Innocent Rosie-Bad Habit Romance

Swedmetal
2009


Yet another hard rock act from Sweden, but Innocent Rosie really shine on their debut. This band has only been around for four years, but already they have toured Europe and America.
More than anything they certainly have their chops down as they show them here. This is guitar driven rock that owes much to the likes of Skidrow, Motley Crue, Faster Pussycat and Guns and Roses. They throw in blues rock, sleaze glam and just flat out bone rattling hard rock. Their sound owes a lot to the late 80's-early 90's, but at the same time it leans towards our current era as well. The blend between the eras pulls enough of the best of both time periods into the mix.
The vocals are rough and full of the kind attitude that compliments the music wonderfully. The rhythm section beat and thump along churning out thick layers that help guide the music. The production is nothing short of fantastic as they manage bring all of the energy to the surface. The band doesn't hesitate or worry about sounding slick or polished, but instead they just charge ahead. Innoncent Rosie are the type of band that the scene really could have used twenty years ago, but at least we are getting them now. They could stand to tighten up in some places and hopefully they keep pushing ahead, but nicely done indeed. Certainly this is an album that will be in steady rotation in mys stereo for a while.

www.myspace.com/innocentrosie

Number 23

My top 25 hard rock/metal guitarist countdown moves on to number 23. We have the first duo and a pick that I grudgingly made. It is...

James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett



I say grudgingly because their peak was limited and they didn't go in the musical direction that I hoped that they would. Plus the fact that Kirk Hammett has created a number of solos that sound like a hyper frog is hopping up and down the guitar strings. Regardless of those points, this duo helped develop the thrash sound in the early to mid 80's. There is no getting around the importance of their first three releases. Even though I wasn't as big on their 90's material this band still kept metal in the limelight during a decade when many bands had been knocked into obscurity. The bottom line is that metal would not have been the same with the early contributions from this band and these two guys.

So we have had
25-Ace Frehley
24-Andy McCoy
23-James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett

Number 22 will be up next week.

What's coming up?

Other than a lot of cloudy days it has been a fine week. My three year old has been on a Star Trek kick and he is particularly fond of the animated series. It is one of the better action cartoons from the 70's and it has held up relatively well. I have heard a number good albums lately and have to say that May has been the top month for having the most good releases so far in 2009. Here is what I hope to have out this week.



Exilia-My own army

Oscape-The growing ground

The Seven Gates-Angel of suffering

Innocent Rosie-Bad Habit Romance



plus...

Clash of the album covers

Lesser of two evils

Interview with Punky Peru of Witch

Number 23 of the top guitarist countdown

**Have a great week!

Stratovarious-Polaris

JVC
2009



This band went through multiple break-ups over the years. Timo Tolkki, their lead guitarist, seemed to be lacking inspiration as the main writer on some recent efforts. He must have been losing enthusiasm as well because when he ended the band for the final time, he waived the rights of the name to Jens Johansson the band’s keyboardist. The band lost guitarist Timo Tolkki, but brought in guitarist Matias Kupiainen and bassist Lauri Porra. So what does a band who has lost their main writer and a lot of momentum do to right the ship? In this case I think they tried to get back to some power metal basics and Johansson pushes to really use his playing and effects. Where they excel is by staying to the point and not getting to caught up in the excess flourishes that to often come with power metal. The fantastic production helps keep them grounded by emphasizing the heavy elements when needed, but keeping the keyboards in focus as well. This is a genre that all too often has bands who become long winded and forget about the metal part of power metal. Stratovarius stay on track and even make it fun. The only major flaw I heard was that they were going and then last three songs are all very slow. It was like driving on open roads and the hitting a traffic jam. So switching the track order may have fixed that problem. "Polaris" is not perfect and far from innovative. Yet this is a band who had every reason to fail and they managed to put together and album that works well enough on it's own plus shows the potential for the band to build upon for the future.

IQ-Frequency

SPV
2009

Progressive rock is one of those genres where I tend to think bands are either stellar or flat. I go in expecting solid playing, but so many in this style fall into the trap of playing rambling passages that concentrate more on technical ability than emotion. Thank goodness the latest release from British prog veterans IQ falls squarely in the stellar side. "Frequency" is the first album from this British band since 2004's Dark Matter. The new album reminds me a lot of 70's progressive rock with a few nods to the early 1980's as well. IQ could be compared to a lot of bands as various parts bring to mind different acts. Yet by the end of the album that doesn't matter a whole lot because they bring everything together nicely and make it their own sound. The melodies are the major focus here and the band uses their technical skills to enhance the melodies rather than going off in various directions. The result is an album that works on many levels yet manages to convey a definite sense of focus. IQ wrote these songs like excellent storytellers. They put in enough hooks to build the song and the music kept growing until the inevitable climax. There were very few moments where I didn't find myself glued to what they were going to do next. There is a subtlety to a number of the songs as they glide into them rather than charging and it works perfectly. The only problem I had with the disc was that many of the songs start out at exactly the same pace which is fairly. I was hoping for them to start a song or two at a different tempo. However if you just hang on then the songs do pick up and they toss in some tempo changes. Prog rock fans should easily find much to enjoy about this one.

Midnite Social

Self-produced
2009



I don't know what took me so long to get around to popping this disc open. I think it ended up getting sucked into the pile for longer than it deserved, but fortunately it did get played. Fortunatly because contained on this disc from Massachusetts based Midnite Social are some seriously rockin' tunes. They have their influences for sure as they show some hints of Guns and Roses and prime Aerosmith, but they easily move beyond the copycat bands that make up the majority of today's hard rock scene. The grooves are monstrous and they pull them out like it second nature and perhaps it is.The vocals are loud, confidant and even a little cocky which works just fine for this style. Guitar solos are fresh and vibrant with strong tones. The drums are solid as they pound and smash their way through. Then you have the bass, which you can actually hear. That doesn't happen nearly enough in hard rock as many acts choose let it go unheard, but Midnite Special use it as it was meant to be. Midnite Special know how to mix it up too. Tracks like the steady grinding "Crazy", the swirling and pounding "Once" and the spine shaking "No paradise" are just a few examples of the kind of instantly likable rock songs that this band can crank out. While tracks like "Jessica" and "Goodbye" demonstrate the band's ability to slow things down a bit and really play up some solid melodies. The only song on here I wasn't big on was the rap based "After Midnite". Even it was alright, but it just seemed very out of place in view of the album as a whole. This is a band who come across as very natural and that blended with their talent and obvious enthusiasm certainly makes them an act to watch out for.



www.myspace.com/midnitesocial

Clash of the album covers

Here's two lesser known NWOBHM covers.


