I still think this latest album is an improvement over the last 2 but Del Vecchio's overall influence is still evident on this album. Despite what Johnny says in interviews that he's heavily involved with a lot of the writing process, it appears to me that the majority of the heavy writing is still done by Del Vecchio. Del Vecchio's writing and production is not bad per se, it's just very safe as he tends to use the same song structures in all the songs he writes. There's nothing truly original there. Perhaps it's because he's involved in too many projects. Also, I had high hopes with the addition of the new guitarist on this latest Hardline album, but none of his solos on the album really stand out to me.
Meanwhile, Neal Schon released a lovely cover of Prince's Purple Rain. I miss this type of melodic guitar playing on a Hardline album.