Dokken - Long Way Home

Dokken's history as of late hasn't exactly been a sweet one. In fact, they really haven't done much of anything worthwhile since their 'final hoorah', "Back for the Attack" before their late 80s breakup (which was way before the crumble and fall of metal and the ensuing grunge reign). "Shadowlife" in 1997 was a blasphemous alternative vibed hybrid that was a simple shadow of their former self...1994's "Dysfunctional" was just that, and mirrors the internal conflict in the band... which has become a media's dream at times. Guitarist George Lynch on again/off again, his replacement, ex-Winger fusion child Reb Beach cut from the band without him even being told and the recent exit of Jeff Pilson. "Erase the Slate" tried to do just that for the outfit, like a promise of a new day for the band. Its melodic punch harkened back to the glory days and a few off kilter pieces a nod to the present, but overall was a decent disc that threw a bone at the fanbase to hush their barking, and is notable for being the only existing studio record by the Don lead outfit with Mr. Beach on the axe. Things were looking up until they cut off Reb rather rudely by having John Norum 'in' and well, Reb was 'out'.

Bad for Reb but good for us right? Kip was ready to take him back for a Winger reunion anyway. Don Dokken's early 90s solo album was a bit of a collaboration with the ex-Europe's Finnish talent, a splendid guitarist in his own right, and a good songwriter, forgiving him for his last few discs. So with the two of them working on the same page, the next Dokken disc had to be nothing but gold...

Wrong.

"Up From the Ashes" it is not, down in the dundrums it is, and a "Long Way (from) Home" as well. Progression on the Dokken sound would have been alright, but this is just tired, worn out and sounds oh so old. Maybe some of us (like myself) were hoping TOO much for a bombastic melodic nostalga fest and were instead given this mellow modern rock album. Not to say that one can't get used to it, perhaps even enjoy it at times, but the hardcore and the hopeful are going to be extremely disappointed to the point of shoving it beside "Shadowlife" and forgetting it all together. The piano ballads are nice moody ditties such as "Goodbye My Friend", that has that 1970s folkish feel, I guess Don thinks he's the next Simon and Garfunkel or something. And he never really sings... he might have lost the higher range he excerised in the 80s but surely he can do better than this mumble jumble. The sullen rockers only upset stomaches and bleed hearts, throwing around attitude and the moldy post-alterna dankness that just eats away at the edges. There's the lifeless and melody lacking "Under the Gun" which is the most energetic of the album, and still comes off poorly and "Magic Road" which is electric, psychedelic and decent, but missing the magic. "Sunless Days" is like a frightening nightmare, it has all the elements to be a killer track, but Don's flat, sulky delivery overshadows even Norum's dark and chugging guitar licks.

And its downhill from here... "Everybody Needs to Be With Someone" is chirpy and pathetic, like something drowning, thrashing about before they go under. The guitar is a lifesaver, but misses the target by a mile and lets this horrible mess go down under. Its just too reminiscent of Queensryche's 90s albums (the amazingly forgettable, "Hear in the Now Frontier" anyone?) and is like a Beatles song gone bad. "Heart Full of Soul" is a reimagining of a 60s song... now it has already been established by many bands that offbeat covers can work, just look at power metal act At Vance doing spectacular ABBA covers or Vision Divine milking 80s new wave pop with an A-Ha cover...but this thing just sounds as if they needed a filler and thought 'what the hell' and cranked it out on the first take. Its absolutely horrendous.

Its like expecting roses and being pierced by the thorns. With every passing track it causes the listener to prick and bleed just a little bit more, before its closure, the lifeblood has been shed completely leaving a hollow husk of a disc devoid of any signs of life. It leaves one wondering why we should have been hopeful in the first place? The band's abysmal 90s track record speaks for itself, and this is just yet another disappointing chapter in the well tarnished Dokken saga. The little electric guitar to be found sags with broken, worn-out exhaustion, no spark of inspiration anywhere no matter how persistant one searches for the chipped jewel in the rough, its just nowhere to be found.

The best one can hope for is that it will live a second life such as Winger's "Pull" album did. Misunderstood and disliked on the first few plays but years later was re-discovered as not the bitter, lackluster disappointment it was first thought to be, turning into something of a cult classic for those that didn't even like the band in their heyday... will "Long Way Home" find such future success? Being so different and with that laid back 1970s-era essence, it very well could do the same, but for the present time being its just a difficult-to-accept letdown. Whatever happened to "Rockin With Dokken?"

Personally, I miss the galloping guitar rhythms that charged full speed ahead like a firey racehorse and the thick addictive harmonies that festered in the head for days...weeks, even years, or perhaps the soul burning ballads that stirred hearts and created vivid emotional responses without resulting to folkish meanderings. "Long Way Home" is sadly, none of that, nor what anyone really expected. Those belonging to 'the modern age' that can handle the huge leap from heavy AOR/hair act to this alternative/70s singer songwriter hybrid might be able to ingest it, even enjoy the disc at times. However, I just can't let go and "Long Way Home" does little for me.

Oh and of a special note is the art change for the US release in some markets (perhaps all). Apparently the image of the female angel showing some skin (with all naughty bits tastefully covered I might add) was too risque and filthy for the minds of the average American (despite the fact its neither scandalous or sexual in nature) so to shield us from such extreme perversion, and divert us from the path of decadent corruption they have covered our cover angel with a filmy white dress that is quite dense in certain areas (you can imagine where I'm sure). The problem with this is not even just the censorship itself, which in this case is absolutely ridiculous I might add, but also the fact that its downright cheap and messy looking. A double blow. How could anyone imagine this low quality cover-up was acceptable? However, one of these covers is most likely to become a collector's item in the near future. Maybe your copy will be worth something someday eh?

Ratings and Wrap Up:
4.0
Songs - 4.1
Performance - 4.0
Production - 8.0
Lyrics - 4.5

Hot Spots: "Goodbye My Friend"...and um...well...
Bottom Line: A disappointment from Dokken... Don and John reunited could have been such a dream come true...

Review by Alanna Evans -

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