If you ever needed proof that Joel Hoekstra isn’t just a sideman, “From The Fade” is it. Because yes, Hoekstra is ridiculous on guitar throughout, but look at the names he’s drafted in around him: Vinny Appice on drums, Tony Franklin on bass, Derek Sherinian on keys, and Jeff Scott Soto on backing vocals. That’s not a line-up — that’s a backstage pass with strings attached.
And then there’s Girish Pradhan, who is one of the finest modern hard rock vocalists full stop. He can go sky-high without it ever feeling like a gimmick, and he’s got that crucial thing the best singers always have: control. Power, sure — but also taste.
The opener “You Can Give” sets the stall out immediately: Joel playing, Girish singing… what’s not to like? It’s classy hard rock that carries a proper Whitesnake-shaped sheen — melodic, muscular, and built to move. From there, “The Fall” doesn’t fall so much as soar, very high (and that’s just the vocals), while “Lifeline” brings a tenderness without slipping into balladry — Sherinian’s keys see to that.
“Will You Remember Me” changes the texture with acoustics, before “Misunderstood” struts in confident and immaculate, not a hair out of place — and this time it’s Franklin in the spotlight, reminding you that groove and feel still win every time. When “Start To Fight” turns darker and more aggressive, it gives the record bite, and that contrast makes “All I’d Do” hit harder as it slows things down again, full of detail and atmosphere.
“Free To Be” goes for that slightly grandiose, muscular hard rock — the kind of thing bands like Adrenaline Mob specialise in — and it suits this lot down to the ground. Then you hit “The End Of Me”, the longest and most involved cut here: groove-laden, immersive, and you can tell Hoekstra clearly loved building this one.
And finally, last song “Quite The Ride”: like gunslingers of yore, they ride off into the sunset and the credits roll.
Lucky for some, that 13, right? But on album number four, “From The Fade” is all you’d want and all it was meant to be — and if this is what “fading” sounds like, they’re doing a terrible job of it. They’re not fading away at all… they’re turning up.
RATING: 8/10
