THE BEAST

The current version of L.A. GUNS — which includes singer Phil Lewis and the band's co-founding guitarist Tracii Guns — will release its new album, "The Missing Peace", on October 13 via the Italian record label Frontiers Music Srl. The disc's cover artwork was created by the Las Vegas portrait painter Kahla and can be seen below.

As the revival of the classic '80s hard rock and heavy metal scene continues unabated here in the 21st century, one reunion has been at the top of the wishlists of many a fan for a long time: the songwriting combination of Tracii Guns and Philip Lewis under the L.A. GUNS banner. What once seemed like a distant memory with no hope of returning has now come around and fans are about to be rewarded for keeping their fingers crossed and their hopes up.

Today, the first video for the album's debut single has been released. Watch the clip for "Speed" below.

Guns describes the song as "a response to the extremely fast-paced 'I want it now!' world we are living in." Hard rock aficionados should keep their ears opened for a nod to the great DEEP PURPLE's legendary track "Highway Star" in one of the verses.

"The Missing Peace" track listing:

01. It's All The Same To Me
02. Speed
03. A Drop Of Bleach
04. Sticky Fingers
05. Christine
06. Baby Gotta Fever
07. Kill It Or Die
08. Don't Bring A Knife To A Gunfight
09. The Flood's The Fault Of The Rain
10. The Devil Made Me Do It
11. The Missing Peace
12. Gave It All Away

"'The Missing Peace' is truly an album by definition," said Guns. "It's a collection of music that I have been working on for about twelve years with various styles of rock music. From blues to classical influences, these are all hard-hitting songs. I am very proud of all of the contributions to this album by other members and writers. L.A. GUNS fans are in for a treat."

The last time Lewis and Guns joined forces was back in 2000 with legendary producer Andy Johns for the making of what would become "Waking The Dead".

Speaking with Express & Star, Tracii said: "With Phil and I in particular, we have a certain chemistry that's undeniable. And, you know, when you're at your loneliest, you wanna go home, right? So, we both felt like it was time to go home and be comfortable with that undeniable relationship that we have musically. I mean, right away, the first time we got back together and played, you know, it's so obvious, you can't deny it. At some point in your life, you can't deny what's real."

Regarding the sound of the new L.A. GUNS material, Tracii said: "Phil's vocal style and his way of writing kind of offsets that balance of the heavy music, that's something that's possibly more mainstream or identifiable, so there's a lot of, you know, kind of typical sleazy L.A. GUNS, high-energy riff rock. There's a little bit of sloppy New Orleans, kind of sweaty, kind of bluesier stuff too. It's a big record."

L.A. GUNS' present lineup is rounded out by Shane Fitzgibbon on drums and Johnny Martin on bass with Michael Grant on guitar as a touring member.

On the topic of the decision to use the L.A. GUNS moniker for the new album, Guns told LA Weekly: "When you put Phil and I together, that's the sound of L.A. GUNS. There's no way around that. As much as I love certain other [former] members of the band, it's hard to say what their contribution to the overall sound of the band was — but Phil Lewis and Tracii Guns, the band's gotta be L.A. GUNS. It can't be anything else."

Back in December, Phil announced that he was leaving the L.A. GUNS version that included drummer Steve Riley.

L.A. GUNS 2017 is:

Phil Lewis - Vocals
Tracii Guns - Guitars
Johnny Martin - Bass
Michael Grant - Guitar
Shane Fitzgibbon – Drums

Via Blabbermouth