Animan-The Unholy

Musicarchy Media
2016

Based in Gothenburg, Sweden and featuring musicians with ties to the group Blackwater, Animan is a brand new name in the field of (electrified) alternative heavy rock/hard & heavy metal. The somewhat atmospheric and occasionally goth-leaning "The Unholy" serves as Animan's full-length debut and it is overflowing with highly-charged material that is bound to leave a lasting impression upon all who hear it. While the group's official Facebook page lists the likes of Godsmack, Sevendust, Soundgarden, and Machine Head as Animan's primary influences one can't help but suspect that this is one band that is also quite familiar with the alternative rock and heavy metal sounds that literally flooded rock and roll radio stations back in the day. Please do not dread that particular observation as it merely adds to the compelling narrative that is Animan's first album. On it's final completion, "The Unholy" is a strong debut offering from Sweden's Animan and a release that I can't help but feel deserves special consideration. As a final note, credit must go to not only the two extraordinary musicians behind this project, Thomas Kihlberg (lead vocals, guitar) and Björn Wennerborg (lead vocals, guitar), but the album's sound man, Thomas "Plec" Johansson (final mix and master). By working close together (and no doubt feeding off of each others clever ideas and highly-creative suggestions!) these three unique individuals have crafted a refreshing album that should breath new life into the alternative hard rock and heavy metal scenes.

Johnny Wore Black-Walking Underwater Pt. 2

Self-Release/Independent
2014

Originally issued back in November of last year, "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" is the second Johhny Wore Black recording to have been released in 2014. As it's title clearly spells out it is also the follow-up to the dark rock/melodic metal album, "Walking Underwater.". That album (which I also recommend) was well-received by critics, including yours truly(!), and it helped turn one-time A-list stuntman "Jay" into a legitimate rock and roll performer! As you might recall that album was produced by Grammy Award Winner David Bottrill (Dream Theater, Tool, The Smashing Pumpkins, Muse, Godsmack, Between the Buried and Me, Stone Sour, Coheed and Cambria, Silverchair, etc.) and the melancholy affair featured songwriting contributions & musical performances from Megadeth bassist/main-man David Ellefson. On "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" it's more of the same kind of dark magic as not only does this highly-regarded & massively skilled pair help Johnny Wore Black with the album's production, but David Ellefson handles most of the album's bass duties! Dave also co-wrote three of the album's tracks including the hit single in the making, "Firefly"! You can check out the video for "Firefly" here and (incidental) this huge rock song not only open's "Walking Underwater Pt. 2", but it's the Double A side to "Comfy Slippers"*! Dave's other songwriting contributions come in the form of  "A Cut Above" and "Gift of Desperation" and on Johnny Wore Black's second album the Megadeth's bassist proves just how amazing he is as a songwriter and musician! "A Cut Above" is actually the second track on "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" and these two wild songs alone ("Firefly" and "A Cut Above") are more than enough reason to recommend this alternative rock/metal-leaning album!!  Mixed by David Bottrill, "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" is everything that I enjoyed about Johnny Wore Black first outing only slightly tweaked. If anything though I'd say that part two is slightly stronger. It's every-bit as atmospheric as the band's debut was and just as dark theme-wise. With it's clever mix of dark metal, hard rock, nineties alternative rock, heavy rock, guitar pop, goth rock and electronic rock it captures your imagination and holds it a tight grip. Part two of the saga also happens to be just as hypnotic and spellbinding as part one was. If not more so. And yet there's something extra going on here that I can't quite put my finger on. Whatever it is it makes "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" the better album of the two and that goes way beyond the strength the album's first two singles, "Firefly" and "Comfy Slippers" and the aforementioned classic song in the making, "A Cut Above". For sure "Fallen Angel" is a sold rocker and the Dave Ellefson contribution "Gift of Desperation" is sad-sounding, but nonetheless splendid. So is "Whose Children" and "Noise"! Even the oddly funky "I Do Dissolve" is good and these various tracks do go a long way towards making this album something special. And yet there's still something else here. Maybe it's the fact that there are other guests on "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" beside just Dave Ellefson? Singer/songwriter Sara Renar guests on the strangely beautiful "Shine On" and soul-singer Loretta Heywood appears on the rock-steady  "Winter in July". "Shine On" is haunting in a oddly comfortable kind of way and that has a lot to do with the song's Croatian guest! The memorizing track is blessed ten fold by her outstanding voice and it stands in contrast to Jay's somewhat raspy style. It's both sad and seductive and it's a nice addition to album's overall vibe. "Winter In July" is similarly blessed by the appearance of guest singer Loretta Heywood and on this Bomb The Bass cover she joins hands with Jay in order to close the album on a high note. When looping the album, "Winter in July" creates a nice circle with "Firefly" and in the end Johnny Wore Black proved itself capable of producing the right kind of rock album to jump start a long-career. And let's hope that Johnny Wore Black does have a long career. As good as "Walking Underwater Pt. 2" is I know I'm not alone in wanting to hear more from this new alternative rock/metal sensation!  

