Metalodic 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
14 December 2010

Bombastic, quite fantastic, and certainly way over-the-top regarding football choirs and multi choruses. What a nice surprise this Symphonic Power Metal band from Montreal, Quebec, turned out to be after all. The lineup consisting of Alexis Woodbury (vocals and guitars), Jean-Christophe Binette (guitars), Francis Gagne (bass), Francis Ducharme (drums), are playing furious metal in the tradition of Blind Guardian, Scanner, and Dragonforce. Sure, they may at times also remind you of the super dodgy act of Rhapsody, but, the thing with Instanzia is that they can get away with this because it's all 'real' and not as much kitsch and nonsense. But they're French, you say??? Oh, you racist bastards!!! Scarebleu!!! But no, there's no need to worry about any thick singing accent on "Ghosts". One helluva lot of 'football choirs' though... layers upon layers upon layers really.

The opening track is the keyboard overture of 'Omen', merely preparing you for greater things to come. And when the energetic 'Ghosts Of The Pasts' kicks in, you know it's going to be a bombastic platter for sure, but eventually you find yourself ignoring the outrageous pomp and just simply paying attention to their rather classy melodies and guitar/keyboards armageddon. The music of Instanzia takes the form of a succession of ultra melodic, fast, intense, catchy, powerful, Tyson-like, blows to the head as this Canadian quartet get their heads down and play their instruments to the limits of their endurance. It's hardly groundbreaking metal and even the vocals are typical of its genre (very much like a mix of Blind Guardian and Dragonfroce).

AFM Records 2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
10 December 2010

Consequence Of Power is the fifth studio album of Circle2Circle and I have to say that it is not their best effort so far... For me the magic is gone as the songs on the a;bum sound too much the same and can be exchanged with songs on other Circle2Circle albums. Espically tracks like Out Of Nowhere, Mirage, Episodes Of Mania and the title track are rather mediocre power metal songs wihout any musical surprises whatsoever! They are rather predictable and composition wise very dull. However I still love the amazing vocals of Zak and that is the only reason I do not dislike those songs.

The second part of the album is much better and kicks off with the astonishing Redemption, a song that is a mix between the Sava-tracks Taunting Cobras and Hall Of The Mountain King; featuring superb vocals and very exciting, speedy guitar solos. Anathema is another highlight and it is a mid tempo, rather heavy song with almost Black Sabbath-like riffs. The majestic vocals on this song add another dimension to this amazing song. However, Zak keeps the best for last because Blood Of An Angel is the absolute master piece of this album. A power ballad that will make every Savatage fan cry out in joy, including yours truly! This grande finale is very melodic and the vocals of Zak are out of this world. The question remains why the first half of the album is not of the same high musical level??

Escape 2010
Review by The Bailey Brothers,
19 December 2010

If I knew this album would be so hot I would have used it to melt the stupid snow. Ok one gripe; (well there would be one) Jonas Larsen is not only influenced by Yngwie Malmsteen but has almost copied some of his licks note for note. You could cut and paste Yngwie’s lead breaks from the "Trial By fire" live album and slip them on "Fire Flight" and not see the join that’s how close it is. I love Yngwie so it’s just like listening to one of his albums especially when you get the awesome vocals of ex Malmsteen singer Goran Edman.

Martin Kronlund has done a good job of the mix, I like the clarity and with such a vocal range it needed to be up front and heard and he’s got the balance just right. If anything one of the stand out songs is an instrumental "Rendezvous" where the man responsible for bringing this band together, keyboard wizard Jeppe Lund has a duel with guitarist Larsen, the riff is very Yngwie esc again but a cool track. There’s a ballad right out of the ABBA school of rock called "Princess of the Night" which again has a cool delivery from Edman. The vocals on this album are the real shining star and China Girl is a really well crafted song with a catchy hook and it was nice to hear Larsen show he can pull out some chops of his own in a more pentatonic style rather than screaming arpeggios. Well those

Scandinavians have done it again, a cool band but maybe a bit too Malmsteen influenced? I would definitely tame those licks down for the next album because with a vocalist of this calibre you have so much scope and don’t need to be in Malmsteen’s back yard stealing all his apples. An unexpected quality album and Santa can get his fat ass down our chimney with some more like this and we are happy Bailey’s for sure. Stratosphere should have a Happy New Year.

Nightmare Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
17th December 2010

Hailing from Atlanta, Halcyon Way are a technical power metal band who write intelligent, melody led metal that flits between melody and progressive at the twang of a power chord. It’s been two years since their debut “A Manifesto For Domination”, and in that time they’ve lost a lead singer but picked up the very talented Steve Braun. The rest of the group remains the same, and it seems they’ve been putting their heads down to write a follow up worthy of the Halcyon Way name.

