Armored Saint's 'Emotion Factory Reset' - Album Review

Given how much variety there is in the heavy metal world these days, with metal having been taken in pretty much every conceivable direction at this point and fused with just about every other genre of music going, sometimes it is good to return to something a bit more straight forward and old-school after experimenting with stranger and more out-there sounds. A bit like returning to a hearty roast dinner after weeks of dining out on exotic goodies, listening to the California-based five-piece Armored Saint can often feel like coming home. Whilst sometimes considered part of the US power metal scene alongside bands like Riot and Metal Church, as well as having an influence on the thrash scene that came later on the in decade, Armored Saint were just one of those 1980s metal bands that did not fall into any of the popular subgenres at the time - and just played hard, heavy, and melodic metal that never made them world-beating superstars but gained them huge respect with metal fans the world over. Whilst the band's frontman John Bush later became a bit more of a household name due to his tenure with the thrash legends Anthrax throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, Armored Saint have generally remained something of a cult band - but any self-respecting metalhead should be familiar with the band's early releases at least, with 1984's debut release March of the Saint and 1991's Symbol of Salvation both cult classics. The 1990s was quiet for the band, as this was during Bush's stint with Anthrax, but since the turn of the millennium Armored Saint have essentially been a going concern again - with sporadic periods of activity early on and a busier period more recently. They might not be as active as some bands, but over the past decade or so at least they have been pretty busy - with new albums coming every few years, alongside touring and festival appearances. I have seen the band live four times, twice back in 2015 on consecutive days and then twice more recently - with shows in 2024 and 2025. They always deliver live, with their no-nonsense metal sound and a chemistry that comes from the same five musicians having played together since 1989, and their recent albums have all been enjoyable - even if they do not quite touch those best moments from the 1980s. It had been feeling like it was time for a new Armored Saint album for a little while, though. Their last album Punching the Sky (which I reviewed here) was released six years ago back in 2020 - but it was not until 2024 that the band made it over the UK to play some of those songs live, partly due to the pandemic. The band have often talked about the follow-up in interviews, and I think that new songs had been in the works for a while - but last month they finally released the successor to Punching the Sky in the form of ninth studio album Emotion Factory Reset. If anyone was hoping that Armored Saint were going to experiment on their next album, then Emotion Factory Reset will be a disappointment - but anyone hoping to hear more of the band's trademark form of riffy, chunky, and hooky metal will be very pleased with album number nine. Like everything that has come before it, Emotion Factory Reset is full of big riffs, shredded solos, and anthemic choruses - alongside accessible song structure, the band's usual slightly quirky approach to lyric writing, and that somewhat hard to pin down blue collar vibe I generally associate with them. The band's longest-serving line-up returns here as always, too, with original members Bush, guitarist Phil Sandoval, bassist Joey Vera, and drummer Gonzo Sandoval joined by guitarist since 1989 Jeff Duncan.