You can catch the video for "Comfy Slipper" over at  Classic Rock Magazine

Wrong Era-The Wrong EP

Atomic Stuff
2014

"The Wrong EP" is the debut offering from Italy's freshly-assembled Wrong Era. Formed earlier this year out of the remains of Italian hard rock band Sutuana, with this recently released EP containing four new tracks in addition to two remakes of old Sutuana songs, Wrong Era is made up of bassist (and now lead vocalist!) Marco "Sappa" Nicoli (Sutuana, Instant Karma, ex-Midnite Sun, ex- The Unripes), guitarist/vocalist Lorenzo Zagni (Sutuana, Lola Stonecracker) and drummer Gianluca Montanari (Sutuana). Recorded and mixed at SappaLand RockLab by band member Marco "Sappa" Nicoli, "The Wrong EP" is being promoted by the fine folks over at Atomic Stuff in another win-win situation for artist and record label! This match made in hard rock/heavy metal heaven has only helped to establish the key factoid that this very slick, six track EP is available for free download and streaming directly from Wrong Era’s YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/wrongeraofficial. Though it was initially presented to me as "rock in Italian" there is
a lot more to be said of this talented trio than that simple description or the above black and white artwork might suggest! A crackling fusion of heavy rock, alternative, post-grunge and the 1970's hard and heavy sound-scape, "The Wrong EP" is clearly in the right with this Italian rock band energized and amplified
by the presence of electronic elements! As much as the "lyrics ooze of discomfort" the music at hand is often times just as unnerving (if not more so!) with distorted vocals and studio trickery paving the way for band's one and only track "Wrong Era" to all but frighten the listener on an emotion plain! To be fair that bit of heaviness is the more extreme side of Wrong Era, but it does exist and it carries it's own distinctive attitude thus giving this rock trio's first piece of studio recording a fine and frightful edge upon which to build a more solid (and hopefully long-term!) foundation. You can find more information about Wrong Era at: http://www.facebook.com/WrongEraOfficial

Witchingseason-"Spiders" Single

Self-Release/Independent
2014

Heavy rockers would do well to take note. Here's another tasty new treat from my friend Lizzie over at Quite Great PR.  Having already received some fantastic (and damn-straight warranted!) feedback from the likes of Phoenix FM host, Scott Sparx, "blown away by their music!... and couldn’t wait to share them" and advice from Alain Johannes (Them Crooked Vultures, Queens of the Stoneage, Chris Cornell) before one of his shows*, the hard rock trio Witchingseason offer up the freshly-released single "Spiders" with a follow-up single,"Codeine", due to be released on October 1st. Heavily influenced by the likes of Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Screaming Trees, Pearl Jam, Mudhoney and Queens Of The Stone Age this explosive trio is lead by guitarist/vocalist Tom Reynolds with the rhythm section of James Willans and Wayne Summers (bass and drums respectively) rounding out the fold. In a word "Spiders" is HEAVY while the band as a whole comes across as early nineties grunge/alternative rock tumble-dried in 2000 something modern rock. Making this old rocker hit the repeat button a few times, "Spiders" (which can be download on Amazon and iTunes) finds a band that knows how to merge gritty hard rock guitar riffs, post-Black Sabbath bass lines and melodic, Chris Cornell-like lead vocals into one glorious, can't miss (and most assuredly can't help but fall in love with!) rock cruncher with the reported November 10th EP release an event that I will be marking down on my calender! Find these guys on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/Witchingseason

*Alain Johannes was apparently impressed enough by the promise of Witchingseason as he ended up talking to the trio for several hours even buying them a few beers!

