at that. On the other hand, Cain’s music are the usual rock-ballad guaranteed to make your girl cry and drop her panties. (sshhh, made love with Open Arms and Faithfully in the background).

Personally, i am a rock-ballad guy. So i go for “Like a Sunshower”, “After all these years”, “Where did i lose your love?”,  “What I needed” and the goodnight song, “Turn down the world tonight”.

Arnel’s vocals is likewise awesome. I am sure that this CD1 is a winner. All the songs are great and i wouldn’t be surprised if it will spawn several hit singles soon.

His rendition of old Journey hits gave me goosebumps.  He surely did justice to those classics.

Mabuhay ka Arnel. May your stint with Journey be long and productive.
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Here is the press release for the Revelation album.

From Wal-Mart

About the Album

It’s been a long road for Journey, from their days as a progressive/rock/jazz combo to platinum selling, stadium fillers who delivered “Lights” about their beloved hometown, San Francisco. Well, the guys are still on the trail of classic rock and roll, chasing down hot licks, smoking leads and crashing, soaring, big arena-ready sounds on this Wal-Mart exclusive CD.

This deluxe three-disc package is a showcase for Journey in all of its forms — from hit-making superstars to revitalized new group and band of old friends. Founding members Neal Schon and Ross Vallory hold down both ends of the stage while Jonathan Cain has been their longtime man on melodic keyboards and guitars. Deen Castronovo has been keeping the beat steady in the band’s modern era but the revelation on this album is the introduction of its new singer as Journey welcomes Arnel Pineda into the fold. We hope that it’s a very happy and long-lasting addition to their family.

Pineda was plucked from a YouTube video where Schon caught him fronting a Filipino cover band. He is the third in a line of post-Steve Perry singers for the band but as it turns out “third time’s the charm” as Pineda is the most charismatic, vocally adept ever frontman for the band and well, he has the best smile this side of Quezon City, his hometown.

Pineda can handle the ballads as well as the rockers as he proves over three discs included here. On disc one he works out on the 11 new songs featured while disc two is his showcase to sing the classics in his own voice. Disc three is a phenomenal concert DVD and audio-visual testament to just how easily Pineda slid into the band’s onstage vibe. It’s as if he’s always been there.

“Never Walk Away” is a brand new song that sounds like it could’ve been recorded during the band’s late ’70s and early ’80s superpower period — it’s just that kind of pure and timeless rock and roll in all of its colors. Another new one, “Wildest Dream” is a frantic hard rocker built on riffs and Pineda’s throaty wail. In the live arena he is a boundless force of energy that keeps the audience involved.

Do we even have to tell you what he does to the emotive “Faithfully” and ever-popular “Don’t Stop Believin’?” Yep, he nails them. Pineda rockets all over the vocal scale with extraordinary energetics on “Any Way You Want It” and brings proper intensity to “Separate Ways.”

Additionally, it must be noted that Castronovo turns in an astonishing powerhouse vocal performance on “Mother Father” on the DVD, while Schon cuts loose on some emotional guitar.

Pineda and Journey’s new life is gong to be among rock and roll biggest stories of this year. You don’t want to miss the quite literal revelatory nature of this extraordinary “debut” by a rock solid band and the latest chapter in their evolution. As they say in the Philippines, mabuhay!

By Danielle Santiago

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From Frontiers Records:

REVELATION should bookmark one of the most challenging chapters of Journey’s legendary career. Instead, the new album offers a lasting testament to Journey’s legacy and a striking glimpse of their brilliant future.

The first album with lead vocalist Arnel Pineda, REVELATION is Journey running on no less than twelve cylinders, a fine-tuned offering that sounds every bit like a band hitting their stride. Yet Pineda hadn’t even joined the band when the album’s first songs were written in mid-2007, and founding guitarist Neal Schon is quick to admit, it wasn’t always easy to stay optimistic when the band wasn’t sure what the future held.

“I was getting frustrated with not having a singer, but still wanted to move forward and knew that we had a big year in front of us. There were times I got frustrated, but I never lost hope,” recalls Schon. “I wanted a guy that could convey the classic songs with a similar texture to his voice, and a tenor voice, but someone who puts his own spin on it. Which is exactly what Arnel does.”

Pineda’s discovery is already etched into Journey’s lifelong musical history, as Schon scouted literally hundreds of singers via online video website YouTube before finding the band’s new frontman. “When I heard Arnel, I knew I had found our singer and immediately called management,” says Schon. “Next, I call Cain. And before we knew it, Arnel was on his way to the U.S. to audition. By the third day of full rehearsals with the band, it was a slam-dunk. Then, we proceeded into the studio where Arnel sang six Journey songs in one day. He sounded simply amazing. I looked at Cain and said, ‘there he is. This is our guy.’” Cain agreed.