Bitches Sin-Predator

vs.


Chariot-The Warrior

***Which cover do you prefer?

Sian Alice Group-Troubled Shaken etc.

The Social Registry
2009

The second album from UK's Sian Alice Group includes a lot of angles and approaches, but they achieve varied results at best. There is jazz, folk and more tossed into a multi-layered approach. At best the results are rich and warm, but more often than not their need for repetition hampers the impact could have been there. The vocals are soft, floating and manage to achieve a hypnotic effect on occasion. The song structure and the way the music fades back into the background lets me know that pushing the vocals is a major goal. This band see-saws between feast and famine to some extent. They often push forth thick bursts of sound with every instrument contributing, but just as quickly they fade into bland lines and they lapse into a tendency to try and cruise to the end of the song. Sian Alice Group show hints of originality and some vision towards tapping into some effective and insightful passages. Unfortunately they don't pursue those ideas enough and their bright lights seem all too temporary. All too often I found myself reaching for the fast forward button halfway through a song which of course is never a good sign. Their talent is obvious, but the ideas are either limited, restrained or a combination of both.

Number 24

My top 25 hard rock/metal guitarist countdown continues with number 24. It is...



Andy McCoy

Definitely a player who used lots of different tones and wasn't afraid to mix things up. He used elements of hard rock, pop, punk and other in helping to define Hanoi Rocks' incredible sound. The more off the wall the better was oftentimes the case both guitarist and band.

So far it's..
25-Ace Frehley
24-Andy McCoy
23-Coming next week!

What's coming up?

I had my 39th birthday the other day. I got season one of the Big Bang Theory, a die cast Enterprise and a couple of CDs. Here is what hope to have out this week.

Reviews of...
IQ-Frequency
Stratovarius-Polaris
Midnite Social-s/t
Sian Alice Group-Troubled, shaken, etc.

Clash of the album covers
Lesser of two evils
Number 24 of my top guitarist countdown


Hace a great week!

Hull-Sole Lord

The END
2009

My initial thought after hearing this one was that these guys could replace the "H" in their band name with a "D" and you would know where they are coming from. Then I realized that isn't totally fair although it does describe the end result. This Brooklyn five-piece engage in doom, post-doom, some death type vocals and loose progressive passages. In print this may sound like an ambitious undertaking. Unfortunately that is not the case. They dump out the pieces of this puzzle for all to hear, but unfortunately they just do not have the ideas on how to put them together. They tromp out some incredibly slow moving creations that fall in the doom category and they also roll out plenty of instrumental noodling. Now they show some hints of talent and rhythm during some of these bits, but they lack direction and they rarely flesh out any of their ideas. At best they sound like second rate Cult of Luna for a few moments or like YOB without the depth or sense of direction. At worst they sound flat and clueless. I kept hoping they would build on the few sparks they churned out, but instead of putting something together they just kept rolling along peeling out riffs that didn't gel. Somewhere below the surface I think that Hull generate some interesting tones, but just not enough of them and no real blueprint to go by.

UFO-The Visitor

SPV
2009



It's been a while since I have had an album that has taken me this many spins to really reach a verdict. UFO have been in the business for forty years. Like any band who has been in existence that long they have certainly had their highs and lows. Most of their lows have revolved line-ups changes and in fact there is no Pete Way on this due to his health problems. In 2004"You Are Here" was the first album to feature Michael Schenker’s replacement Vinnie Moore. Those are some awfully large shoes to fill and the band has been trying to progress and re-establish themselves since that point. With "The Visitor" I think it become apparent that Vinnie Moore is indeed a good fit for this band. A large part of that undoubtedly has to do with the fact that he is contributing more to the writing this time around. This is a blues soaked album for the most part with hints of the sounds of UFO's past, but a few stabs to get beyond that as well. Phil Mogg sounds terrific after all these years. His rugged voice has perhaps even more character than ever. This album is definitely a grower and I am glad that I took a few weeks to really go over this entry. Many of the songs are subtle and take time to build up, but they are worth the wait. This is definitely the sound of a band who still has something to give. The album is melodic and catchy as well as being aggressive and tight. It's hard to believe that this band can be so fresh this far into the game, but the album made me believer even if the last few albums hadn't. This one has stayed in my stereo for a while now and I have feeling that I will still be spinning it for months to come.

Clash of the album covers

Okay, here we go.


Metallica-Creeping Death

vs.


Saxon-Rock the nations

***Which cover do you prefer?

Misery-Fifteen years of aggression

Self-produced
2008



Misery hail from Long Island, New York and were formed in the early 90's and is now stronger than ever in the year 2009. The album was produced by Life Of Agony guitarist Joey Z. After looking at the cover at the band name my immediate hope was "please don't let this be as typical as I fear it will be". Unfortunately my hopes didn't deter the inevitable. Misery play a loud, but thoroughly limited style of metal with a few hardcore splashes. I hear some Pantera, BLS, Biohazard and Pro-pain only far more basic than any of those bands which should tell you something of their lack of originality. The first thing that struck me upon sliding this disc in my stereo was that it's very loud. That's more volume than heaviness as a few minutes reveals this band to be more bark than bite. Vocalist John Lo Casto gives a good effort and he a strong set of pipes, but he just doesn't have enough back-up or strong enough material to be totally convincing. Still the vocals are the strongest part of Misery. The guitars are by the book and simple with limited variation and a distinct lack of emotion. The drums took me back to ninth grade typing class because they just sounded a mess of thin clicking that relies very little on rhythm. They try to convey a heavy handed attempt at a powerful mid-90's style of metal, but they just can't pull it off. Something tells me these guys might sound better live with some room to move around in and an audience to feed off of. That still doesn't alter the fact that Misery try to sound like they are fire and they come across like a few scattered sparks and a lot of smoke. You have undoubtedly heard this kind of fist pumping material done by more talented bands.