There’s tons of style on “Building the Towers”, and I spotted influences from all over the place, all of them positive. The only slight drawback for me is the occasional grunting vocals from bassist Kris Maltenieks, but they’re not all over the place and don’t do any real harm. There’s a bonus when Pamela Moore joins the band for the incredibly impressive slower track “Mouth Without A Head”, which also features a very nice, controlled solo. Queensryche’s ‘Sister Mary’ also lends her pipes to a couple of other tracks, and raises the bar very well as she is utilized perfectly by the band. The band themselves are a pleasant mix up of many bands, with echoes of Avantasia, Queensryche, Iron Maiden and many more, always a hint, never a blatant swipe, and always within their own style. It’s all pretty decent stuff, if occasionally lacking a killer punch, and I can see Halcyon Way becoming a firm favourite amongst anyone who likes their metal solid, melodic and powerful.
www.halcyonway.com

Escape 2010
Review by The Bailey Brothers,
19 December 2010

George Rain (vocals, guitars) and Andy Mons (guitars) pulled off a master stroke getting ex Helloween and Masterplan guitarist Roland Grapow on board with this album. Apart from having the pleasure of hearing former Masterplan vocalist Mike DiMeo you have many other great guest musicians such as Doogie White (ex Rainbow, Malmsteen etc), Amanda Somerville (Avantasia, Aina, Kiske/Somerville), Apollo Papathanasio (Firewind, Spiritual Beggars), Fabio Lione (Rhapsody Of Fire, Vision Divine) and Tore Moren (Jorn). The actual band line-up features also Peter Forge (bass), Rob Vrsansky (keyboards) and Radek Rain on drums-

Any football team manager will tell you it’s one thing having a great squad but the key is making them gel and perform to their potential. George and Andy set about writing and arranging the songs for the album back in Novemner 2009 with lyrics written by poet Jan Petriko (he also works for Czech prog-thrashers, ASMODEUS). I’m sure there was some good guidance from Grapow and his name probably had some influence on the guest artiste but having said that there’s some cool tunes on here and after a few spins it grows on you.

The opener "Museé du Satan Rouge" has a powerful vocal delivery, sounds just like a Masterplan song and includes some tasty guitar chops too. The album is labelled hard rock but it’s more melodic progressive metal in places. "Remiel In Flames" is a really catchy song, a bit reminiscent of "One Love" by W.E.T. (Jeff Scott Soto & co). The songs from the title track “Tears Of White Roses" to "Fields of Chulm" are pretty predictable but "Lake Of Dreams" had some interesting elements, quite a cool guitar riff and great vocals.

I think Roland Grapow has done a decent production as this album could have lost the continuity with all the guests but overall it’s an album that the Czech Republic can be proud of.
MySpace

MelodicRock Rec. 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
8 December 2010

Not entirelly sure to what degree you're supposed to praise the Swedes of Degreed? Lead vocalist Robin Ericsson - one of all the Swedish Idol contests that had their fifteen minutes of fame a couple of years ago. Now, there's a reason if ever to immediately give up on this band!!! But seriously though, on their debut album, Degreed take the elements of Melodic Rock and (very soft) Progressive Rock and add a modern production and sound to it and voila' - the result: Life/Love/Loss. They've already been compared to H.E.A.T. and Treat on the web, but I can't pick up much or anything of these kind of influences and sounds? Perhaps it's just my ears???

Opening track, "B.O.D.", well, the drummer must have been a local DJ at one time of his life, since the beat is loopy and trippy like a mid nineties rave party at the docklands. Unfortunately, Mikael Jansson insist on keeping up appearance by adding a really annoying rave-ish sound effect to his keyboard work on the first couple of tracks. Thank God - it's all gone by track three, "A Little Bit". The guitar riff on display here, very much like any John Norum and Europe tune ever since their reunion. The refrain sort of kicks though and it's definitely more in the vein of Erik Grönwall rock (his solo album). Next, "Captured By The Moment", a Steve "Journey" Perry cover from his very first solo album in 1984. Again, pretty much what to expect if Grönwall decided to cover this on his solo album. "Just Imagine" is a really catchy tune and "Story Life" is like a 50/50 mix of the two Swedish acts, Eclipse and Platitude. Very nice, very catchy! Nevertheless, 'Life/Love/Loss', hardly a retro album as it feature a modern production and sound. Their (excellent) keyboard player sits on the fence in between and on the occasional track... at the very borderlines of AOR and (soft) Progressive Rock, while the rest of the band are playing more straight-ahead rock (the exception being the "loopy" beats on the opening track). It certainly gets a bit confusing at times. My favourite track? the closing piano ballad actually. "By Your Side" is where Robin Ericsson really shines the most and there's a soft jazzy feeling in the air. Nice!

Ulterium Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
17th December 2010

It’s hard not to be impressed by Sweden’s Darkwater, rolling out a sophomore album that shows some considerable maturity within the songs, settling itself somewhere between Edguy and Dream Theatre with it’s heavy ,yet just that bit pompous, tone.

“Where Stories End” is pretty much nailed down as a progressive metal album, farting about with time changes, drama and impressive instrumentals. As you listen, it’s clear that a lot of though and no little talent ahs gone into the making of it. It doesn’t go on and on like some do, the longest (and best) track “Why I Bleed” is only a shade over 8 minutes long, and doesn’t seem like half that, to be honest. Darkwater have a very good ear for melody (“In the Blink Of An Eye” has a very pleasing refrain), and although there isn’t much here to dance to it’s a pretty exhilarating musical ride throughout. The vocals are pretty average and could do with being more forceful, but they get the job done. Instrumentally, thre’s some very fine work on display, although not jaw dropping stuff.