Bush and Vera have handled the bulk of the songwriting as is typical, but everyone has chipped in to make this album what it is. Production-wise, it follows the same trends as the band's previous efforts - big-sounding, but with a raw edge and very little sparkle. I think that is that blue collar vibe I mentioned before. There is nothing flashy here really - and there is an honesty to what Armored Saint do. Kicking off with lead single Close to the Bone, the band get off to a powerful start. Atmospherics soon give way to a snappy little clean guitar motif, over which punchy chords and drum hits are soon laid - before a barrelling, fast-paced riff kicks in and the song gets underway proper. Whilst not exactly thrash pace, the song shows why Armored Saint were an influence on all things fast and heavier than them in the late 1980s - and there is a real energy throughout this track. The mix of powerful guitar riffing and intricate lead lines shows that the guitar duo of Phil and Duncan is one of the genre's more underrated partnerships - whilst Vera's bass is often high in the mix to allow for a rumbling, heavy sound. Bush sounds as good vocally now as he did in the 1980s. He may not be the most varied of singers, but there is a pleasing honesty and power to his melodic delivery - with enough grit that can be applied when necessary. That is the case during the faster verses here, with Gonzo's powerful drumming propelling everything, whilst the chorus feels a little smoother thanks to plentiful guitar leads. Dual guitar leads and harmony solos are thrown in later on, whilst the pace remains high, and I can see the song becoming a concert favourite on the band's upcoming tour - likely acting as a powerful set opener. Opening with a strange bass riff, Every Man-Any Man goes for something of a groovier approach. The bass and drum combo which sets the scene early on really forms the basis of the song - as when the guitars kick in they generally add colour with hung chords and clean guitar melodies whilst the bass adds the weight. The song feels less heavy than the opening cut as a result, but there is nevertheless a strong metal groove and a more restrained energy here that settles in from the off - which allows Bush to sing in a slightly lower and pulled back manner during the verses, before a crunchier chorus feels a little heavier. The song does get weightier as it moves along, with some later verses feeling a bit riffier - but the core bass groove never really goes away, and the later guitar solo section is a bit more melodic and less shredded thanks to some Thin Lizzy-esque lead lines. Not on Your Life feels like a real hark back to the band's first album in my view. There is something pleasingly simple about the song, with Vera's bass really cutting through the mix and a slab-like mid-paced riff that builds on the NWOBHM influences the band inevitably were channelling during the early 1980s to create something hooky and memorable. Verses with juddering riffs and accented lead lines stick in the brain, whilst a shuffling chorus with bluesy guitar leads and a simple vocal refrain is one of the album's best moments for me. The slight sharpness to the lead guitar tone harks back to the 1980s, too, as does the lengthy shredded solo that is later thrown in. Despite the overall simplicity, there is a great melodic and metallic quality to the song that harks back to the band's early days than many of their other more recent efforts - despite the Armored Saint core sound being long established and still rooted in those albums.

Hit a Moonshot ups the pace again, creating a kinetic energy from the off and again showcasing that slightly thrash-adjacent sound that Armored Saint helped to pioneer. Despite the song overall feeling on the faster side, the overall arrangement is bit more dynamic than is sometimes the case. The verses are chunky and pretty fast-paced, with punky vocals from Bush and chugging rhythm guitars - but a later pre-chorus section ups the pace further, with some snappy drumming from Gonzo and some harder-driving riffing. The chorus is then slower, going for a groovier approach overall, which works nicely following the pace of what came before. This variety of pace helps the song to stand out somewhat - whilst the vocal melodies during the chorus have a pleasing grinding quality to them. Buckeye opens slowly, with some drawn-out clean guitar melodies and strange, laboured vocals from Bush. I am not really a huge fan of this intro, as it does not really bring the best out of Bush - but once a slow, heavy riff kicks in the song gets better, with Bush's slower delivery sounding better against a heavier and slightly southern backdrop. This is certainly no doom track, but there is a bit of a darkness to the slow riffing that differs from the band's core approach - whilst occasional southern grooves and slide melodies are utilised well. The chorus might not be the catchiest here, but it is still memorable thanks to the southern overall approach and some decent melodies - but the instrumental sections feel a bit more laboured. The slide soloing should work well, but it feels a bit too low in the mix to have a real impact. As such, the song is a strange one overall. It does something a bit different without quite sticking the landing. Compromise returns to something a bit more typical of the band's core sound, with a faster riff kicking in from the off and Vera's bass is once again very prominent in the mix. There is quite a bit of energy whipped up throughout this one, and it is one of those song that largely focuses on its riffs and overall speed to hook people in. There is not much of a chorus here to speak of, aside from Bush repeating the song title over a bit of a barrelling riff - but guitar-wise there is a lot to like here including some discordant clean guitar additions and a great instrumental section later on that mixes powerful riffing, high-octane unaccompanied shredded guitar leads, and even some bass leads. There are better songs here to sing along with, but from a guitar playing perspective the song is perhaps one of the album's best - and I really like the instrumental section in particular as it shows off what the band's instrumentalists can really do. It's a Buzzkill is more of a mid-paced number, with slightly laboured verses that revolve around some pretty busy drumming from Gonzo and a somewhat more atmospheric approach to guitar playing. This is certainly a song that reins in the heaviness overall, instead laying down some bluesy grooves with a slightly grungy overall approach. The drum and bass grooves provide that blues vibes, whilst the cleaner guitars and chord-heavy approach create a grungy atmosphere. Riffing is largely pushed to one side here, although there are still some strong guitar leads at times - including a pretty melodic and cinematic solo. There is something quite pleasing about the shout-along, mid-paced chorus, too. There are some similarities between this song and Buckeye in terms of pacing, but I feel that this song does this slower paced approach better - with the bluesy, grungy sound working surprisingly well as a point of difference.