www.myspace.com/miseryny

Elvenking-Two tragedy poets ...and a caravan of weird figures

AFM
2008



Italian act Elevenking have bounced around styles including folk metal, power metal and now they come back to folk music with a little metal tossed in. This album feels more like an album of extras than a real studio effort. There are acoustic versions of previously released songs "The Wanderer" and "The Winter Wake". That's not so bad, but covering Belinda Carlisle's "Heaven Is A Place On Earth" is a bad idea and Elvenking give us an absolutely atrocious version that will leave a bad taste with you for hours after it ends.They sound like they spent a few too many hours at a renaissance fair. Okay, they are tight and upbeat. Those two aspects help this to move along well enough. The main question in my mind is who will this appeal to? Folk metal fans? I doubt it or least not for most fans of that sub-genre. The reason is there simply isn't enough metal to these songs. To me good folk metal should include both styles and my preference would be for it to be heavier on the metal side. Maybe people who love the folk aspect will flock to it. I just kept hoping for some kind edge to work it's way into the mix. Unfortunately that didn't happen enough. The overuse of gang choruses wore on me after a while as well. Elvenking sort of had my interest for a song or two, but then they persisted in going down the same road without enough variance. In the end "Two tragedy poets" is just too light and repetitious for my liking.

Top 25 hard rock/metal guitarists

So I finally got around to putting pen to paper and drafted out a top 25 hard rock/metal guitarists list. I even listened to some albums in order to finalize these lists even though these are all guys I have been listening to for years. So now I can begin my countdown at a rate of one per week. There are a couple of pairs on this list, co-workers who have to go in together. I don't expect anyone to agree as all lists on this topic would likely vary to some agree. So let's get on with it.

Number 25 is...


Ace Frehley

The Space Ace was known much more for his literally smoking guitar than for smoking solos. Indeed his playing was basic to an extent yet it came at a time when I think simple straight ahead hard rock was just what the scene needed. He wasn't the fastest or most technical player by any means yet he made it sound and even look fun. How much young aspiring guitarists picked up their instrument thanks to listening to Ace back in his prime? A whole lot I would imagine. Certainly a guitarist who made quite an impact.

Number 24 will be out next week.

Interview with Masterpiece

I must admit that I never heard of Brazil's Masterpiece until I recently had the chance to review their EP “W.A.F.E.”. That was enough to catch my interest though. I had the pleasure of interviewing Régisson Silva to find out more about this band and what they are working on


MM-Hello, please introduce the members of your band and what instrument you play.
RS-Hi there! The current members of the band are:
Denisson Silva – guitar and voices
Régisson Silva – guitar solos
Pedro Bianchi – bass guitar
Thiago Chiarelli - drums

MM-Tell us a little about the history of your band?
RS-The band was formed in 1998 here in the south of Brazil. Since then we keep working, mixing influences from the bands we heard when we started and adding our own stuff trying to make things a little different. Of course we keep changing and experimenting new things, looking for a real formula of a masterpiece. In 2006 we released our first EP called “The Seventh Card” which was very praised by the critics. In early 2007 we have new tunes out, but these songs were recorded in our home studio and there weren’t press copies for that, only on the internet. Exactly in this period Pedro and Thiago joined the crew (the original members are only Denisson and me). Since then we are working strictly together. Oh man they came as a relief to us ‘cause we were fed up of changing members of our line up!
“W.A.F.E.”, the new EP, , came in the end of the last year and it’s bringing us good results! So we hope to go further with the next album.

MM-Who are your musical influences?
RS-Any musician brought different influences to the band but we can say that Metallica, Megadeth, Sepultura and Pantera are our main influences.

MM-Where do you get the influences for your lyrics?
RS-Those bands whose have influenced us in the musical way, did the same about the lyrics. But the main influence is the day by day, we see the things happening during all life and it’s important to write about them. Sometimes it’s not the case to say what is right or wrong, it’s too much relative, just to show what happens can be enough! People need to turn off the TV and start to think more deep and seriously about the things.





MM-I understand that have you have begun work on a full length album. How is that going?
RS-Yes, the project is going well. We have all drums, basses and rhythm guitars done. Now the guys are waiting for me to stop scratching my balls to do the solos lol. After that we will do the vocal parts to end up in that soup opera called mixing and mastering stuff.

MM-Is it going to be all new material or will you be re-recording any songs from your previous releases?
RS-The three songs from the last EP will be re-recorded and also an instrumental song, which was released in that material that wasn’t pressed in CD. All the rest of material is totally new shit!

MM-Any label interest so far? Any idea when it will be released?
RS-We hope to have the job all done before the end of the year, but we are facing some damn problems with schedules to continue that, I believe that the next months we will be back to studio again. About the label, we didn’t receive any offer until now, but we are looking for something to deal.

MM-Is this the only project for you guys or is anyone currently working on any other projects?
RS-I have an instrumental project which takes my name, and I hope to have new songs out very soon. You can find that stuff at www.myspace.com/regissonsilva
Apart from that I work as a performance musician and guitar teacher here in my country.
Besides their profession the other guys are currently working just with Masterpiece.

MM-Has your writing style changed over the years? If so then how?
RS-I think yes, I’ve been approach that during the years. You know, that’s not my mother tongue so I have to study that to improve my style. Now is easier to hit my goals about metric and etc, although since the beginning I was worried about a formula, trying to do it rhythmically with rimes and whatever. About the context the changes happen naturally depending of what you live, see and feel and how your imagination can put it onto a piece of paper.

MM-Do you listen to different styles of music besides metal? If so then what?
RS-Even though metal is my favorite style I like to listen to very different styles such as classical music, jazz and blues, etc. It depends of my mood.





MM-What is the music scene like in your area?
RS-A piece of crap! Lots of bands and a lack of stages, poor payments (sometimes nothing!), amateur promoters and professionals in general take over the scene.
Apart from that always will have an audience with thirst of metal!