Although not quite the sum of their influences, Darkwater have nonetheless given us a lot to think about with their follow up to “Calling the Earth To Witness”. It’s a strong album that will surely please fans of creative progressive metal, although anyone who lives for the “ooh baby” chorus should stay well clear.
www.darkwater.se

Carved Rec. 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
12 December 2010

Texas Hippie Coalition? Hellyeah! Ehh... Hellyeah??? Well, they sort of remind me of the band. Outlaws in the artistic sense, drawing their inspiration from the vast tapestry of musical influences that spans the great (well, it's at least huge) state of Texas and beyond. "We're as southern as southern can be", says 'Big Dad' Ritch, the behemoth front man and vocalist of the band. Not entirelly sure if that's a good thing or not? Anyhow, the line-up consist of Big Dad, guitarists Randy Cooper and Crawfish, bassist John Exall, and drummer Ryan Bennett (what? not a single 'Bubba'?).

The 'band of brothers' latest album "Rollin" is released through brand new Dallas label, Carved Records, and the band teamed up with multi-platinum producer David Prater (Dream Theater, Firehouse) to create the most 'vicious' thing to come out of Texas since Bubba Bush. If you'd like to keep things really neat and simple. Imagine a mix of 60% Pantera 'ala 1992, 20% ZZ Top, and 20% Molly Hatchet, and you're sort of halfway there. Vocal-wise, Big Dad is in my opinion heavily influenced by Billy Gibbons and Phil Anselmo (a mere hint of Dee Snider?), you can pick up quite a lot of similar phrases and phraseology. This album alternates between harder edged metal and more 'bluesy' tunes with nice finess and the result is quite pleasing to the ear(s). That's if you don't mind having nightmares about the behemoth character. The harder edges of this album, on opener "Intervention", "Jesus Freak", and especially closing track, "Beg", are all steeped in the 'Cowboys From Hell' formula and sound (my all-time favourite Pantera album). The title track "Rollin" is a damn fine and slightly weird mixture of ZZ Top, Twisted Sister, Pantera, and the music hits ya' hard like a sledgehammer between the eyes - much credit to producer Pratner.

Metalodic 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
15 December 2010

Hmmm... I did the "mistake" of listening to Instanzia just prior to the CD of Icewind. They're both at the Metalodic Record label and the two Canadian acts are playing a similar type of metal. It's bombastic, Symphonic Power Metal, and they're both very capable to say the least (Instaniza being nothing but spectacular). "Again Came The Storm" is a rather spiffy CD that leans more towards the sound of Kamelot, Firewind and Stratovarius, and therefore not quite as much 'over the top' as their fellow Canadians. In fact, Icewind's brand of contemporary riffs and somewhat traditional Euro-Metal sound is something of an acquired taste, especially at this particular moment in time.

Harmony Factory/Avenue Of Allies 2010/2011
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
9 December 2010

"Probably one of the best UK AOR albums of the last twenty years"... "arena-friendly catchiness"... not my words, but quotes from other reviews, kindly provided by the band's press release. Sounds good, so does the actual album sound good? Well, it's not too bad, but the first quote is a bit of a stretch, I'd say.

I remember the band from the late eighties Kerrang! mags, when they were touted as one the biggest UK AOR hopes. Now, just some 20+ years later their old songs have been dusted off, with some new material added, and the first Moritz CD has seen the light of day. I don't know whether these are all new recordings, but one thing's for sure - they sound like vintage eighties material. There are some songs on the album that would've sounded dated even back in 1988... if that is good or bad is up to you.

Just like several UK AORsters, Moritz have a definite "UK stamp" in their sound, although their influences clearly come from the other side of the bond. The Survivor, Journey and Touch influences are clearly evident, with a touch of FM and Whitesnake added to the mix. The closest comparisons would be fellow UK rockers Atlantic and Walk The Wire.

At their best, Moritz offer us very likeable traditional AOR, "Anytime At All" or the fine ballad "Can't Stop The Angels" for example. At their worst, we get dull AOR by numbers. It's kind of strange that one of the weakest songs is called "Power To The Music" - power is just the thing it misses. It also sounds as if it was recorded in 1979, like poor man's Touch or something. Another thing that won't raise the rating is the somewhat poor production.

If you're wondering about the label and release year... After finishing the review of this album, I recieved a promo copy from Avenue Of Allies, who are releasing this album more widely in January 2011.

Niji ENtertainment 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
13th December 2010

If you’ve never heard of David “Rock” Feinstein, I’m not at all surprised. Cousin to Ronnie James Dio, Feinstein joined him in bands like Elf and Ronni & The Belmonts, before spending some time with The Rods. This particular album has received plenty of scrutiny as it contains what is purported to be the last ever recording by Dio, namely a guest vocal on the appropriately named “Metal Will Never Die”. Aside from this, the album is left to stand or fall on Feinstein’s own talents, so let’s see if he has any.

One thing that is apparent is the fact that this is a pretty straightforward metal album with no chance of pretension or falseness in any way. Feinstein obviously likes his balls firmly to the wall and delivers some pretty crunchy, attractive tunes, with himself playing everything but the drums. There’s a good deal of talent on show guitarwise, as he pulls off some bone crunching riffs and intricate solos, and it’s this that saves the album from going straight into the bargain bin. The main problem is that between the guitar heroics we have to listen to Feinstein sing, and he’s never going to feature on any ‘Best Of’ list, mainly because of his pretty bog standard “METAAAAL” vocals. Mind you, he suits the songs okay, as again they’re not going to win any awards, being workmanlike but pretty likeable fare, from the Dio-esque “Kill The Demon” through to the upbeat and fun “Rocks Boogie”, the latter of which sees Feinstein going a bit Satriani just for the hell of it. In between there’s some pretty good stuff, and it’s clear that Feinstein has plenty of talent both in playing and writing.

