Former Triumph man makes a triumphant return
It must be horrible being in a band – especially when like Rik Emmett you have the expectations of your past when you down.
You have made an album you are happy with, and then you’ve got to unleash it on the world to have people dissect it and decide whether like it too.
At least, that’s the conventional wisdom. Because just sometimes it seems that the artist has poured so much of themselves into the collection, that it doesn’t bother them whether anyone else likes it or not.
“Res 9” is one such example.
Famed for his work in Triumph, Rik Emmett has more than thirty years to draw on, and has spoken about this being the product of everything he’s learnt in that time, and such is the varied music on offer here, you can assume he really means it too.
The 11 songs that make up “…9” are all bound by one common thread, however: class.
“Stand Still” kicks off with a bluesy strut calling for people to relax in the modern world, “My Cathedral” has echoes of Eric Clapton and is a plaintive cry to live life in the moment made explicit by the thought in its verses of “don’t go worrying about some afterlife, you just worry about the one you’re in”.
Even better is the dark “Ghost Of Shadow Town” with its whispered, cracked vocals and phenomenally evocative guitar work, while “When You Were My Baby” is a slinky, fun piece of work – and if the “my woman done me wrong” theme is a staple of the genre, then that doesn’t mean this is great.
Not that this is all about blues, though. “Heads Up” is a driving piece of rock n roll, “Rest Of My Life” is a kind of acoustic led West Coast thing that you might find latter day Eagles might have had a go at, while the funky “Sweet Tooth” might be a touch throwaway in the context of an album as good as this, but you do have to maintain a touch of admiration for any lyric that says: “just drip your finger in the honey, baby, and dip a little on my tongue….”
Elsewhere there is a ridiculously impressive list of special guests here. The brilliant “Human Race” features Alex Lifeson on his 12 string, the huge ballad “I Sing” sees James LaBrie, urmm, sing as only he can, and the Rush and Dream Theater men both appear on “End Of The Line” an absolutely mighty slab of rock which appears near the end. Visceral and exciting, it isn’t far off being the best thing on a very, very good record.
You feel, though, that Emmett himself might have enjoyed the last song “Grand Parade” just a little more than the rest. Personal lyrics see him “catching up with Johnny Walker” and “raising a glass to bygone days”. It is no coincidence, surely that this one sees him reunited with Gil Moore and Mike Levine, his former Triumph bandmates.
See what we mean about certain records having greater importance than others? “Res 9” lives up to its cast – and does far more besides.
Res 9? Gotta get a 9/10 really hasn’t it?
Rating 9/10
