t ’ s a phrase that longtime BayArea resident Neal Schon doesn ’ t ever recall hearing until recently , but now one that strikes fear in the heart of every land-owning local – Wildfire season . And it ’ s no joke . Courtesy of climate change and all its disastrous side

effects , in the tinder-box-sere summer months , forests can go up in flames , taking your secluded home , maybe even your entire hometown , down in the process . And – as the world can finally see via this summer ’ s deadly recordsetting hundred-degree temperatures – the annual heatwaves are just beginning . “ We ’ re up on top of the hill in San Anselmo , and I ’ ve got nine and a half acres here ,” reports the

Journey guitarist . “ And now I ’ ve got to always keep the grass chopped down around the house , because of these fires , you know ? And I don ’ t ever remember experiencing such extreme fires , and when they put them on the news , it ’ s strange – it looked like they had all been lit at the same time .” So yet again , he just recruited a landscape crew to remove any remaining dry underbrush from his property . “ And if I had a tractor , maybe I could do it myself ,” he sighs , resignedly . “ But the land is so uneven – it ’ s just rolling hills , so it ’ s something that has to be done by hand , and just truckloads of it get taken away . It ’ s a huge job .”

Inside said retreat , all through the pandemic , Schon himself was smoldering , creatively . So much , in fact , that he wound up igniting an

entire new Journey magnum opus , 15 generous tracks long and pieced together remotely , with keyboardist Jonathan Cain in Florida , vocalist Arnel Pineda in his native Manila , longtime band associate Randy Jackson adding his bass lines from Los Angeles , and Schon ’ s co-producer Narada Michael Walden tacking on drums from his Bay Area home studio . Titled Freedom , the album makes no divide

Neal Schon , 2022

red-vs-blue political statements but let Schon ’ s warm , instantly recognizable guitar do all the talking on rollicking , rock-solid anthems like “ Holdin ’ On ,” “ Come Away With Me ,” a folkorchestral “ Life Rolls On ,” and a surprisinglybluesy “ Let it Rain .” It ’ s the group ’ s first record of new material since 2011 ’ s Eclipse , and one in which Pineda – initially a soundalike ringer for definitive early vocalist Steve Perry – really comes into his pneumatic own , with a more earthy style reflective of his humble Filipino roots . And it feels almost waterfall quiescent and calming to have the band back , as our horizons – from natural infernos to the stunning loss of women ’ s rights and the

Republican skulduggery finally revealed in the January 6 hearings – are turning irredeemably dark . Freedom might not put out all those fires , but it does provide a welcome sonic distraction .“ So let ’ s hope that something good happens in the future for the whole world ,” Schon , a wise , seasoned 68 , says , fingers crossed . “ Because it really is a mess . So let ’ s pray for the best .”

IE : Since your guitar really does seem to speak , did you use it during lockdown to express how you were feeling each creepy day ? NEAL SCHON : Absolutely . I ’ m a reflection of