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This is not really a new album from this band, and it suits their famously uneven history that after the eight years since the disappointing The Lie of the Land, we get this, a re-recording of the band's little-heard debut from 1998. Celtic Legacy produced one fine album with 2003's Resurrection, and have been left chasing that level ever since, trying and resoundingly failing to measure up to that one time when they were amazing.

One element that always hurt them was the loss of vocalist Mark Guildea, who turned in a masterful performance on Resurrection and then vanished into the ether, never to be seen again. His replacements have always failed to equal him to a degree that was always great enough to be actually painful. This time, the band have engaged the services of Old Season vocalist John Bonham and, while he is not Guildea's equal, he is a good singer in his own right and he does a good job here—much better than original vocalist Tommy Branagan did on the original recording.

I have to say that, despite the time taken, I don't really like the recording on this better than the original album. This production is brighter and clearer, but it lacks the somewhat murky, underground charm of the 1998 album. Thankfully, the band has not messed with the compositions of the originals, and this remains a good collection of Trad Metal songs, with some standouts like "Wandering Free" and "Waterfront." The titular song is a 13-minute epic that hangs together pretty well, even if it will always be overshadowed by the magnificent title epic from Resurrection. If you enjoy this band, then Redux is a re-recording of their second-best album and, if it's a little uneven, it at least shows this band is still kicking.