Band:	UFO
Album:	A Conspiracy Of Stars
Style:	Hard rock, Heavy metal
Release date:	February 20, 2015
A review by:	ScreamingSteelUS

01. The Killing Kind
02. Run Boy Run
03. Ballad Of The Left Hand Gun
04. Sugar Cane
05. Devils In The Detail
06. Precious Cargo
07. The Real Deal
08. One And Only
09. Messiah Of Love
10. Rolling Rolling
11. King Of The Hill [bonus]

With all the nose-breaking, face-stomping, spine-snapping, dragon-slaying, brutal heavy metal-ing that goes on around here, it's important to occasionally take a break and rediscover what a good, ol' rock'n'roll record sounds like.

If the record in question is UFO's A Conspiracy Of Stars, then it sounds pretty darn good. Not just good for a 21st album, or good for a band in its fifth decade of existence - but just plain, uncomplicated good. The bluesy groove of "Ballad Of The Left Hand Gun" (replete with slide guitar) showcases a band very much on top of their game and deeply in tune with the music they play; it's a fantastic number that will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the best songs of 2015 (by me, anyway). It's largely same-old, same-old bluesy hard rock, but it's a lot fresher than AC/DC (ironically) and has more guts than Black Country Communion.

Vinnie Moore livens up these tracks like his name is Frankenstein. You don't often hear a guitarist so incredibly light on his fingers outside of the ancient, hazy halls of prog-dom, but the mad bastard Moore can galvanize a four-chord rocker into a wonderland. While he isn't completely guilt-free when it comes to mindless shredding, he uses his prodigious talents for the cause of justice and builds on the music, transforming songs like "Sugar Cane" into thoughtful odysseys.

A Conspiracy Of Stars is a bold, swaggering, youthful rock'n'roll album that balances its slick, modern, heavier edge with the comfort and ease of a veteran band letting its experience take over. While it might not stand up to UFO's classic material, and very little of it is mind-blowing, A Conspiracy Of Stars is nonetheless a solid and entertaining album.