The new album, ‘Notorious’, was released in October 2017 by The Vegas Syn/The Fuel Music. Adelitas Way is from Las Vegas and formed back in 2006. The band now consists of only  Rick DeJesus on lead vocals, Trevor “Tre” Stafford on drums and Andrew Cushing on bass.  Adelitas Way is an independent band and to get this album made they did a Pledgemusic campaign to help fund and after some time, we have this great straight-up rock & roll album.  How long did it take?  Well, the first single came out in September 2016 which is a little over a year before the album finally released.

The album is only 9 songs and at a little over 3 minutes for the average song, you are in and out in about 30 minutes.  Straight and to the point.  No filler, just a sonic blast of rock.  I would rather have an album of 9 great songs than an album of 14 songs with a bunch of filler.  After the slight disappoint I had with their last release, ‘Getaway’, ‘Notorious’ makes amends and proves they can still put out quality work.

The album opens with the title track and third single “Notorious” and comes screaming out of the gate with heavy drums and a wave of guitars.  It is a modern rock song that fully assaults your senses before going straight into the first single from the album “Ready for War (Pray for Peace)”. This rocker doesn’t slow things down and DeJesus sounds great and delivers a catchy, memorable chorus that will make a great song to hear live.  The crowd will be bouncing up and down with their hands in the air.  Andrew Cushing’s bass is also a standout as well as some great guitar work.

The next song up is “Trapped” which is a story about addiction and the problems it can cause.  For such a dark subject matter, the song is rather upbeat which isn’t a negative on the song.  It was just surprising.  It has a great guitar riff and a more radio friendly feel to the overall sound.  It took me awhile to warm up to it, but I have and now enjoy this song.  The second single off the album is “Tell Me” which reminds me a lot of Nickelback.  Don’t take that as an insult.  They are doing a better Nickelback than Nickelback currently is doing.  Actually a lot of the album reminds of that sound.  The song is a more melodic song which is catchy and overall a pleasant song.  It is the softer side of the band and they do soft pretty damn good.

The band picks it back up with “I Want You”.  I like the quick pacing of the tempo and although a little repetitive, it is catchy and a has a fun feel to it.  The next song opens with some quick acoustic guitar picking and another great DeJesus vocal performance.  “You’re Not the Holy One” turns into a heavy rocker from their and is one of my favorite songs.  I like the back and forth with the acoustic and electric guitar.

“Real World” is up next with more heavy guitar work.  It is a generic rock song, but the chorus is catchy enough to not skip over it.  However, the following song “This Goes Out To You” is my only negative on this album. Sadly, this is their latest single.  DeJesus vocally sounds just like Chad Kroeger on this one and I swear if I didn’t know this was Adelitas Way, I would swear it was Nickelback. The other songs are a reminder of Nickelback’s sound, this completely rips them off.  For that, I am deleting it out of my library.

The final track is actually one of my favorites on the album, “Vibes”.  The song has a different sonic vibe (see what I did there) than the rest of the album.  It is a more modern rock with a little pop rock feel to it.  This should have been the next single.  It highlights a different side of the band and shows me they can branch out with a different sound and not lose themselves.

Track Listing:

1. “Notorious” – Keeper
2. “Ready for War (Pray For Peace)” – Keeper
3. “Trapped” – Keeper
4. “Tell Me” – Keeper
5. “I Want You” – Keeper
6. “You’re Not the Holy One” – Keeper
7. “Real World” – Keeper
8. “This Goes Out to You” – Delete
9. “Vibes” – Keeper

8 keepers out 9 songs – 89% (4.5 out 5 stars) This is definitely a step up from their last effort.  The band has found a formula that works a delivers a solid effort.  The shortness of the songs pack a punch and allow you to get in and out quickly and leave you satisfied.  For me, it is the perfect album to drive into work with as I can get through it start to finish by the time I arrive.  It was a nice way to start my morning as I got in to work feeling alive and awake.  Check this one out if you are looking for a little rock & roll fun.