MM-Are there any other great unsigned bands that you would like to mention?
RS-I could mention a huge list here, but I don’t wanna be unfair forgetting some of my friends out of that.

MM-What are some of the best albums that you have heard so far in 2009?
RS-I can’t stand without to mention the last album of Exodus. “Let there be blood” (2008) kicks ass, they revive those old songs giving another breath to them effortlessly. But I spend more time going through old stuff. I like the way the metal used to sound in the 80’s and early 90’s. Although I know the things change, I still like to feel that old atmosphere. Because I believe how deep you go, stronger you grow, like the roots of a tree. Just so you understand how crazy it is, a few days ago I was freaking out listening to some old Scorpions.





MM-Pick the band from each of the following pairs that you prefer and tell why you picked them.
RS-
Ok! Preference doesn’t mean exclusivity; let’s keep it clear here hehe! Both of these choices are amazing artists, they all rock and I am a fan of them.


Kreator or Slayer
Slayer – reminds me of my youth and I like the rebellious and violent way they do the simple things.

Anthrax or Overkill
Anthrax – they have that thing some bands spend the whole career looking for. You can recognize them among millions!

Dio or Ozzy
Ozzy – creativity, wildness, good taste and sensibility are some of the main musical traits of this old mad man, and also a damn hand to choose amazing guitar players. lol

Megadeth or Metallica
Too much difficult to me! I can’t choose one or other, because Metallica is my heart and Megadeth is my brain.


MM-Is there anything else that you would like to say about your band or your music?
RS-Yes there is. I would like to thank you for the opportunity and support, and would like to emphasize that we have our debut album coming soon with a complete merchandise package (CD, T-shirts and whatever), so we need that support from you guys, webzines and blogs, fans, sponsors and labels. So please contact us at www.myspace.com/masterpieceonline or by e-mail contato@masterpieceonline.net

Thank you all!

STAY MASTERPIECE! STAY METAL!!! \,,/

Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound-When sweet sleep returned

Teepee
2009



I don't know what the people at Teepee records have been doing, but their artists have been on a roll so far in 2009. The releases from Weird Owl, Black Math Horseman and Quest for fire have all been solid or better. Not to be outdone, the third release from California psychedelic rockers Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound may even be better than the three acts above. The influences include Blue Cheer, Neil Young, Pink Floyd, the Byrds, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple. I have heard some rumblings about this band not being original. That's true, but they are fantastic at what they do. They know how to create massive flowing streams of fuzzed out tones, but they also know how to interweave and tie in some subtle yet powerful rock beats as well. The guitar parts are at times simple, but the genius is in how they manipulate the these simple ideas. There is a lazy groove that drives many of these songs. Familiar it may be, but they know how to lay on the textures and harmonies. They have a great sense of pacing and that allows them to really mix the influences and styles, but they never overstay their welcome. It didn't take long for this disc to convince me of it's merits. This is a band that us on a slow ride, but there are enough turns and twists to make it memorable.

What's coming up?

Most of the people in my house are just getting over being sick. I had no voice for two days, but am feeling better now. I did get to see my brother and his family as they came to visit this week. I also saw the Star Trek movie on Monday and thought that it was fantastic. They managed to make the series exciting and open up some possibilities while bringing in parts that long time Trek fans will appreciate as well. I am trying to go through the pile of discs and get them reviewed. This week I hope to have out the following.

Clash of the album covers
Number 25 on my guitarist countdown (if I can get around to making my list)
Interview with Masterpiece

and reviews of...
Elvenking-Two tragedy poets and a caravan of weird figures
Hull-Sole Lord
Misery-Fifteen years of aggression
UFO-The Visitor
Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound-When sweet sleep returned

New Segment

Towards the end of this month I will try to start a new monthly segment called "The Good, the bad and the ugly". I will just go over albums and bands that that I have heard during the month that fall into those three categories. It will likely be fairly brief. If you have any suggestions for the segment then please just let me know.

Clash of the album covers

Here you go.


Corrosion of conformity-Animosity

vs.


DRI-Crossover

***Which cover do you prefer?

Burial Hordes-Devotion to unholy creed

Pulverized
2009

This is rather typical black metal from Greek band Burial Hordes. The vocals are the of the typically low and growling variety attached to this style of music. There are a few moments where they to fluctuate the vocals a little so that helps. The guitars range from tight and sharp down to muddy and flat. The guitar tone should have been brought up more in the mix because they are robbed of some of the edge that they could have had. The band went for a raw sound and that's what they got, but the results are uneven at best. A few parts are savage and brutal while others just sound lost in puddles of uninspired noise. The lyrics are of the satanic style, but it's not like you can understand them. This is a brief album as it clocks in around thirty five minutes. Fans of older style black metal might enjoy this album. However, in the end it's a few decent flashes surrounded by a lot of filler that you have probably heard performed better by more talented acts.

www.myspace.com/burialhordes

Nihilitia-Nihilist Militia

Keya
2009

D.C.'s came together as the result of some Craigslist posting and a desire to form a heavy band of some sort. The three members have diverse musical interests which include, noise rock, jazz, stoner rock and metal. A number bands can boast varied influences, but that only means something if you are able utilize those influences in your music. Fortunately Nihilitia are talented, creative and just crazy enough to make this mess work. The opener "Shithouse" didn't do enough to convince me. It's a noisy, rapid fire piece that's rattles a lot, but never gets anywhere. It's a very choppy song and if you chop something up too much then you may be left with very little. That's the case with the opener, but that's the only song I could not get into. Next up is "The One" and now we really hear all the instruments chime and more importantly everyone takes their time. They actually build this one and give those licks and beats some time to simmer and really up this track. After that they begin to gel and their musical backgrounds and willingness to take chances help elevate their material. My favorite track "Suppressant" is chock of chunky bass parts, thick guitars and an overall sound that hits like a ton of bricks. This is a band that delivers a lot. This band bring sludge-like doom ramblings, slick jazz blasts and intricate progressive passages. What's more is they handle each style with equal relish and precision. Most importantly they know how to connect the pieces in a manner that causes the results to be intriguing. There are times when Nihilitia just ride on smooth grooves and there are times when they going in several directions at once with insane energy. Yet no matter the course they take they are almost always engaging. That's the real key as to why this album is such a likable monster. This band have managed to bring a lot of ideas to the table. Much to my delight they have been able to harness the heart of these ideas and create their own complicated and insane formula.