“Bitten By The Beast” isn’t going to run any flags up poles, but those who just buy it to complete their Dio collection will find there’s more to it than just one track. Better than Anvil, not as good as Judas Priest, David “Rock” Feinstein should find fans in both camps, and his cousin could certainly have found a worse place to lay down his final vocals. Long live rock and roll.
www.myspace.com/davidrockfeinstein

TSM/AOR 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
11 December 2010

Classic southern rock, analog recording techniques, gritty guitar riffs, strong 'husky' vocals, equals an independent debut album just as good as any Molly Hatchet release as of lately. The five piece rock band Sweet Kiss Momma (not the best of monicker really) hailing from rural Washington State, USA, comes charging through the internet like a rhino in heat. It's back-to-basics, "Revival Rock", straight out of the seventies America and you're bound to pick up some old melodies in the vein of The Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, Steve Miller Band, 38 Special, and at times, BTO (Bachman Turner Overdrive).

Escape 2010
Review by The Bailey Brothers,
19 December 2010

If you like you’re metal to sound like a machine gun going off with a thunderous kick drum, death vocals and stop start chain saw crunching rhythm guitars then you will dig this release from Appearance Of Nothing. No matter if you are muting the guitar strings or doing some cool edits in the studio the tightness of the rhythm section stands out. I found the album really lacking vocally and a bit disjointed. If you had to pick a decent stand out song it would probably be The Mirror’s Eyes, the whole scene may implode the same as neoclassical because it’s all sounding the same with the double kick drum and is getting a bit tedious. You can’t fault the musicianship, just down to personal taste.

Ok, at least let’s get some credits in for those who have worked on this release "All Gods Are Gone". Band: Pat Gerber: Vocals / Guitar, Omar Cuna: Vocals / Bass Peter Berger: Lead Guitar, Marc Petralito: Keyboards, Yves Lüthi: Drums / Produced by Markus Teske, Bazement Studio & Marc Petralito, with special guests appearances as follows: "The Mirror's Eyes", "... I said Silence" & "2nd God", death Vocals by Dan Swanö (ex Edge of Sanity/ Nightingale). "Sweet Enemy" Lead Vocals by Devon Graves (ex Psychotic Waltz/ Deadsoul Tribe).
Website
MySpace

DR2 Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
13th December 2010

Marya Roxx has been floating about for a while now, mostly known for doing a bit of the old Eurovision for Estonia, now firmly ensconced in the rock world with a sound so retro it should come with free flared trousers and a cardboard guitar.

Marya Roxx has managed to put together an okay album, full of standard issue rock songs that lack the power and attitude of someone like Girlschool and put me in mind of 80’s wannabes like Gypsy Queen or Lisa Dominique. Her voice is pretty good without being anything special and the album itself has plenty of good support players, but the songs are so average and often repetitive it just fails to ignite the blue touch paper and ends up fizzling to s halt instead. There’s a few good tracks that will most likely be a hoot live, but ultimately “Payback Time” just doesn’t show enough song writing ability to make it something worth picking up.
www.maryaroxx.com

Rockville Music 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
14 December 2010

It's obviously all Ivan Pavlov's fault... and his damn dogs. In the 1890s, Pavlov was investigating the "gastric function" of dogs by externalizing a salivary gland so he could collect, measure, and analyze the saliva and what response it had to food under different conditions. He noticed that the dogs tended to salivate before food was actually delivered to their mouths, and set out to investigate this "psychic secretion", as he called it. It's obviously all b.s. and the phrase "Pavlov's dog" is often used to describe someone who merely reacts to a situation rather than using critical thinking. What the hell... that's spot on this reviewer actually!!! Oh my... ehem, nevermind, let's talk about the band and their comeback CD, shall we??

Yes, 20 years after their last studio album and 35 years after "Pampered Menial", Pavlov's Dog now present their 5th album "Echo & Boo". Those of you not familiar with the band should know that David Surkamp is one of the most unique vocalists in the history of hard rock (King Diamond?). There were even rumours that Surkamp died because of excessive use of helium, which he somehow used to sing the high notes back in the mid seventies. It's obviously all b.s. again, however, he sang in extremely high-pitch style and this unique vibrato, clearly not of this world. Sadly or gladly(?) not as hi-hi-high pitched anylonger as Surkamp sings in a much lower key on this particular platter. You'll have to check out "Pampered Menial" (1975) and "At The Sound Of The Bell" (1976) for the hysterical helium vocals (Mickey Mouse on steroids really).

Silverside Records 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
16 December 2010

Hardcore Circus is a new Swedish hard rock band with members from well-known acts like Narnia, Treat and Randy Piper's Animal. Their debut album is well-produced, well-performed hard rock that screams 1991. You know, the era when several melodic hard rock bands figured that since Guns 'n Roses and Skid Row were selling more than them, they should toughen up their sound and image. This album could just as well be one of the fruits of that phenomenon. Big riffs, simple choruses to shout along and a lot of attitude is their reciept for success, but for me it doesn't work. The band seems to be trying hard to come across as streetwise, tough-as-nails kinda guys. Yeah yeah, they just want to "live their fucking life" and they "know who they are" and are familiar with "Tattooed Junkies" and the "Queen Of Dirt"... They may be tough and rough, but forcefeeding the fact gets tired quite fast. It's only when they inject a bit more melody to their hard rocking that things look brighter, "Under My Skin" being the best example of that. The more "kick-ass" songs of theirs are frankly just way too dull for their own good, and they come across as poor man's Skid Row or Sven Gali.