Throwing Caution to the Wind picks the pace back up again and returns to the core Armored Saint sound nicely. There is a bit more of a smoother, melodic overall sound on display, though, which reminds me somewhat of the style adopted throughout Symbol of Salvation. Melodic guitar leads are utilised quite often throughout to provide another hook alongside Bush's powerful vocals - so there is a good mix of heaviness and melody here. I feel that the song feels heavier the more it moves along, too, especially as there is quite a weighty instrumental section later on that introduces some busier riffing and plentiful soloing that feels tougher than the overall approach taken elsewhere. Ladders and Slides opens with Gonzo drumming alone, laying down quite a hollow and weighty groove - under which some distant guitar riffing starts up. Once the guitars kick in proper, though, the drum groove feels a little less hollow - although there is certainly a bit of a Black Sabbath vibe throughout this number. The chorus is more anthemic, more typical of the core Armored Saint sound, but the main riffs and verses have a little bit of a darker overall tone - with some of the riffs having shades of Tony Iommi's approach at times. Despite this influence, the overall approach is very much typical of the band's core sound - even if some sharper, clean guitar melodies are utilised during parts of the song to also create a strange, atmospheric sound. There is a good mix of riffing and melody here, then, with the chorus being one that stuck in the brain from the off even if it is not traditionally the sort of chorus one would describe as anthemic. There is a pleasing groove here, though, and Gonzo's busy, percussive drumming under the later guitar solo helps to reinforce this. Bottom Feeder also opens with some interesting drumming - with another percussive and busy groove the basis for some more chunky riffing to kick off, which morphs into something more lumbering and mid-paced when it kicks in proper. Some of the riffing here might well be some of the album's heaviest moments - and the chunky riffing has a groove that is nicely infectious and really sticks in the brain. This riffing style also allows for a few different approaches throughout, including some stop-start moments during some of the verses and a more atmospheric, bluesy approach elsewhere. The chorus is another shout-along moment, too, with a grinding approach to riffing that makes the whole song sound much heavier. Songs called Epilogue are usually short, closing instrumental pieces, but this album's closing song of that name is a proper effort - and one that ups the pace compared to the previous number. It is not as fast as some of the fastest tracks here, but there is an energetic feel throughout - largely thanks to some kinetic riffing and another pretty infectious chorus that brings the best out of Bush. Snappy riffing and hard-hitting drumming keeps things moving, whilst a bigger overall vocal arrangement sees the band making fairly rare use of vocal harmonies during the verses - and some moments of gang vocal power as the chorus is approached. It feels like the sort of song that is just supposed to be memorable and anthemic, then, which works well given that the song closes the album out. It is a memorable way to leave things off, and the band's great mix of heaviness and melody really shines. Whilst a new Armored Saint album is always never really going to surprise, it is always pleasing to hear more from this band - as their core sound delivers and largely feels timeless. There is no real sense of age or the band slowing down here, and they sound as vital and as potent as ever. A lot of these songs would work well live, too, so I hope that they return to the UK soon for a proper tour.

The album was released on 22nd May 2026 via Metal Blade Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Close to the Bone.