www.myspace.com/nihilitia

Blind Fury-Out of reach

Metal Mind
1985, 2009



There once was a band named Satan who were part of the NWOBHM scene and they released an excellant album back in 1983 called "Court in the act". However, the next year the band changed vocalists as Brian Ross would go back to his old band and Lou Taylor would come to replace him. That wasn't the only change though as the band changed their name to "Blind Fury". That's quite a bit of activity in a brief period of time and it's possible that this did slow down the momentum that the band should have riding on after such a fine album. By 1985 they had it together and released this album. Taylor's vocals are a little different that that of Brian Ross, but he was a good fit even though his tenure would be relatively brief. The sound was slightly different overall. There are still some hints or Iron Maiden, Diamond Head and Judas Priest. Yet there are a few songs where the band tried to become more accessible and they push more towards a hard sound as opposed to the very solid metal leanings of the Satan album. "Out of reach" is no "Court in the act", but it doesn't pretend to be. I think this was a new chapter and the band reached out and tried some new ideas. Fortunately most of them work. Steve Ramsey and Russ Tippins were an extremely capable guitar duo and they keep this album on pace. At times they are reserved, but when needed they rip out some monstrous riffs. The rest of the band is equally as adept at laying down the framework for pounding metal. The production work compliments the music and adds some real depth to their sound. As I said earlier, this album lacks some of the punch of the Satan album from to years earlier. I think they were striving for a slightly more melodic sound. This re-issue includes a lyric book that has a family tree for this band. Believe me you need it to keep the band members straight. This band went through even more line-up name changes after this album so the chart helps you to keep everything straight. This is a real keeper and another fantastic re-issue from Metal Mind.

Magica-Wolves and witches

AFM
2008



Magica oftentimes get the label of symphonc metal, but I think symphonic power metal might be more appropriate. They have a female vocalist and a lot keyboards, but this act really have their feet firmly entrenched in power metal basics. That's good because that helps balance the vocals and keyboards. Inevitably the sounds do compliment each other. My first exposure to this band was 2007's "Hereafter" which I enjoyed, but felt that they sounded not unlike gothic metal from almost a decade ago. Not a whole lot has changed since that album as far as the band moving ahead. However they are solid at what they do which is piece together a brand of metal that's both heavy and melodic without either side swallowng the other. The production plays a major part in that undertaking. The guitars are heavy enough to give their sound an edge and the keys and vocals add depth and atmosphere. The only aspect of this disc that bothered me was that don't always have a handle on the song structure. They know how to start and they know how to vary the sounds early on. Where they fall short is somewhere around the middle they seem to lose site of where to go. On several songs they just wonder along for longer than they really needed to. I mean there are still some decent sounds coming out, but the direction seems to have veered off. That caused my attention to veer off which is not something any band should want to have happen. Still they have a lot going for them they do a fine juggling act while managing to pull a great fown from their various talents.

Interview with Viking Skull

Ah, Viking Skull, even the band name is heavy as it brings up images of invading hordes and spikied and sharpened weapons hitting flesh and bone. The band brings forth some heavy, hard hitting music as well. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing bassist Kevin Waldie to find out more about this band.



Hello, what are you currently up to?

We've been doing some of our own shows, at venues we don't normally reach, to keep the ball rolling with promoting the record and of course to have some fun and drinks with our friends! Also, we've started kicking around ideas for the next record in rehearsal time.

The band has changed some members since the last album. Tell us some about the new members and what do they bring to the band?

Well first off we've got Dom Wallace on lead guitar. With two weeks to go before recording we went for a pint with Dom and asked him and he said he'd already booked the time off to do the record! Now that's commitment! As you can hear he's settled in nicely and plays like a demon! Also, stateside, we had The Brandywine Eel who we met when he helped out with keyboards on 'hidden flame' on 'Chapter Two'. He played some shows out there with us and mucked in with the this records title track. He was meant to be playing with us when we supported Clutch over Xmas but got banged up in the jail before we got there!

What has been the response to your latest release “Doom Gloom Heartache & Whiskey”?

Very positive actually. We felt it was a more serious record both in the writing and the way we approached it. I think people have started to appreciate the fact that while we like to have fun with it, we are not just a 'joke band' and if you've seen us live you'll know we work hard to entertain while keeping it fun.


How do you think that it compares with your previous releases?

Definitely more heavy I think!

Did you approach the writing or recording process any differently?

Production on it rocks we think!? We did a lot more rehearsal and tinkering with this one than the others and Jess found this ace studio in Royersford that looked like a cave (across the road from a beer distributor) and the vibe was more relaxed. We also recorded some stuff in his basement, 19 drum mics my arse!

Does the album title “Doom Gloom Heartache & Whiskey” represent a lifestyle or what was the inspiration for choosing that particular title?

I think Roddy hit the nail on the head with that one! Thinking about it, that is actually what was happening in our lives since the last record, nuff said!


What are your interests outside of music?

Who, me? Drinking and pumping i guess?

What kind of music are you currently listening to?

Got Planet Rock on radio!

What are your touring plans for the rest of the year?

We hope to get back to the states this year as its kicking off over there and we love it! A good support tour in Europe would be good too, records ain't gonna promote themselves!

Tell us about some of the more memorable shows that you have played?

Download both times were amazing! Seeing that amount of people rocking out to your band is every ones secret fantasy! Too many good times! Dio tour, Hayseed Dixie tour and of course new years eve in Michigan with Clutch! Many awesome times.



What should someone who comes to see you live expect?

A sore liver, bloody nose or pregnancy!

What would you like to see Viking Skull achieve in 2009?

Ideally, tons of shows in America and Europe, tons of records sold and a new recording in the bag!

Pick the band from each of the following pairs that prefer and tell why you picked them.