Let's hope that band got rid of their angst and anger while writing this album, and for the next one they'll be able to come up with something a bit more memorable.
Website

RMB/AOR Heaven 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
11 December 2010

Limb Music 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
15 December 2010

Blimey, it's Symphonic Power Metal.... again!!! It's the third album of the genre in a couple of days time and this Belgian metal outfit is clearly not as capable as the Canadian ones (see: Instanzia, Icewind, elsewhere on this page). Magic Kingdom leans more towards Speed and Neo-Classical influences though and unfortunately also quite a lot of Rhapsody (of Fire). Low and behold, "Symphony Of War" features narration by Lance King!!!??? Sure, why not? It's not like Mr. King could provide vocals or anything??? (sarcastic mode off). Dushan Petrossi is the name of the main force behind this project and you may also recognize him (?) as the master mind of his other band: Iron Mask (at the LionMusic label, I believe?). If not, he's the six-sting bender inspired by Yngwie Malmsteen (yeah, right, like there's merely one of them).

Entertainment One 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
1st December 2010

You don’t get to be a living legend for nothing. Ian Kilminster, Lemmy to you and me, is one of the rare few that has earned the right to be addressed in this way, and this documentary tries to work out just what it is that makes the man tick. There’s a ton of talking heads contributing, unanimous in their admiration for a man who takes no shit and never does anything he doesn’t want to. These people, such as Dave Grohl, Slash and Scott Ian, not only admire Lemmy, it’s like they want to be him as well.

The whole thing comes from Greg Olliver and Wes Orshoski, who took a few years to compile the material for the film. It’s not a voiceover laden tongue-up-the-ass piece, but a true documentary that allows you to make your own mind up. Loaded up with funny anecdotes, loud music and more rock stars than you can shake a stick at, this is a sterling piece of work to delight and amuse all fans. Me, I’m not much of a Motorhead fan in general (not enough variety for me), but I loved Lemmy’s autobiography and this movie gave me a wonderful sense of voyeuristic pleasure. It really doesn’t matter if you like Lemmy personally, (he doesn’t give a fuck anyway), it’s very hard not to admire the man, warts and all.

You might be able to catch the film in selected cinemas throughout the UK in December, but if you can’t, just pick up the DVD in January.
http://www.lemmymovie.com/

Frontiers 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
1st December 2010

I have a very soft spot for the two albums from British band Kick, which combined the writing (and playing) talents of Chris and Mikey Jones, along with the original and quite startlingly good vocals of Nick Workman. Since Kick, Workman hasn’t found anyone else to truly gel with, and it’s a happy coincidence that once more it’s a pair of brothers who have managed to get the absolute best out of him. The brothers are James & Tom martin, who in the past have written songs for House Of Lords, From The Inside and Sunstorm amongst others. For Vega, they’ve also joined the band proper on guitar (Tom) and keyboards (James). Drummer Dan Chantry fills the drumstool, completing possibly the most exciting new British AOR band for several years.

First up, it has to be said that if you liked Kick you should stop reading and just go and order “Kiss Of Life”. The song structures are very similar, throwing punchy guitars and soaring choruses at the listener, with Workman bringing it all to life like no one else could. His vocals really are stellar throughout the album, a result of being with someone who knows exactly what type of songs he sings best, something that just didn’t happen with Eden. Opening Track “Into The Wild” sets everything up beautifully, full of life and vigour, a natural progression from the energy of “Sweet Lick Of Fire” (Kick’s last album). It’s not ALL like that, though, and skip forward a few tracks and you’ll find a mid tempo song that nails exactly what mid tempo songs should be like, and I say this because they are often a waste of bloody space (see Strangeways’ latest for examples). “Headlights” is a track that is a little like Def Leppard when they are on top form, but with a keyboard backing DL wouldn’t think of. An absolutely first class song, I could listen to it all day. Back a couple of tracks and you’ll see that ballads are also well catered for, with “Too Young For Wings” virtually soaring from start to finish, and it’s quite obvious that Vega have all the bases well and truly covered.

“Kiss Of Life” is an album that can be played over and over again, full of big songs, catchy choruses and some neat instrumental work. There’s a nice Dennis Ward gloss over everything and the balance is perfect for this type of hard but fair music. This is edgy, highly melodic hard rock that should be on everyone’s Christmas wish list, and will no doubt also be on many top ten’s at the end of the year, certainly mine. Another album that will remind you just why you love this sort of music, “Kiss Of Life” is the dog’s bollocks.
www.myspace.com/vegaofficial

ProgRock 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
25 November 2010

t... really??? The letter "t" is the best artist name you were able to come up with??? Fascinating and oh-so artsy-fartsy. Anyhow, the German multi-instrumentalist, singer, producer and yet another (control) freak is back with his third solo prog album. After fronting the band Scythe and two albums, mr."t" took four years and plenty cups of tea to write, perform, mix, produce and co-master the album "Anti-Matter Poetry". Naturally, a 68 minute long concept album that somehow deals with the cliches that we retreat to when we celebrate unrest??? When we crave for craving, when we die a little to feel our lives again. When we find some concept albums too weird??? Perhaps... but this is "weird" in a very good way if you ask me.