Helms Alee-Sleepwalking Sailors

Sargent House
2014

It's all been one big lie friends. Ignorance is most assuredly not bliss. You'd have a hard time convincing me otherwise as I tragically unaware of Seattle, Washington's Helms Alee (bassist/vocalist Dana James, guitarist/vocalist Ben Verellen and drummer/vocalist Hozoji Matheson-Margullis) until only just recently. And with "Sleepwalking Sailors", the third full-length album from a band that has had a long history of releasing EPs and splits since only 2007, this is true bliss. As such, how can one claim to experience a feeling of bliss outside of the sounds of Helms Alee? That is a troubling question and one which may never be answered in a satisfactory fashion. Thankfully we can all move on and treat this as a learning experience. For those no sense in drowning in our tears about what could have been, time we might have spent in the comfort of this unheralded trio with shared vocals, female and male, when we can now embrace the expansive collection of textures and sounds that make up this featured full-length attraction! Blessed with an uncanny ability to maneuver emotional material over a vast and ever-expansive sonic landscape, which (somehow) is atmospheric without actually transcending into some sort of  "atmospheric" rock and/or metal sound, the members of Helms Alee carefully mask their own roots/personal desires so that the music at hand beautifully meshes, note for note, into one perfect creation! And that's exactly what amazes me most about "Sleepwalking Sailors". It's truly something how Helms Alee (playfully) goes about stretching rock's boundaries, covering everything from stoner rock, post-grunge, alternative rock and math metal to indie rock, post-punk and even doom metal(!), in a (seemingly) carefree fashion and yet, upon further investigation (over repeated listens which is an essential component of the whole "Sleepwalking Sailors" experience!), the material present on this Seattle rock band's latest is not just technically-sound, but in reality expertly-constructed in order to get the most out of every moment! To say that I was blown away by this recording would be a understatement as "Sleepwalking Sailors" is superb in just about every way that you can imagine! From production to content it's easily to see that everything about this band's third album has been touched up and tweaked. Even so, "Sleepwalking Sailors", is colorful and personal. Helms Alee has graciously extended an offer for each and every listener, one that encourages you to walk alongside this trio as they explore a world of creativity and imagination where anything and everything is possible! I would encourage each and everyone of you who reads this piece to join Helms Alee on this journey of discovery. It's well worth the time. You can find out more about Helms Alee on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/HelmsAlee) while you can hear this remarkable recording for yourself right here:

http://helmsalee.bandcamp.com/album/sleepwalking-sailors 

Face Off- "Lush" Single

Maple Metal Records
2014
  
Hailing from Belgrade, Serbia, Face Off is a female-fronted alternative metal act which previously released their full-length debut, "The Colour of Rain" at the start of 2013. With a sophomore release planned for later on in 2014 (or possibly even 2015!) the band, which is bolstered by the haunting voice of Marija Kovacevic, recently released the single "Lush" to tide over fans while they wait for the next step in this creative band's existence. After taking a look at their influences (Deftones, Portishead, Massive Attack, Lacuna Coil, Katatonia, Isis, Gojira, Placebo, Tool, Mogwai, Oceansize, The Gathering, Bjork, etc.) and then having explored their back-catalog* it's clear to see that Face Off (Marija Kovacevic, guitarists Stefan Vitasovic and Aleksandar Djordjic, bassist Stanislav Stanojevic and drummer Zoltan Simon) has gracefully evolved between releases. Whereas "The Colour of Rain"** relied a little too heavily on it's influences (and came across as a hair more gothic then this excellent new single) "Lush", which can be checked out in full at either of the two links that follow this piece, shows a band fully capable of expressing themselves without wearing their influences on their respective sleeves. It's not that hard to envision this Serbian act taking the next step up towards more world-wide exposure as front-woman Marija Kovacevic has an amazing voice (not sure why but she reminds me of a more metal-minded Dolores O'Riordan (The Cranberries) although quite honestly she has (aptly) been compared to ex-The Gathering vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen and that seems more then a little fitting as well!) and her band-mates expertly encircle with smooth playing that really eases the senses. Most certainly this soothing piece won't be for everyone, but for those who truly love all the different flavors that rock and heavy metal come in (and live by the motto that variety is the spice of life and death!) an atmospheric release such as this one is also a welcoming site to beyond!

You can download "Lush" here: http://faceoffonline.bandcamp.com/

The official video for Video of "Lush": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzDWs4t3DHo

*You can actually hear their full-length debut album, "The Colour of Rain", in it's entirety on Youtube!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCQ6TH9OxhU 

**Regardless of whether or not one can hear this band's various influences on their debut album (as well as, oddly enough, Evanescence) it's still a creative (and downright atmospheric!) alternative metal album that was a real pleasure to stream!