Orange Goblin or Electric Wizard

Orange Goblin. I could punch through a wall listening to them!

Clutch or Fu Manchu

Clutch. They rule, end off.

Black Sabbath or Pentagram

Sabbath. Never heard of Pentagram when i were ten but i knew who Sabbath were!

AC/DC or Motorhead

AC/DC = bedroom sexy time!

Is there anything else that you would like to say about your band or your music?

Err, hope you like it cos it only gonna get better and louder!



www.myspace.com/vikingskull

What's coming up?

Hard to believe that we are over 1/3 of the way through the year already. A few big releases and a number of more yet to come. So far some of my favorites of 2009 are the releases from Sepultura, Wino, Kreator, Nasty Idols, Slough Feg and all of the albums that TeePee records have done. I still have a Viking Skull interview to post this week. For next week I hope to have out the following.

Clash of the album covers

Reviews of...
Magica-Wolves and witches
Blind Fury-Out of reach (re-issue)
Nihilitia-Nihilist Militia
Burial Hordes-Devotion to unholy creed
Wyldsky-s/t

and maybe number 25 on my top 25 guitarist countdown if I can organize my list in time.

***Have a great week.

Rocklahoma 2009

The flowers are blooming and the sun is coming out so that means it is soon time for hasbeen and neverwhere hair bands to head out to Oklahoma. Surely fans with lots of money and not much taste will flock to see them. So once again I asked Bob Vinyl from http://rnrnonsense.toomanyvoices.com/ to come chime in with his thoughts on this years line-up. I took the listing from the Rocklahoma Myspace page.

Thursday:

Anthrax-

Metal Mark-It’s a given they will deliver live. That’s a no brainer. However, I have not been too big on any of their albums since “Sound of white noise” way back in 1992. The biggest question might be will the glam fans who are interested in the bands playing on the other days care about Anthrax?

Saxon-I think these guys will be what I hear Y and T last year. They will come play a good set and the hair metal fans will be like “ I can’t wait for Danger Danger”.

Overkill- They are still good. I can’t understand why they are playing this show instead of jumping on the European festival scene though. I just hope that Bobby Ellsworth doesn’t cough up a lung on stage.

Metal Church- I think there is one original member left and the last album was decent and best. Yet they are still way above the many cream puffs on this show.

Leatherwolf-I have always liked these guys. The last disc was a re-recording of a previous album, but it was still good and their heaviest album to date..

Bob Vinyl-
Why would the first four embarrass themselves by appearing at this hairspray fest? Yeah, I know Saxon released a few lightweight albums in the mid to late 80s that might appeal some Rocklahoma fans, but I'd think Saxon would want to forget that. Anthrax, Overkill and Metal Church just don't make any sense at all. It makes me think less of all of them. Leatherwolf already has a bit of a bad legacy after re-issuing the same album with a new singer, but even they should know better than to participate in this joke.



Friday:
Stryper-
Metal Mark-Uh, the best thing I can say here is at least they won’t be wearing those wretched black and yellow bumblebee looking costumes (at least I hope not).

Bob Vinyl-I always laid off of these guys a bit, because they had the guts to speak out about their beliefs in a scene that wasn't likely to be all that receptive. That being said, I'm not gonna give them a break on getting back together to cash in on this nonsense.

Night Ranger-
Metal Mark-What’s the matter, weren’t Loverboy available?

Bob Vinyl-Hold on, weren't these guys just watered down hard rock 25 years ago? What makes anyone think they'll be better now? Motorin'...yeah, I'd be motorin' right out of there.

Warrant-
Metal Mark-Their third Rocklahoma and they have had a different singer each time. Maybe they should have a contest where someone for the audience will get to be their singer next year.

Bob Vinyl-Warrant is as fabricated as a boy band. Nothing they did was real and nothing they did was any good at all. I don't think I can express in words how completely rotten Warrant was/is. If you like Warrant, you're just stupid.

Danger Danger-
Metal Mark-Stinker, Stinker is more like it.


Bob Vinyl-They could have been called Danger, but they're such a bunch of ninnies that they had to repeat themselves to try to convince everyone. I still don't buy it.

Helix-
Metal Mark-They were bland back in the mid-80s. Does anyone believe that twenty plus years and lots of line-up changes have made them sound better?

Bob Vinyl-Don't you think bands this rotten would rather be forgotten? Apparently not. Too bad, because I'd like to forget.

Hurricane Alice-
Metal Mark-I am confused here because the Rocklahoma Myspace page is listing this under the band’s original name. They became Hericane Alice in the late 80’s and the singer revived the name with three new guys not too long ago. They played a few shows last year, but there is nothing on their Myspace page about them playing Rocklahoma. I guess even the people at the event’s Myspace page didn’t know who these guys are.

Bob Vinyl- If there's a hurricane, do they need extra hairspray?






Saturday:
Thin Lizzy-
Metal Mark-I like John Sykes, but seriously without Phil Lynott this is just a tribute band.

Bob Vinyl-So was Phil Lynott's death some kinda hoax? I mean that's gotta be more plausible than some other guys from Thin Lizzy getting together and calling it Thin Lizzy without him, right?

KIX-
Metal Mark-These guys never quite made it to the big time in the 80’s. Now when they play these festivals fans act like they are royalty or something. That should tell you something about the quality of the other bands playing this event.

Bob Vinyl-Being from Baltimore, I couldn't even figure out why this guys were popular locally. Seriously, these guys are more embarrassing that the city's crack problem.

KEEL-
Metal Mark-Seriously, these guys were poor back in the day. I don’t how they stayed on a major label as long as they did.

Bob Vinyl-If it's Thin Lizzy without Phil Lynott, maybe the upside is we could have Keel without Ron Keel. No such luck I'm sure. In a genre of ridiculous singers, Ron Keel is one of the worst.


Gypsy Pistoleros-
Metal Mark-If they can keep a steady line-up then they could really be one of the few really promising hard rock bands going today.


Bob vinyl-The ONLY good thing in glam today. The only good band in the lineup after Thursday.