It's not strickly necessary to get the meaning behind all the words for that matter. And seriously, sentences such as these and I quote: "In my radioactive glory through the trip wires in our hands", end quote, only make sense to the writer really. Sure, it may sound and look posh, but there's no deeper thought(s) behind those words, no?, yes? Out of context, you say? Not really, it's more like take a wild guess and make up your own mind really. The lyric, obviously not like this all of the time!!! I'am merely trying to point out a couple of minor setbacks, since it's otherwise difficult to come up with anything negative to say about "Anti-Matter Poetry". It's hypnotic and compelling music and it's easily one of the best prog-rock albums of the year.

Indie 2010
Review by Endre 'Bandi' Hübner
6 December 2010

The Craw Daddy has been around for some time. You've never heard of him?! No problem, you sure have heard his music. He's been lurking the streets across the States, in Oz, in Europe and even in Asia personally delivering his good ole southern influenced groovy, funky blues rock to anyone who cares to listen. And man, I do care cuz it's damn fine entertainment.

A couple of classics from Hendrix, Albert King, the Allman Brothers and the rest is Richard Dance's very own stuff. Oh, by the way, Richard Dance is the Craw Daddy, crawling the highways in his mighty old Buick and playing his lazy, smooth blues with some funky sparks here and there. If this music does not put the feel in you, nothing really does.

Z Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
1st December 2010

Top name team ups are ludicrously common these days, and now it’s the turn of Vince O’Reagan (Bob Catley/Eden) and Phil Vincent, best known for having the work rate of a hyperactive carthorse. With both having a decent track record in the song writing area, it was going to take quite an effort for Legion not to be any good, and I’m happy to say that it represents a high point for both of them.

The immediate vibe from opening track “Leave Me Alone” is powerful, guitar driven hard rock not a million miles away from Whitesnake circa “1987”, which in my books is not a bad thing at all. It’s all very crunchy and powerful, with Vincent putting in some of his better vocals, although in all honesty they could be stronger in the mix. Unsurprisingly, there’s plenty of opportunities for O’Reagan to chuck in some memorably widdly guitar solos throughout, although sensibly the guitar isn’t allowed to take over any of the songs. It’s all very good stuff, although ballad “Someday” just doesn’t work, and it’s always nice to hear powerful rock done well, with just guitar, drum and bass working overtime to rock your ass off at every opportunity.

Time will tell if this pairing will stay the course, but on the evidence of the first album I hop we’ll see more of these guys, who are already confirmed for Z Rock 2011. Hard hitting, melodic and stuffed with memorable guitar driven tunes - what's not to like?
www.philvincent.com

ProgRock 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
23 November 2010

Germany strikes once again at ProgRock Records? However, not as much the old prog-rock this time rather than math metal and modern rock in the vein of Muse, Incabus, and merely just a hint of Mars Volta, Coheed and Cambria. Formed in Germany in 2006, The Intersphere burst in to the national rock scene and was able to grab a slot at the "Rock Am Ring" festival which earned them enough of support to go on nearly 100 dates a year tours throughout Europe. "Interspheres - Atmospheres" is a pretty catchy album and the songs are standard: verse chorus verse with plenty of hooks and sing-a-long melodies. I seriously doubt the "old" traditional fan of Prog-Rock, would, or even could appreciate this record??? At least not the most die-hard freaks and ehem, narrow-head minded ones. It's nontheless a comprehensive and solid selection of twelve songs that would most likely work on any college radio station of today.

Leap Dog Music 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
6 December 2010

Oh how the time flies... thought it couldn't have been more than five years ago when I reviewed John Taglieri's first album, but checking back it was way back in 2000. Now in 2010, after a selection of solo albums and a lot of touring, Taglieri's chosen to give it another go under a band name. Musically he's drifted away from the 80'ies sounding melodic rock to a more contemporary mainstream rock style. I compared his first album to REO Speedwagon, Danny Wilde and Firehouse, and while there are some traces of those artists in these tracks, I could now add modern-day Bon Jovi, The Goo Goo Dolls and even Green Day to the list.

TAG throw their best card to the table right away with the excellent opener "After Farewell", which is an intense melodic rocker that reminds me a little bit of Marvelous 3/Butch Walker. Unfortunately the level of intensity takes a dive with the next few tracks, most of them midtempo, mellow and likeable enough, but not really that memorable. The next track that somehow made me pay attention again was "Ghost" with its' rockabilly-vibe, which works strangely well with the more straightforward rock chorus. Interesting! It's followed with another strong track "Not A Day Goes By", which is armed with a good hook and nice amount of that "intensity" I mentioned earlier.

Apart from one track, the rest of the album falls into the category of "pleasant modern midtempo rock" again. The one different track is called "Ferris Wheel", a song that combines traditional circus music to edgy melodic rock and does it successfully. I'm pretty sure that the song is actually a remake of a song from Taglieri's previous "Lives" project.

As the best tracks of this album prove, TAG have something special to offer. Although there isn't anything terribly wrong with the rest of the material, it's the number of "just okay" slower or mid-tempo tracks which drags this album a little, hence the rating. Anyway, the album's is available from the band's website for less than six bucks (CD or download), so you might want to check it out yourself.
Website
MySpace

Logic(il)Logic 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
7 December 2010

Heh, heh, not quite sure if I'm supposed to laugh, cry, or pretend to be upset about the image and monicker? Like if that's not enough already, their sophomore release, "Livingdeadstars", contains charming songtitles such as: "Pissing On Heaven's Door", "You Can Leave Your Head On", "Lick You To Death" and "Holy Zombie". It's obviously all very tounge-in-cheek or at least I bloody well hope so, since there's no fun in acting posh. Nope, it's definitely supposed to be a mysterious parallel world that lays in between splatter and grotesque, surrealistic and reality, with a huge amount of black humor and just a bit of seriousness.

