New Journey album is “our old sound” with a “different strut,” say Neal Schon & Jonathan Cain

New Journey album is “our old sound” with a “different strut,” say Neal Schon & Jonathan Cain
Journey’s Jonathan Cain, Neal Schon & Arnel Pineda; Courtesy of Journey

Journey is putting the finishing touches on their first album of new original material since 2011’s Eclipse, and according to band members Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain, the project’s got that classic Journey sound — but with a new twist.

Speaking to Cleveland.com, Schon says of the new music, “We’re moving forward…It still sounds like Journey, but there is definitely a different strut in the rhythm section with Randy and Narada” — referring to the band’s returning bass player Randy Jackson and new drummer Narada Michael Walden, respectively.

“It’s bombastic. It’s rocking. It’s majestic, and it’s soulful,” adds Schon.

The album is being worked on remotely by Schon and Walden on the West Coast, and Cain in Nashville and Florida, the band explains. “It’s typical Journey, I think,” Cain says. “We’re back to our old sound, but it’s got a little bit more on the bottom end.”

“It’s got fire. It’s just a little bit more edge to it. Neal’s playing his butt off, and it’s very driven, very cool. The songs came very interestingly. I like it a lot,” he adds.

One way the new album — which doesn’t have a release date yet — will pay tribute to Journey’s legacy is via the artwork: The package is being designed by Jim Welch, who worked on the classic Infinity, Departure and Escape albums.

The first single from the album, “The Way We Used to Be,” came out in June.

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