Sunday:
Twisted Sister-
Metal Mark-Fifty year old drag queens who can barely play their instruments and still they are one of the top bands playing this “event”.

Bob Vinyl-Okay, Dee Snider seems like a cool guy and Twisted Sister was actually pretty good for a bunch of mediocre musicians, but that doesn't mean I want to hear their fleeting moment of success replayed.

Skid Row-
Metal Mark-No Sebastian Bach, so who cares? The youth stopped going wild for these guys a long time ago.

Bob Vinyl-They were one of the best hair metal bands of the late 80s and that still doesn't make them very good. At least without Sebastian Bach, no one will have to hear any of his crappy solo material.


Great White-
Metal Mark-I could make some rude fire comment, but this band was a bad joke long before that ever happened.

Bob Vinyl- Do the tickets come with a fire extinguisher?

Nelson-
Metal Mark-Oh, yeah the guys with the hair. They were very fluffy back in the day so they should fit in fine with this day’s group.

Bob Vinyl-Why do all bad things have to come back? Did anyone who actually liked music and not just pop culture think these guys were any good? And does long hair automatically make it rock music? Doesn't that Yanni guy have long hair? And Kenny G too? Will they be playing Rocklahoma? I mean, they rock as hard as Nelson, don't they?

Bonfire-
Metal Mark-The only band on the main stage that I never heard anything by. They play between Vixen and Nelson so they won’t have to do much to sound good.

Bob Vinyl-Are these guys the Great White after party?

Vixen-
Metal Mark-One original member left. That’s one more than the number of people who gave their last album a positive review.

Bob Vinyl-The novelty of being an all-female band in a scene that celebrated misogyny wore thin about as quickly as the stupidity of the scene as a whole. Isn't this just one original member? I guess the others finally woke up to how rotten the band was in its "prime" let alone now.




Lineup for the side stages include: MASS, Hallows Eve, Krank, Aska, Bai Bang, Mad Max, Roxanne, Ronny Munroe, Frontrunner, Reckless, Real Steel, Cuttlass, Miles Beyond, Herazz, Revengeance, Letchen Grey, Lickity Split, Biloxi, Aura Surreal, Hollywood Harlot, Electro Nomicon, Halcyon Way, Ritual Habits, The Glitter Boys, Nasty Nasty, Lorraine, Bodragaz, Axeticy, ANJ, Hallucination, Atomic Clock, Widow, Strike The Sun, Altered Ending, Rebel State, Chizel, Zeroking, Fan Halen, T.H.V, Herman Rarebell of the Scorpions and friends, Terry Glaze formally of Pantera, Silent Rage, Warrior, Pair A Dice, Julliet, Wild Street and Vougan.-

Metal Mark-
How did a good band like Hallow’s Eve end up on this train wreck? I remember liking MASS, but that was a long time ago. Did anyone else hear Herman Rarebell’s last album? No, I didn’t think so. Would anyone know who Terry Glaze was if Pantera hadn’t have made it after he left? Doubtful. Earlier report had it listed as Lord Tracy featuring Terry Glaze, but I guess it’s just him now. A lot of the others are from Retrospect’s rag tag fleet. I was always curious about Krank though, I remember hearing a few good words about them back in the day.

In addition to the above named bands, groups who were on the main stage at the previous Rocklahoma festivals are also playing the side stages. Those bands include Beautiful Creatures, LA Guns featuring Tracii Guns, Britney Fox, Bang Tango, Lillian Axe and Faster Pussycat.

My first thought is why are these bands playing the side stage? Aren’t LA Guns much more of an attraction than like a 1/3 of the bands on the main stage? Maybe these bands are stuck in there so that someone actually does come over to the side stages this year. I would be mad if I were Tracii Guns as they had played the main stage for two years now they are stuck on a side stage. Especially since one of those stages fell down last year. Lillian Axe’s last album was pretty good. I think it’s funny that Beautiful Creatures and Bang Tango are on the same bill. Maybe Joe LeSte can come up with another band real quick so he can get another paycheck


There you go. In case you are interested here are the posts on the previous Rocklahoma events.

http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2007/04/rocklahoma-my-view.html


http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2008/03/good-bad-and-our-big-mouths-rocklahoma.html

Arise and Ruin-Night Storms Hailfire

Victory
2009



Arise and Ruin hail from the Canadian city of Guelph, Ontario. I am not sure if it's their surroundings or their upbringing or what, but these guys play a style of metal core that is quite likable. The main riffs are simple, but they maintain enough intensity and variance to be interesting. Even the breakdowns are better than many of their peers. The vocals are a tad monotone, but the raw enthusiasm helps make up for some of that. In fact the whole band play with enough conviction to carry this material along fairly well. The heaviness level is sufficient too which is a plus and something that two many metalcore bands fail to devote enough attention to. They have a distinct advantage of having been given an admirable production job that has everything sounding very much in your face. If there is a downside to this CD (and there is) it's that the songs start to sound very much alike after awhile. They lay down the groundwork early on and then stick to it perhaps more than they should have. Still in the end their pounding style does enough to make up their lack of risk taking.

Black Label Society-Skullage

Eagle
2009



Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde started the Black Label Society back in the 1990's as a side project. Of course that band has become more than just a project over the years as it has taken on a life of it's own and they have gathered their own following. Long spaces between Ozzy releases have allowed Wylde more time to spend with this band. Black Label Society released "Kings of Damnation" a while back, but it has been a while so it's not unexpected that they have brought forth another compilation. The new CD/DVD Skullage package contains an overwhelming mountain of material that should satisfy all fans. The CD actually begins with Machine Gun Man from Wylde's pre-BLS release "Pride and Glory". Then it shoots straight in the BLS years as we are taken on a journey through time. The DVD is almost as long as the CD and works as a great companion piece. It's a mix of live clips, videos and some odd yet amusing interviews. This package works because it presents the band in their element. There is nothing forced or tacked on. We get signature tracks, a fair variety of tunes and a varied, high quality DVD. This isn't a band I could listen to every day. There is a definite Ozzy influence in some of BLS's material and that's fine. However there were times where I felt like this band could and should pushed to create a more involved sound. There were times where they did, but largely they seemed more content with volume instead of expanding their structure. Still Wylde makes little pretenses about this group. It's straight forward, leather-clad metal that appeals to a fairly wide age range. Even if I am not their biggest fan, I am still very much impressed with this package.

