For those paying attention, over the last 10 to 15 years, Serafino Perugino, the president and head of A&R for the Italian label Frontiers Music s.r.l., has been filling a gaping hole in Modern Hard Rock with a list of collaborative projects. A concept initially launched over twenty years ago with the likes of The Hughes Turner Project (featuring Deep Purple’s Glenn Hughes and Rainbow’s Joe Lynn Turner), other standouts since have included The Winery Dogs (featuring Billy Sheehan, Richie Kotzen, and Mike Portnoy), Revolution Saints (featuring Deen Castronovo, Jack Blades, and Doug Aldrich), and of course, Black Swan (including Robin McAuley, Winger/Whitesnake’s Reb Beach, Dokken/Foreigner’s Jeff Pilson, and Matt Starr).
Each is an all-star team, but when Black Swan launched in 2019, it turned many heads by bringing Robin McAuley’s powerful vocals to the forefront of the Modern Hard Rock scene. A great idea: McAuley is most often recognized for his work with Michael Schenker in the McAuley Schenker Group, and he has been consistently active through the decades since the ‘80s, but is remarkably underrated. In fact, McAuley’s voice is hands down one of the best from the 1980s Hard Rock era, and deserves every bit of exposure possible. Bringing on McAuley, soon Jeff Pilson came into the fold, and with that, he called on Reb Beach to handle guitars along with esteemed Drummer Matt Starr. Also, two stellar selections: Beach is yet another highly underappreciated guitarist with superior skills, while Matt Starr is nothing but a professional, having played with everyone from Ace Frehley to Mr. Big and Joe Lynn Turner to Kevin DuBrow.
Together, these four pieces make up unsung Rock heroes who form a powerful Hard Rock force, unique among studio-only acts for their collaborative writing. A factor that stood out on 2020’s Shake the World, the debut is best described as dynamic, raw Hard Rock. Following up in 2022 with Generation Mind, the second album found Black Swan firing on all cylinders and delivering an even deeper rhythmic groove.
Catching the attention of many yearning for a more classic form of Hard Rock in the modern world, many may have wondered if Black Swan was wrapping up, because years had passed without any new music. An understandable uncertainty in the eyes of listeners, Pilson has been amply busy with Foreigner touring in recent years, Beach touring with Whitesnake (and also releasing the 2023 Seven album with Winger), while the band’s backbone, McAuley has had a renaissance as a solo artist )putting out three killer albums between 2021’s Standing on the Edge, 2023’s Alive, and 2025’s Soulbound). However, this band is too good to fade out, and now, in 2026, there is the third Black Swan album, Paralyzed.
Set for release on February 27, 2026, through Frontiers Music s.r.l., word of the new album came in November 2025, when the band released the lead single and a music video for “If I Was King.” A reintroduction to Black Swan with a jolt, this song features thick guitar riffs and noticeable heaviness. With that in mind, other early previews such as “The Fire and The Flame” (which has more outstanding classic ‘80s guitar riffage) are only the tip of the iceberg. Why? Because their more recently released title track, “Paralyzed,” completely blows the barn doors off in the way of McAuley’s vocal attack and the song’s overall energy.
Three songs that show the guys of Black Swan seemed determined to do something more intense, striking, and powerful than they had before… wait until you start at the beginning of Paralyzed. Beginning with track one, “When The Cold Wind Blows,” it builds to an explosion of more memorable melodic guitar riffs. Just one of the eleven tracks, the album as a whole honestly lives up to the classic label of all killer, no filler, with many bold moments, including “Carry On.”
Like a splash of cold water to the face, waking up drowsy and with a bit of fog around your head, it cannot be reiterated enough how the riffs of Paralyzed take everything to another level. Loud, proud, but also extremely well-constructed, the other undeniable aspect is how on point McAuley’s voice is throughout the album. Recently turning 73, McAuley shows no signs of age in his vocal prowess, which remains distinctly his own as it did nearly four decades ago. Impressive in itself, many vocalists’ tones change with age, and this is natural, but somehow McAuley has defied the passage of time.
All part of the attraction to Black Swan’s Paralyzed, it would be unjust to overlook either what Pilson and Starr mean to the band, as they also perform with sheer vigor. Moreover, Pilson’s production gives each track exactly what it needs to shine. However, with all the praise spread around this effort, what holds it all together is that the songwriting is razor sharp, where you want to listen to it over and over again.
All rare characteristics in a time where it seems the art of songwriting has been decimated, Cryptic Rock urges fans of all ages to check out Black Swan’s Paralyzed, giving it 5 out of 5 stars.
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