Kingdom Come
Hands of Time

Ah, the Kingdom Come. A band that has always traveled on a thin line between love and hate, even for myself. The existence of Lenny Wolf's group was difficult, and unfortunately, it couldn't be otherwise after a debut album like their eponymous one from 1988, with the shadow of the Dirigible not even so veiled always present in the background. They were victims of an act of denigration, as fierce as it was unjust, by both music critics and many of their "colleagues" in the American hard/glam scene of those years, culminating in the "dedication" by Gary Moore and Ozzy Osbourne in the song "Led Clones", featured on Moore's album "After The War" (1989). This was despite the fact that the second album, "In Your Face," partly diverged from their great masters, taking a turn more toward hard rock and almost hard n' heavy in tracks like "Highway 6", "Perfect 'o'", and the concluding and splendid "Stargazer", although it's undeniable that Lenny's voice inevitably recalls that of Robert Plant, and tracks like "The Wind" or "Mean Dirty Joe" had not too hidden references to some famous Led songs.

The first two albums still had good success, and the band earned participation in the "Monsters Of Rock" in 1988, in addition to various dates supporting the more acclaimed Scorpions and Bon Jovi; but the following year the group seemed to dissolve due to internal frictions, with the subsequent departure of all members except singer Lenny Wolf, who, however, after some years of silence reformed Kingdom Come, with the collaboration of guitarist Blues Saraceno, drummer Steve Burke, keyboardist Voen Van Baal, and Carol Tatum in songwriting.

The album has little to share with its predecessors, indeed I think it is more correct to consider it a solo work by Lenny Wolf; in fact, the hard drive of the previous "In Your Face" is almost entirely set aside, replaced instead by a predominant use of acoustic guitars, and furthermore, the influence of Led Zeppelin is reduced to a simple inspiration and nothing more, compared to the borderline plagiarism of the previous albums.

It is a very introspective album, capable of creating a truly special and evocative atmosphere, and just the intro of the opener "I've Been Tryin'" is enough to immerse us into the soul of the album, with delicate inserts of piano, acoustic guitar, and flute that weave a fabulous melody, soon swept away by a sudden riff that reanimates the song, making it electrifying and engaging, also thanks to Lenny's at times very aggressive voice. Once engrossed in the atmosphere of this album, the songs flow by with pleasure, moving from the more rhythmical "Should I", "Blood On The Land", and "Both Of Us", tracks always suspended between melody and hard rock drive, to the fun and engaging rock of "Stay", a cheerful and sunny song with a memorable and catchy chorus; from the dark rhythms of "Shot Down" to the dreamy and celestial melody of "You'll Never Know", a track that manages to be romantic without being banal and predictable like many ballads of the period, an immensely sweet song that manages to convey truly deep feelings, also thanks to Wolf's calm and heartfelt interpretation, leading to "You're Not The Only... I Know", an acoustic track that manages to combine an exciting rock charge with unique romance, especially in the chorus, for a truly wonderful song capable of hitting the heart; passing through the more hard rock rhythms of "Do I Belong" before closing beautifully with the title track, another piece capable of standing halfway between more rhythmic and rock parts and more refined and atmospheric melodies.

Here ends this "Hands Of Time" album, very particular and fascinating but unfortunately did not have a good commercial response, due to the lack of promotion it had in support. This album will be followed by the subsequent "Bad Image" (1993), which never completely convinced me, and then "Twilight Cruiser" (1995), an album which, however, had good insights and some really successful songs. I stopped there with listening to Kingdom Come, although I know the band is still active and has released several albums even in recent years, a band worth remembering, as it managed to gift us with great hard rock songs and, although not inventing anything, contributed to keeping alive in the '80s and '90s sounds that otherwise would not have survived the '70s, always reviving them with great class and taste, thanks also to the ever-wonderful voice of a great singer like Lenny Wolf.

Tracklist:

1. "I've Been Tryin'"
   
2. "Should I"
3. "You'll Never Know"
4. "Both Of Us"
   
5. "Stay"
6. "Blood On The Land"
7. "Shot Down"
8. "You're Not The Only... I Know"
   
9. "Do I Belong"
10. "Can't Deny"
11. "Hands Of Time"