The kids are still hot tonight

 

Just when you needed another fresh injection of 80s rock, Loverboy is here with a new album.

"Just Getting Started" is the name of the new album -- the band's first is more than 10 years. It will be released Nov. 6 initially in an exclusive deal with Wal-Mart.

I've been listening to the new disc for a couple weeks now, and it's a much-overdue blast of pure Canadian 80s rock. Vocalist Mike Reno's voice sounds fully recharged and he really seems energized by the new material.

The first song the band recorded -- "Stranded" -- is actually the last song on the disc. The song is written as an ode to Scott Smith, the band's former bassist who was lost at sea while sailing in 2000.

The 10 songs still feature the guitar-and-keyboards barrage and working class lyrics that made the band so accessible to fans during their hey-day. Highlights on the disc include the hard-rocking title track and the 9-to-5 anthem "One Of Them Days."

"I love the way it sounds. I love the album cover. I love the fact that we're almost giving it away," vocalist Mike Reno told a Canadian newspaper. "I love the fact that we're giving half-price downloads on most of the download systems. And I'm perfectly aware that more than half of the people in the world will steal it. I'm happy with all of that."