It's interesting to see what bands are up to decades into their career. For some, they're happy to just be a live band, playing the hits and giving the people what they want to hear. Others are still happy to take risks and improve their legacy, while on the other hand, there are groups who seem to just be writing and performing out of habit. In the case of Armored Saint, it's perhaps the best reason to still go; the sheer love of the game. Since their second reformation in 2008, the Californian heavy metal stalwarts have continually put out good music. While they still tour the world and write new material, can a laxer attitude result in another acclaimed album? Well as it turns out, yes.

The modern era of Armored Saint is summed up perfectly with the first song, "Close To The Bone." It's exciting, rocking and would make for a great opening number in a live setting. Tempo-wise, it's somewhat reminiscent of the Judas Priest classic, "Freewheel Burning," though without the rapid fire vocals. Speaking of which, singer John Bush is still in possession of one of the finest voices in metal, delivering each and every word with pinpoint accuracy and skill, soaring across the riffs. The guitars are on point too, as they get the ball rolling with an intricate performance a little like the Who classic, "Baby O'Riley."

Armored Saint continues to thrill with "Every Man-Any Man," where the guitars sound almost reflective, while Joey Vera's bass gets very funky. It rolls very well and all comes together to create something of an American Voivod, albeit with more typical singing. It's the second example in a row of a memorable chorus, and you'll hear those a lot throughout the record. Another such case would be "Hit A Moonshot," which was a smart pick for a single as it's got speed, opportunities for fans to sing along, and keeps the hits coming, appropriately. "Throwing Caution To The Wind" also gets in on this, delivering another great hook (from right field?) and some superb musicianship.

As exciting as many of the songs are, "Emotion Factory Reset" relies on more than thrills. "Buckeye" has a very interesting Western vibe to it, with a shine emanating from the guitars somewhat like the tone heard on Motorhead's "Another Perfect Day" album. Towards the end of the record, it does take a slightly slower turn and "Bottom Feeder" is a great offering of something different, snarling at the listener in something of a meaner manner than Armored Saint fans may be used to. Halfway through, the band brings fans back to the past with "Compromise," which does put the listener in mind of the tone and approach of the Saint classic, "Reign Of Fire" and indeed, would fit in perfectly on the "Symbol Of Salvation" album.

Nine albums into their career, Armored Saint sounds like they're still having the time of their lives. There have been some awesome songs like "Left Hook From Right Field" (in case you didn't get the earlier reference) and "Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants," but as a whole, this is the best album the band has put out since the aforementioned "Symbol Of Salvation" in 1991. The whole record flows so perfectly, changing pace when needs be, rocking hard and retaining the bombastic rhythms that helped set them apart from their contemporaries at any stage in their career. Fans are going to love "Emotion Factory Reset," while any newcomers will find a great place to start. Armored Saint are as fresh as ever and prove that there's still a place for the classic heavy metal sound that saw the genre explode in the 1980s.