RED 13 (EP)

Following poor sales of their 2001 album "Arrival", Journey were dropped by their long time record label Sony. They continued to tour with new boy Steve Augeri as their front man, but without a recording contract the prospect of new material from the band was bleak. In 2002 however, Journey reconvened in the studio, their purpose being to record and release a new EP. Produced by Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain, the resulting 4 track EP was initially only available via from the band's website and at gigs on their "Red 13" tour. In due course though, a publishing deal was secured and the EP was finally released into the shops with a new sleeve illustration designed by a fan of the band. This is the only official EP released by Journey thus far.

The consequent lack of pressure from a record company to come up with something commercially appealing meant that Journey were able to push the boundaries a bit. While this set does not see them reverting to the overt prog of their earliest albums, it is undoubtedly their most adventurous work for many a year. The opening two part track "Intro: Red 13/State of Grace" is a brooding 7½ minute piece which reminds me somewhat of Deep Purple's "Perfect strangers". Neal Schon's guitar work is much more rock orientated on the track, as it is throughout the EP. Steve Augeri is allowed to sound far more like an original singer this time, instead of the Steve Perry impersonator he was hired as. On "The time" his loose, almost improvised performance finally sets the record straight by highlighting his own talents. Anyone hearing the track for the first time would be hard pressed to identify it as 21st century Journey.

"Walking away from the edge" forms the obligatory ballad with piano and guitar backing. While this is a much more conventional Journey number, its relative minimalism helps it to avoid sounding mushy. The final track "I can breathe" sees the band in full rock mode, but the song is ordinary and thus the poorest track.

In all, a fine EP from Journey which finds them at their loosest in many a long year. While now rather hard to find, "Red 13" is well worth investigating.

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