Quickly running out of dodgy phrases to describe punky Sleaze Rock, these Italians at least give something different to write home about, and perhaps even to listen to? An all-shock horror five piece, this is, complete with a "halloween" story where the original band on their way to a gig crashed into a tree, their bodies disappeared, and five eccentric zombies wearing flashy outfits turned up to play at the party... And if that's still not scary enough for ya', they've also included a Katy Perry cover (Hot 'N Cold) - oh, the horror, the horror!!! Actually, I'm really fond of the original Katy recording of the song (especially the 'rock mix version'), since it's darn catchy and fun music. Not to mention that it's more or less Melodic Hardrock (AOR) in disguise and penned by a certain old rocker. Their version won't stand a chance against the original performance, but it's certainly entertainment for the moment.

Sakara Records 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
6 December 2010

Teräsbetoni gained some European wide notoriety when they represented Finland in the Eurovision song contest 2008. Although their chest-beating power metal probably left a lasting impression on millions of viewers, they didn't exactly conquer the hearts of the Eurovision fans. Somehow I believe that it wasn't their intention in the first place... The band has been laying low for a while, but broke the silence by announcing a new record deal and a new album, which is the reason I'm typing here.

"Maailma Tarvitsee Sankareita" ("The World Needs Heroes") is a safe bet for the band's fans. The band hasn't attempted to re-invent themselves, instead they've stayed true to their sound and style. The music is traditional metal, anthemic and powerful, and the lyrics deal with the band's usual subjects of brotherhood, battles and beer. And metal, of course. In fact, there's a song called "Metalliolut" (Metal Beer) on the album. Make what you want of that.

Musically the album is a mixture of Manowar, Hammerfall, Iron Maiden, Helloween and the likes. Jarkko Ahola's heroic vocals are an acquired taste, but there's no denying that he's a very talented singer. The standout track of the album for me is "Eteenpäin" ("Forward"), a melodic metal song which moves along like a bullet train, but there are others which will most probably become live setlist standards. The aforementioned "Metalliolut" is surely going to be the theme song of next year's summer festivals, and the mega-anthemic title track will be the track to wave your plastic sword in the air. Even if you don't have one.
Website
MySpace

Logic(il)Logic 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
6 December 2010

Dirty, rotten, filthy, stinking, sleazy, but enough about me already, what about the band??? Italy's Dustineyes are back with their third album and it's once again an alcohol fueled mixture of pure sleaze, punk-ish attitudes, and the odd Motorhead melody. One thing's for sure, it's noisy enough to scare the crap out of your cat (haven't seen her for quite a while now) and it's all about being as loud and vicious as possible. "Bullet For My Generation" is literally like a kick to the head and it's overall a rather painful experience. As "Wild N' Alone" comes crashing through my loudspeakers, I know it's going to be a bumpy ride. What you get in this track is Skid Row type riffs (the really wild schtuff 'ala 'Get The F**k Out') with punky attitudes in the vocal lines. And yes, a lot of 80's sleaze is basically punk in disguise. Sadly the refrain lack the extra ordinary to make things really interesting.

ProgRock 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
30 November 2010

Not to be confused with the Biblical one or the Swedish acts (I believe there's two of them), here's the latest album by the U.K. Prog Rockers of Ark. Actually, not strickly "Prog Rock", since they like to mix it up with folk-rock and classic hardrock just to try and annoy as many different genres as possible, I guess? Me thinks they sound like a mix of Saracen (cult British NWOBHM, Pomp band), Jethro Tull and IQ, and the latter simply because of "new" band member John Jowitt (ex-IQ, Jadis, Arena, Frost). Perhaps, however, they do have that darn Jethro flute at times too and they're using a guitar synth rather than a keyboard player to give the band a signature sound of their own (yeah, lame, pretty much the same as when Maiden and Priest did it in the eighties), yet distictly British.

Frontman Tony Short has a dusty old voice which literally make him sound like anything in between 60 to 120 years old. You know the type, I'm sure. Anyone slightly familiar with Folk-Rock should... since they pretty much all sound the same (ouch!). "Wild Untamed Imaginings" is strangely not a concept album though. From the adventure of a child's mind at the excitement of going on holiday, to a chance meeting full of possibilities that can never be anything more, from ordinary people caught in a extraordinary conflict to what might lurk behind those suburban net curtains, to leaving the earth to escape man made destruction, each song tell a different tale. Strangely enough, "Coats Of Red", borrows the guitar riff from Michael Jackson's "Beat It" (it's there buried in the far distance) though. "8th Deadly Sin" gets its inspiration from Genesis (no, again, not the Biblical one) and Peter Gabriel (hmm... yet another Biblical reference?).

Frontiers 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
1st December 2010

Featuring Daniele Liverani, Tommy Ermolli and Dario Ciccioni from Khymera, Italy’s Prime Suspect have a decent enough pedigree. Throw in the pleasant, if unexceptional, vocals of Olaf Senkbeil (Dreamtide) and you have half a chance of a stellar slice of AOR. So what went wrong?

