Iron Spell-Heavy Metal Witchcraft

Dying Victims Productions
2014

Another true heavy metal band from Santiago? Didn't I just cover the same thing in Lucifer's Hammer not that long ago? Not that there is anything wrong with adding more fuel to the ever-burning fire that is heavy metal! If anything it shows that we might just be looking at one of the newest hotbeds for the scene. And judging by the sheer numbers of classic and traditional heavy metal bands that come from Chile's capital city this trend shows no sign of letting up (at least anytime soon). Not that we would want it to let up or anything right? But, I'm getting ahead of myself which is something I'm far too prone to do (especially this early in the morning when my second cup of coffee hasn't quite kicked in and I'm not firing on all cylinders!) so let's make a (illegal of course!) u-turn and start at the beginning. Technically-speaking "Heavy Metal Witchcraft", which is Iron Spell's first (and so far only) release, is a demo from 2013. As the band first came about in 2013 it sure seems as if they are moving rather fast when talking about going from concept to delivery! Drawing their influences from more then a few of the greats (Iron Maiden, King Diamond, Exciter, Alice Cooper, Saxon, Judas Priest, Running Wild, W.A.S.P., Black Sabbath, Mötley Crüe, Doro & Warlock, Manowar, Thin Lizzy, Grave Digger, Tank, Diamond Head, KISS, Venom, Dio and Accept are all listed on the group's Facebook page!) and using pseudonyms in place of their real names* the band easily makes the case that "Heavy Metal Witchcraft" sound just be the first of many steps as this group matches onward and upward towards true heavy metal glory! For fans of tried and true heavy metal there is much to love about "Heavy Metal Witchcraft" from the Iron Maiden meets Merciful Fate-vibe of "Revelations" to the epic metal that lies at the heart of "Evil Gypsy" (a track that is nearly twelve minutes long!). Along with the above-mentioned reference points (specifically Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Manowar, Black Sabbath and King Diamond) one can pick up on the sound of group's like Armored Saint, Ritual, Legend, Angel Witch, Cloven Hoof, Cutty Sark, Satan and Jaguar. Whether that is all intentional or not is really a moot point as everything from the music (which, besides combining the better parts of classic and traditional/N.W.O.B.H.M.-infused heavy metal ends up featuring great speed metal solos to boot from the pair of Raven and Fire Jack!) to the album's production (somewhat raw it gives "Heavy Metal Witchcraft" a wicked eighties feel!) screams "HEAVY METAL!" and this demo turned (limited edition) cassette-tape perfectly wets the appetite for a forthcoming full-length release. Much like Lucifer's Hammer self-titled EP, which was also recently released on cassette tape by Shadow Kingdom Records, this demo comes with my highest recommendation! You can hear the whole release for yourself right here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn-Tm9guMus while (should you so desire) you can pick up a cassette copy of this straight-ahead heavy metal rocker right here: http://www.dying-victims.de/shop/de/

*For example we have vocalist Merciless K.co, bassist Rocko Van Roman and drummer FC Steelhammer!

Storm Warning-Storm Warning (Demo)

Swords & Chains Records
2013

My friend Strappado posted information on Storm Warning's debut demo on his site: http://strappadometalblog.blogspot.com/  and, true to his word, this demo features true heavy metal in the vein of Gotham City, Saxon and Midnight Priest! There's some of the other usual hallmarks of a band like this (Iron Maiden and Judas Priest love) and, what I believe to be (if my ears aren't playing tricks on me), Grim Reaper, Witch Cross, Angel Witch and Demon traits as well! All around, as Strappado foretold, this is TRUE METAL boys and girls. It appears that the band released this demo on CD-R initially (in 2012 no less!) before choosing to issue a limited-edition cassette on Sword & Chains Records. Why not? Considering how much this sounds like a golden oldie from the days of old (or if you will back when cassettes ruled the earth) it makes sense to unleash this on the public in plastic form! Limited to a mere 100 yellow copies, and now at least one less cassette as I bought my copy yesterday I believe, it features 2 live bonus tracks that weren't available when the band original released the CD-R version of the demo. The 2 live cuts are, beautifully, more raw and showcase a band that excels in a live setting. Unfortunately that live setting is most likely on the other side of the pound as this old-school heavy metal act hails from Germany. With Johnny Topside on leads vocals the band is rounded out by  guitarists Andy N. and Tim H., bassist Jacky J. and drummer Freddi G. Why it's only Johnny, and his wonderfully raw & real vocals, that is the only one allowed to give their full last name I'm not quite sure, but it's all good and this 5-piece band has a nice 5-track demo on their hands here. You can find out more at Swords & Chains Records or Heavy Merch!. Also, be sure to follow Swords & Chains at their Facebook for updates http://www.facebook.com/swordsandchainsrecords on future releases.Want to listen before you buy this fun little demo of throw-back, eighties-inspired heavy metal? Of course you do! Then click on that link below my friends! And as always live loud and proud my friends!


