History
In an interview about the album, Sal Solo said that the idea to create a new record came from the desire to re-record some of the old Classix Nouveaux songs with a new sound. The idea proved successful and motivated the band to continue working (two of those songs made it onto the final version of the album).
By the time the recording began, the band members had not been active together — nor even in contact — for nearly 40 years. Sal Solo was living in Florida, USA, and B.P. Hurding (the drummer) in North Carolina. But according to Sal Solo, working together again evoked a sense of nostalgia, which in turn rekindled their creative energy for the album.
All the songs were written by Sal Solo. Other musicians, according to the band's frontman, also made significant contributions to the new material by adding riffs and guitar parts to Solo's melodies. The production of the album was also handled by Sal Solo himself.
Musically, the album differs from the band's earlier work with a more alternative rock sound. Sal Solo's vocal style has also changed — the growling and screaming from previous albums have been set aside in favor of a more conventional vocal approach, which, in Solo's view, should help attract new listeners to the band.
According to Sal Solo, at first the musicians thought they were creating music not for teenagers or young people, but for those in their fifties and sixties who feel nostalgic for their own youth. Later, however, their approach changed — the focus shifted from nostalgia to an attempt to merge the experience they had gained over the years with the music of their youth, in the spirit of “if only I had known then what I know now.” Solo noted that if the music resonates with modern listeners, the band will be satisfied: the goal of Battle Cry is to serve as a mature soundtrack to adult life, rather than a return to adolescent themes.
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