Formed four decades ago, L.A. Guns show no signs of slowing down. They seem to be picking up steam because they have released five studio albums in the last seven years, including their most recent, Leopard Skin. Released on April 4th, 2025, through Cleopatra Records, Leopard Skin is their sixteenth overall studio album and a follow-up to the impressive 2023 effort Black Diamonds. Having a vastly different feel than Black Diamonds, Leopard Skin is a hammer statement that shows that L.A. Guns are a talented and tightly-knit band that can endlessly churn out Classic Rock.
A lineup led by Guitarist Tracii Guns and Vocalist Phil Lewis, they are joined by Bassist Johnny Martin, Guitarist Ace Von Johnson (guitar), and Drummer Shawn Duncan in a ten-track honey-filled gravel performance that has the band soaring down avenues of Funk, Rock, Country, and Blues. As stated, possessing a very different sound, the opening guitar-twang on “Taste It” lets you know it. A four-beat stomper, the track is a perfect wake-up call to those who think LA Guns may start taking it easy after such a prolific stretch of touring and recording. An ideal blend of growling guitar lines, heavy grooves, tight drumming, and Phil Lewis’s signature rasp, it is a tune that drives forward.
Moving on, an evident ingredient of Leopard Skin is the band’s ability to maintain the Classic Hard Rock sound while also allowing their sound to evolve as the years and albums pass. This is evident with “Hit and Run,” which blends the genres of Punk Rock, Rock, and string-bending Chicago Blues into a recipe of surprise and appreciation. From here, songs like “Runaway Train” showcase an almost Rolling Stones Let It Bleed-inspired musicianship. It is a venture down into a Country-Blues and Rock-n-Roll party highlighting the band’s instrumental talent, with guitar lines with a bit more texture and depth than their earlier, more northbound material. These tracks depict the true artistry of dabbling in foreign waters without losing the fundamentally loved sound that defined the band at their peak.
However, the guitar work throughout Leopard Skin rightfully remains center stage. Tracii Guns’s fingers remain as nimble as ever, noodling the frets as seamlessly as on their first album, especially on songs like “Don’t Gimme Away” and “I’m Your Candyman,” where solos pierce through the blend with a sniper’s precision, seemingly echoing the golden era of Hard Rock. The rhythm section provides an unyielding but Jazz-filled backbone, keeping everything grounded even as the melodies soar. Phil Lewis’s vocals, meanwhile, remain unmistakable—gravelly yet soaked with local honey, snarling while remaining incredibly poetic.
Furthermore, Lewis’s delivery on songs like “Follow the Money” and “Lucky Motherfucker” adds an emotional depth that adds a distinct layer to each. Clearly, he still knows how to lull us into an almost catatonic state while listening, soaking up each lyric and note like the scraps of a favorite meal.
In the end, Leopard Skin manifests who the L.A. Guns are. It also reaffirms that the L.A. Guns are a force not only on the Rock scene but in the music industry as a whole, with their sustained longevity. Modern radio may be more tolerable if more acts and groups had the tenacity, passion, and unyielding need to develop and improve constantly like L.A. Guns.
Leopard Skin is both a blast from the past and a letter from the future, which is why L.A. Guns remain beloved today. That is why Cryptic Rock says this album is a must-listen for any rocker and gives it 4 out of 5 stars.
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