http://swordsandchains.bandcamp.com/album/storm-warning

The record store-Once upon a time

If you are of a certain age you probably spent some time at some point at your local record store. Whether that was an independent store or a chain store probably depends on your area although most areas probably some of both once upon a time. Now I am old, but I am not some old crotchety geezer that scowls at the digital format and says everything was better in my day. There are good things about both periods. My intention today is just to remember my local record store. I lived out in the country and the mall didn't pop up until 1987. Before that the big record in the county was a Sound Waves that wasn't that close, but I got to go there on occasion. They were typical of a non-mall chain store of the time. Everything very organized and tidy with posters of the latest pop releases on the walls, but they did have a pretty good metal selection on vinyl. In 1985 Curry's Music popped up closer to me This was an independent store in the true sense of the term. There were no uniforms and neatness in the store was relative. There weren't posters announcing the upcoming Moody Blues album, but instead there collage posters of Maiden, Dio and others as well as tapestries of Judas Priest and Black Sabbath tacked up on the walls. They burnt incense and played music regularly. On occasion it may be to promote a new release, but more often than not they put in 70's ZZ top, Motorhead or whoever they wanted to hear at the time. For workers it was one guy and a few occasional other workers. The owner was a thirty something guy who was into classic rock and metal. He was always quick with recommendations and everything he suggested that I bought was good. Between 1985 and 1986 he recommended albums by Loudness, King Kobra, Executioner, Grim Reaper and others to me and I loved all of them. He once ranted on about how good this band from Detroit called Halloween was and he even played me some of their cassette on the player he kept behind the counter. I was interested and asked him if he had a copy for sale and he said "no, the only copy I ordered was this one for me". Even at 15 I was able to realize at that moment that despite having a cool store maybe his priorities were not in  order for him to be a great businessman. That may be because he was indeed a fan of the music more than a businessman and that may be why the store only lasted a couple of years. However his interest in music and his willingness to have conversations about Slayer, Whiplash, Black n' Blue, Warrior, Armored Saint or whoever was the main reason I liked going there. Later there were some other stores where a conversation about the new Exodus album could be struck up with the guy working at the counter, but it was hit and miss. Curry's eventually couldn't compete when the mall stores popped up with their big selection and occasional sales so the little local record store went out. I enjoyed it while it was around and on occasion I like to remember the times I spent there.

**Did you have a local record store that you grew up going to?

The return of...cassettes?!

Sometimes it seems like many parts of our culture come back such as fashion, musical styles, films and lots of other aspects. In some ways that can be a good thing and in others it just seems like some clueless person let their love of nostalgia get the best of them and they tried to bring back something that probably should have been left in the past. Remember cassettes? Yes, you have to be of a certain age to and I fall in that category. Unfortunately I bought far too many releases on this fragile, poor sound quality type of format. I have heard and seen too many of these plastic monstrosities being twisted, mangled and eaten by merciless stereos and boom boxes. Then I was left with bent or ripped black tape in my hands as I stared at the now gutted cassette. So when these went away it was a good thing. Okay, CDs can get scratched, but they are a better format because they are far more sturdy and digital is even better in many ways. Wait, cassettes are coming back. No, don't bother going to your calender to see if it is April 1st. It's not and this is no joke although I do think it is a fad. Some bands are releasing their new albums on cassette. The first I saw this was from some thrash band's Myspace page and they were selling their own demo on cassette only. Wow so not only do some of these band's want to look and sound like it's 1986, but they also want the sound quality to sound it came from then with all that pleasant hissing and the potential for the music to be devoured by your likely old cassette player. Most of the bands I have seen doing this are smaller bands and mostly it's self produced efforts done in limited quantities. However Enforcer's Diamonds was released by Heavy Artillery on a limited number of cassettes and they are a fairly known old school style metal band at least well known on the metal underground.

So what do you think? Will cassettes come back in style or will this trend be done and gone a year from now?

Tape Eater

I had a CD skip once briefly last night because my son had gotten a hold of it and greased it up with his fingers. I cleaned it off and it played fine after that. However that brief when it was sounding bad reminded me of a cassette player I had back in the mid-1980's. I couldn't afford a stereo and my parents got me this small boombox for my 15th birthday. It worked fine for a while, but then every once in a while it would eat a tape. I would hear this gurgling as the tape was being devoured. I would frantically try to rescue it, hoping to stop it and get the tape out before it got shredded. Yet I buying cassettes for years, but that's because I didn't have a turntable yet. A shame I didn't get a turntable earlier or else I would have even more cool albums instead I own some of albums and have a bunch of useless cassettes.