Win Hands Down

Win Hands Down is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Armored Saint. It was released on June 2, 2015.[1][2][3] The vocals were recorded at Bridge Recording in Los Angeles, guitars and bass were recorded at Travis Dickerson Studios in Chatsworth and drums were recorded at Clearlake Audio in Burbank.

Win Hands Down
Studio album by
Armored Saint
ReleasedJune 2, 2015
Studio
GenreHeavy metal
Length51:00
LabelMetal Blade
ProducerJoey Vera
Armored Saint chronology
La Raza
(2010)		 Win Hands Down
(2015)		 Punching the Sky
(2020)

Two videos have been released for the album: the title track and the song "An Exercise in Debauchery". The band toured extensively in summer 2015 with Saxon in support of the album.[4]

Critical reception

Metal.de rated the album 9 out of 10 points. Marek Protzak wrote, there was "no other band at the moment" who played "classical metal in such an inspired and versed manner".[2] German Rock Hard magazine editors voted Win Hands Down as "Album of the Month". Editor-in-chief Boris Kaiser called Armored Saint "one of the most underrated bands in US Metal" and compared the album to 1991's Symbol of Salvation. He rated it 8.5 of 10.[5]

Commercial performance

The album sold double the number of copies as the previous album La Raza.[6]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Joey Vera and John Bush except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Win Hands Down" 5:06
2."Mess" 4:35
3."An Exercise in Debauchery" 6:00
4."Muscle Memory" 7:14
5."That Was Then, Way Back When" 5:08
6."With a Full Head of Steam"Vera, Bush, Jeff Duncan, Phil Sandoval, Gonzo Sandoval5:18
7."In an Instant" 7:36
8."Dive" 4:40
9."Up Yours" 5:23
Total length:51:00
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleLength
1."Dive (Deep Remix)"4:41
Total length:55:41

Personnel
Band Members
Additional musician
  • Pearl Aday – guest vocals on "With a Full Head of Steam"
Production
  • Joey Vera – production, engineering[8]
  • Jay Ruston – drum engineering, mixing[9]
  • Josh Newall – drum engineering[10]

Charts
Chart (2015) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[11] 119
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[12] 94
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[13] 33
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[14] 84
US Billboard 200[15] 183
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[16] 77
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[17] 3
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[18] 15

References
  1. AllMusic
  2. Armored Saint - Win Hands Down, metal.de, in German
  3. "ARMORED SAINT: Entire 'Win Hands Down' Album Available For Streaming". Blabbermouth.net. May 29, 2015. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  4. Armored Saint detail Win Hands Down, teamrock.com, 9 April 2015
  5. Armored Saint - Win Hands Down, rockhard.de, in German
  6. ARMORED SAINT – Win Hands Down Debuts On Billboard Chart, bravewords.com, 10 June 2015
  7. AllMusic
  8. AllMusic
  9. AllMusic
  10. AllMusic
  11. "Ultratop.be – Armored Saint – Win Hands Down" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  12. "Ultratop.be – Armored Saint – Win Hands Down" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Armored Saint – Win Hands Down" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  14. "Swisscharts.com – Armored Saint – Win Hands Down". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  15. "Armored Saint Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  16. "Armored Saint Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  17. "Armored Saint Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  18. "Armored Saint Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
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