JOEY VERA

Joey Vera - Thousand Faces (Metal Blade) 1994

1 "Harder They Pray" (4:10)
2 "American Bruise" (3:53)
3 "Song of Doubt" (4:02)
4 "Replacing You" (3:44)
5 "Temptation Row" (6:09)
6 "Laughing in the Light" (5:07)
7 "Lavin' a Bad Day" (4:19)
8 "Far End of the Bow" (1:44)
9 "Cabeza" (2:46)
10 "Whatever Possesses You" (6:56)

Joey Vera is a name associated with balls-to-the-wall metal. He is the relentless bassman behind the incredible Armored Saint and has also been associated with bands like Fates Warning, Anthrax and Seven Witches. However, Joey's first solo album is far removed from any of these bands. "Thousand Faces" is a solo album in the truest sense with Joey performing bass, guitars and vocals. Of course there is the guest musicians that help him out as well, including Anthrax/Armored Saint vocalist John Bush who lends his voice to an acoustic song called "Replacing You." The music here is mostly mid-paced hard rock with some mellower acoustic moments mixed in. For some reason I was expecting something a little more chaotic and progressive. I suppose I thought that Joey would show off his incredible talents a little more. However, for the most part the songs here are straight forward rock 'n' roll with an occassional hint of funk and modern rock. Joey is not a very charismatic vocalist but he uses his voice well. However, I would have liked to have heard Bush on a few more tracks, as he is a very charismatic vocalist. Overall, this is an interesting listen from time to time, although not something that I would listen to on a regular basis.