TKO - In Your Face (Collector's Edition) (2016)

Sadly, TKO's initial momentum was quickly squashed when their label, Infinity Records, made a disastrous financial blunder by signing Pope John Paul II, with a non-recoupable $6 million dollar advance. It was an investment that forced the collapse of the label, leaving TKO cast adrift trying to pick up the pieces in a world that was always looking for new fresh talent rather than rescuing those who were left floundering in shallow water. So TKO, needed to reinvent there selves, in a way that didn t evoke the tired formulaic arena rock of the past. In this respect, the band, now led by Brad Sinsel, set about not only reconstructing their line up but also a new sound. This time around they honed in on raw hard rock, crafting a sound that had more in common with European tastes than American acts. Enlisting musicians that included guitarist Adam Bomb Brenner and signing a production deal with producer Rick Keefer, the band flew to Hawaii and recorded In Your Face , arguably one of the best American hard rock records of the era. Despite the quality of their material, getting a deal proved problematic, resulting in the band splintering, to be brought back into existence by Sinsel when Combat Records eventually offered a contract. Ahead of its time, the riffs and aggression were raw, hard and unrelenting. In fact, the record was hailed as a minor masterpiece influencing much of the US hard rock scene for years to come.