Between the two of them, Schon and Cain penned all 11 of the new tracks on REVELATION. There is no lack of chemistry in Journey, beginning with the songwriting core of Schon and Cain. “I felt strongly about moving forward and writing new material. It was time,” Schon states. Schon then put the call into Cain and started the song writing process which has now become the album, REVELATION. “There’s an innate trust and respect for what we each do as we weave our way through this music,” says Cain. Schon adds, “In the alphabet, I might be a Z and Jonathan the A, that’s just how opposite we are musically sometimes. I write mostly rock and Jonathan writes most of the ballads, but when you combine the chemistry of us together, you’ll find that it is the nucleus and sound of what is and has been Journey. And now, with the right voice in place, we have all the right ingredients.” Cain adds, “We’ve been doing this for so long together, we both know what we want to hear, and we both know what works for the band.” Neal agrees. “By now I think we should be able to do it in our sleep.”

“Never Walk Away” kicks REVELATION off with the resilient air and upbeat optimism fans have come to expect from Journey, a melody-soaked and guitar-driven anthem sure to ignite the live circuit just as it lights up the new release. The heartwarming sentiment offered by “Like a Sunshower” gives a more poetic and reflective look at relationships. It’s an uncharacteristic ballad from the more hard rock-inclined Schon. There’s even an instrumental, “The Journey (Revelation),” at the request of producer Kevin Shirley, who returns to the fold after working with the band on TRIAL BY FIRE (1996) and ARRIVAL (2000), the band’s first instrumental since DEPARTURE (1980) and EVOLUTION (1979). “This is a special song for me,” Schon says of the sprawling track, “it was extremely gratifying to express myself on my instrument in this way.” This is a great performance from everyone in the band and truly a majestic track.

Lead singer Pineda still does plenty of head turning of his own throughout the new recordings, as well as the 11 classic hits that the band re-recorded.

“It’s so exciting to sing with one of the best bands in the world,” says Pineda. “It’ll be a lot of hard work on my part, and I’m actually looking forward to the scrutiny I’ll get from the hardcore Journey fans. I know they’ll expect me to sound exactly like ‘the voice,’ but that will never happen. I know there’s only one Steve Perry in this world.” While that may be the case, Pineda breathes new life into the band’s heralded catalog, from the soaring stretches of “Only The Young” and the full vibrato that introduces the small town girl and city boy from South Detroit in “Don’t Stop Believin’,” to the pristine tones of “Open Arms” and “Faithfully” and the driving rhythm of “Separate Ways.”

“Not only can he cover our old material, but he’s such a diversified performer that it leaves everything wide open to where we can go,” marvelled Schon of his new singer. “He’s got tremendous abilities and he’s an outstanding performer, which people will soon find out.”

Not to be outdone, every member of Journey shines on REVELATION. Cain’s keyboards elevate “After All These Years” to new emotional heights. “What I Needed” is a power ballad, driven by heavy guitars, reminiscent of the early Journey that so many bands have modelled themselves after. Deen Castronovo drums up a frenzy during the hard-driving rock song, “Wildest Dream.” The talented Castronovo also sings most of the high harmonies heard throughout the album, proving that not only is he an amazing drummer, but he’s a dynamic vocalist as well. Schon’s smoking guitars rip through this track with a cool, eastern flavour. Bassist Ross Valory is steady throughout, a stabilizing force through the albums more driven highs and heartfelt lows.

REVELATION: The album to look for. The future looks bright once again.

Revelation tracklisting will include the following songs:

CD1: ‘Never Walk Away’, ‘Like A Sunshower’, ‘Change For The Better’, ‘Wildest Dream’, ‘Faith In The Heartland’, ‘After All These Years’, ‘Where Did I Lose Your Love’, ‘What I Needed’, ‘What It Takes To Win’, ‘Turn Down The World Tonight’, ‘The Journey (Revelation)’.

CD2: ‘Only The Young’, ‘Don’t Stop Believin”, ‘Wheel In The Sky’, ‘Faithfully’, ‘Any Way You Want It’, ‘Who’s Crying Now’, ‘Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)’, ‘Lights’, ‘Open Arms’, ‘Be Good To Yourself’, ‘Stone In Love’.
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From Amazon.com