Clash of the album covers

Okay, it's two new covers.


Heaven and hell-The devil you know

vs.


UFO-The Visitor


**Which cover do you prefer?

Rape pillage and burn-Songs of death...Songs of hell

Ibex Moon
2009



This band have been in existence for over decade yet this is their only release to date. This is likely due to the fact that members are in a number of other projects as well. Now after this disc my hopes are that these guys give some more focus to this project and knock out a full length album. What we have before us is five tracks of early 90's style death metal mainly leaning towards the Florida bands. Now it is basic in that other than one track they don't make attempts to get beyond just straight, plowing ahead style of death metal. That limits them, but it took a few second into their opening track before I was pulled in by a huge, vicious riff. Most of the hear follow a simple blueprint that was set up by other acts years ago. However they do this well. The production is deep and it compliments the constant pounding assaults that this band delivers. They stick to what they know and generally keep it short and tight. Above all else they know to really punctuate parts and maintain the aggression that establish early on. Those two traits are something that enough bands bother to possess, but it helps a lot. I certainly like the intensity and the consistency of this release. My hope for when they do a full length is that they branch just a little more and I am sure they can accomplish that easily.

Assaulter-Salvation like destruction

Pulverized
2008

Australia's Assaulter have a sound that reaches back to the very early days of thrash metal. This is very much like pre-1986 style of thrash when the real speed hadn't quite kicked in. Think early Destruction, Kreator and maybe even some "Hell Awaits" era Slayer tossed into the mix. It's not just the guitar sound and the slightly restrained pace that make this release sound like it was done twenty-five years ago. Assaulter obviously loved those old albums so much that tried to replicate the raw production values as well as the style. Indeed these songs contained here have the fuzzy echoes that permeated thrash albums that I grew up back in the mid-1980's. Perhaps that helps give Assaulter's album a more authentic feel or I guess that is what they were shooting for. There is certainly and instant familiarity to this disc. The bone-crushing approach and primitive style is easy to like, but hardly spectacular. They have a fine handle on getting their mid-tempo tracks going and the level of heaviness compliments the sound. Indeed if this had been done in 1985 then it would have been a job. However, that time has long past. So instead this is a good disc, but one of many that doesn't do enough to really stand out from the pack of the many retro-thrash bands going today.

Prong-Power of the damn mixxxer

2009
13th Planet/Megaforce

Actually Prong are no strangers to re-mix albums although it has been 17 years since "Whose fist is this anyway?" EP was released. It was 1990's "Beg to differ" that saw this band establishing their own sound and pulling away from the mediocre ramblings of their two previous albums. I was instantly hooked by "Beg to differ", but it was 1991's "Prove you wrong" when Tommy Victor and company really started spreading their wings. They added some industrial blasts and moved beyond just being a metal act. The band got even better after that, but unfortunately they called it quits a few years later. Eventually after stints with Rob Zombie and Danzig, Victor revived the band name and has since delivered "Scorpio Rising" and "Power of the Damager" in recent years. Neither really approach the level the band were at in the previous decade because I truly believe they were one of if the best band of the 90's. There is no denying the impact that Prong have had on heavy music either even if they did get their proper due when they were at their prime. That brings us up to date and leads us to this album. A number of different artists including Rob Caggiano (Anthrax),Virus (Dope), Greg Puciato (Dillenger Escape Plan) and others have been given the reigns and the opportunity to re-mix a total of thirteen Prong tracks. Re-mix albums can be very hit and miss which is understandable if there knob turners from different backgrounds as is the case on this disc. Not all the songs work completely, but if nothing else this is certainly a refreshing collection of different tranlations of some Tommy Victor's work. Much like cover songs, I think re-mixes are only worth listening to if the person in charge brings something of their own to the translation. We are in luck because this disc is certainly filled with plenty of twists and tweaks that at best reflect the ideas of those behind the curtains. It's not perfect of course as a few songs are predictable or limited in their approach, but this is a good tribute to Tommy Victor and Prong. Everyone who hasn't been living under a rock for the last twenty years should have already been impacted by Prong. However "Power of the damn mixxxer" helps to re-enforce that notion as we get to hear so many various takes on their music. My hope now is that Victor can come back with the kind of bare-knuckled bashing original album that Prong have not created since "Rude Awakening" back in 1996.

Top 5 albums of 1970

Here you go

1-Black Sabbath-s/t
2-Deep Purple-In Rock
3-Led Zeppelin-III
4-Sir Lord Baltimore-Kingdom Come
5-Budgie-s/t


Some of these years had tough battles for the one spot, but in 1970 it was clearly Sabbath's year. However the spots 2-4 were really tough to determine, but I finally settled on this order.


That's it for best album lists now that I have done the 70's and the 80's. I won't be doing 1990 until next year as I like to do it when it's at least twenty years old. However I will be doing a new list countdown. I recently realized that since I have been writing this blog I have done a top vocalist list, top bass player list, top drummer list and a most underrated guitarist list. Yet I never done just a top guitarist list. So it's high time I did that. I will be doing a top 25 list and counting down at a rate of one per week which means if I start soon it will still go into early fall before I reveal number one. First I need to write up a list to work from before starting the countdown. So I get my list done then number 25 will come some time next weekend. If not then I will definitely have it ready to go the following weekend.

What's coming up?

Lets' see I broke down and bought the new Heaven and Hell disc. It's good, but I won't be reviewing it here because I am trying to just review items that are sent to me. It was good though, better than Dehumanizer although not as good as the two classic discs. I still owe a Black Label Society review so that should come tomorrow. Here is what else is coming up.

Reviews of...

Prong-Power of the damn mixxxer
Assaulter-Salvation like destruction
Rape Pillage and Burn-Songs of death
Wretched-The exodus of autonomy
and
Interview with Viking Skull
Clash of the album covers
Top five albums of 1970
and maybe one more.

Have a great week.