Who would have thought a new PETRA album would see the light of day in 2010? The band of Christian rockers hasn’t been a going concern for more than a few years now. I have to confess that even though I have a couple of their older albums in the collection, I am not completely knowledgeable of the bands long history, which dates back to the early 1980’s. “Back To The Rock” was recommended to me (thanks Andrew) and I’m glad it was as this is sort of a re-introduction to the band for me and what a better way to do it with some re-worked (and modernized) versions of some of the bands best early works.

It seems original vocalist Greg X. Volz is back in the fold nowadays and the band has adopted the word “Classic” in it’s moniker going for the name CLASSIC PETRA for this release. The album draws material from four of the bands early to mid-80’s albums and throws in two brand new tracks to round out the disc.

I can’t honestly say I’m familiar with any of the original versions offered here but they sit firmly in the classic rock and AOR world… of course with a Christian rock vibe and theme.

A song like the album opener “Bema Seat” is true rocker with a classic keyboard driven sound. It’s closely related to the sounds of DEEP PURPLE or URIAH HEEP. Great stuff with a special mention going to the Hammond B3 sounds of John Lawry. Jon Lord would be proud!

“Angel Of Light” is a cool AOR tune with great chorus. Volz has something of a Jim Peterik (PRIDE OF LIONS) feel to his vocals; maybe not the most powerful of vocalists but he does know how to sing for the song. The groups sound reminds me of something I can’t quite pinpoint but I hear bits of MAGNUM at times and some other classic AOR acts. Guitarist Bob Hartman impresses at times throughout the album but also always plays within the song; if you’re looking for Christian stuff like Joshua Perahia or something of the like then look elsewhere .

“Rose Colored Stained Glass Windows” is another solid melodic rock tune with some orchestration added to bring the full effect in while “Godpleaser” is a mellow tune with, as the title suggests, an overtly Christian theme. The song is pleasant and flows along in a light AOR and acoustic-based feel.

The ballad “More Power To Ya” is another mellow song with great piano sounds from Lawry. And the two new tracks on “Back To The Rock” fit perfectly within the confines of the older material here and add to the rest of the AOR-friendly tunes on the record.

Whether these re-workings hold up to the originals is a better question for the hardcore PETRA fan to answer but to these ears the songs sound fresh and not dated at all. Overall, the bands sound is melodic and AOR-tinged CCM rock with some classic rock vibes. If that type of music is your bag then I’d certainly advise looking into this new PETRA release.