Well it been a long wait, 10 years have passed since the debut 'Double Eclipse', and a lot has happened since. The 'Gioeli' brothers are the only original members present, influential guitarist 'Neil Schon' is the most notable absentee but does make a guest appearance on 'This Gift'. The guitar work is now courtesy of 'Josh Ramos', while bass is taken care off by 'Chris Maloney', former 'Vinnie Vincent' man 'Bob Rock' handles the sticks while 'Michael T. Ross' takes over keyboard duties. Its inevitable that this will be directly compared to 'Double Eclipse', so does it hold up? Pretty much in my opinion and while it isn't as instantly catchy, its more than a respectable follow up. The music is still identifiable as 'Hardline' except with a slightly updated sound, and overall perhaps a tad heavier, but there are still plenty of trademark mellower moments.

'Hold me Down' opens the account for 'Hardline', one of the more modern sounding tracks on the disc with its vocal distortions and up-to-date chugging rhythm. It all comes together well and makes for a decent opener, abate it's not really in the style laid down on 'Double Eclipse'. The tempo is dropped for the ballad-come-rocker 'Y', a very well written number that highlights some sweet movements from acoustic to flowing guitar work, the lyrics and chorus are also a delight. Third up is 'Paralyzed' and we're back to another genuine rocker, here we see the duo of 'Joey Gioeli' and 'Josh Ramos' really hitting the notes on this rolling riff driven gem- just checkout the duelling guitar solo. 'Face the Night' is the albums first true ballad, a nicely written number but a little too predictable for my liking, though the committed vocals do the song justice. Even better is the grooving rocker 'Do or Die', which features some tasty energetic rhythm work and a powerful gutsy chorus. 'Hey Girl' starts off sounding like a bog-standard ballad, but these thoughts are soon forgotten, when the marvellous guitars crash in. 'Josh Ramos' really starts to let loose and is well supported by 'Joey Gioeli' and between them they make this song. Things start to go off the boil a bit here, 'Only a Night', is a slow tempo track that could be by any other late 80's pop-metal bands and the slightly more upbeat 'Your Eyes' although better, fails to ignite a spark. Back on track is the gutsy 'Weight', probably the heaviest and most modern track 'Hardline' have done to date and although the chorus is a tad repetitive, it's still a strong track with 'Johnny Gioeli's' vocals more akin to that of his work with 'Axel Rudi Pell'. Continuing in solid form is 'Way it is, Way it Goes' a well written number, driven by a pulsing rhythm and brought up to date with clever vocal overdubs. I was quite looking forward to 'The Gift' as it features original guitarist 'Neil Schon', regrettably though its probably one of the weakest tracks present. It's a fairly insipid ballad, that highlights little of 'Schon's' skill, the percussion work is irritating and while the vocals are as always a pleasure, the song is fairly lacklustre.

While an excellently executed sophomore album, it does lack a couple of standout tracks like 'Takin Me Down' and 'Life's a Bitch' from ''Double Eclipse' and overall its not as catchy as the debut, see such songs as 'Rhythm from a Red Car' and 'Hot Cherie'. But all said it's just as consistent and still an enjoyable ride, which will please any 'Hardline' fans, lets just hope we don't have to wait another ten years for the follow up!