Prime Suspect are, basically, your run-of-the-mill, nothing-wrong-with-it melodic rock band. Some nice, happy tunes, a bit of a West Coast flavour at times, with a couple of duffers and a couple that stand head and shoulders above the rest (“I Would Like To Reach the Sun” is an almost insufferably upbeat gem). The production could certainly have done with a bit of beefing up, and as a result the more mid tempo songs just slide by without much effect, and you get the feeling that in different hands the whole album would have been more punchy, more passionate and more enjoyable.

Although by no means a bad release, Prime Suspect is one of those albums that fails to grab the listener by the balls and have a good shake. It just floats on by, occasionally throwing up a good riff or chorus, just not enough to keep in on your play list for long.
www.myspace.com/primesuspectmusic

Retroactive Records 2010
Review by Endre 'Bandi' Hübner
6 December 2010

I have always considered Guardian a poor man's version of Stryper. While Stryper also suffered from being terribly underproduced in their early years, they quickly grew out of the underground status and managed to come out with a couple of good-sounding and well-selling records; Guardian never really had the breakthrough. Not being a big white metal fan (that is to put it mildly, no matter how much I enjoy the music or the performances, the lyrics are simply killing me…) I own some of their records but have never been a completist.

For whatever reason (maybe it's all in the name…) Retroactive Records decided to reissue the first album by Guardian upon its 20th anniversary. I'm fine with reissues when it comes to out of print items however I prefer to see value reissued or at least value packages created. Let's face it, this album originally lacked in every aspect, songwriting, performance, and most importantly production. 20 years gone, it's almost embarrassingly bad and absolutely no efforts were done to help that (no remastering or remixing – at least these ears could not trace any, no rerecording, nothing). Two bonus tracks (taken from a 1987 recording session) were thrown in for the benefit of all those who have the original but they are just as bad as the rest (hell, they even failed to submit their title, they go as track 13 and 14 over the display while the original tracks at least have their titles properly displayed).

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
17 November 2010

Canadian artist Bill 'B.D.' Gottfried is a quirky songwriter and lyricist. Fronting the band Autonomy in the past, B.D. has a vast and varied musical background as a performer, jobber, producer, songwriter and recording artist [recorded with ex-Manfred Mann and John Mayall members, etc]. However, since the demise of Autonomy, he's been recording and working as a solo artist and "The Warden's Picnic" is the latest offering to the slightly 'goofy' Gods of rock'n roll. I have to admit to this being my first encounter/exposure to the man and his music. So have I been missing out on something? Well, yeah, it's a ecliptic mixture of Prog-Rock and there's bits of Chris De Burgh, David Gilmour, as well as Talking Heads on this platter. People also seem to refer to Gottfried as punk or at least punk-ish attitudes, but... to be completely honest, I can't pick up much or any of this on "The Warden's Picnic". Unless you'd refer to Talking Heads as punk???

Retroactive/Bonbworks 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
19 November 2010

Anastacia? aAdidas? Annapolis??? Ehhh, appearently the name of Brazil's Adiastasia comes from the Greek (which one?). It means "Abscene Of Seperation" or "Non-separable". Vocalist Jeff Winner put the band together in 2003 and in 2006 their first release "Life War" came out on Bombworks Records. For this 'twenty ten' special edition re-release, the album has been completely remixed, remastered, and features all new artwork and is said to provide fans with a vast improvement over the original release in both sonics and packaging. I'll have to trust the glowing write-up this time, since I haven't heard the original and therfore being unable to compare the two.

But, okay, first things first, let's get a couple of things clear. One, this is an "German Power Metal" inspired album. Two, it's equally speed and aggression vs. melodic and symphonic arrangements. Three, it's christian metal (thus why the lyrics speak of the lord and eternal life). Four, it reads "progressive metal" on the cd sticker (slightly false in my opinion!). Five, what's up with the lead vocalists' surname: Winner??? Six, better stop this counting bit - preferably before you fall asleep. It's metal music in the tradition of Helloween, Gamma Ray, Stratovarius, but certain to also appeal to fans of Seventh Avenue, Divinefire, and even some of the more neo-progressive acts. And yes, there's tiny bits and pieces of Stryper to be found on these tracks.

ProgRock 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
23 November 2010

Oh, mighty Mellotron & Moog - where are they now??? Look no further as this platter gots lots of them. David Minasian is a multi-talanted musician, composer and video director who has penned songs for films and directed over 60 films and DVD's, including Camel's (the band, not the cigarette brand nor the animal) highly acclaimed concert DVD "Coming Of Age". By the way, Camel's Andrew Latimer sings on the opening track "Masquerade". David on the other hand is responsible for all material, prodcution, as well as (hold your breath while reading out loud) - keyboards, grand piano, mellotron, harpsichord, moog, pipe organ, organ, cello, violin, oboe, flute, recorder, clarinet, fench horn, cornet, dulcimer, sitar, voices, acoustic guitars, bass, drums, percussion, all lead vocals (except for the opening track of course). That's enough of 'multi-talanted' for ya'? David's twenty year old son play all other guitars on this album.

The CD "Random Acts Of Beauty" is firmly rooted in the seventies U.K. classically influenced symphonic prog rock tradition. It's frankly put a mish-mash of melodies in the vein of: Camel, BJH (Barclay James Harvest), Mike Oldfield, Moody Blues, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, and possible even early Genesis (even though I personally can't hear 'that' much of the latter). Minasian is quite a cheeky little monkey though as this definitely feels and sounds like something recorded 30, 35+ years ago. If you're going to rely on such a distinctive sound of the past, you'd better have a larger than life personality to fill up all the lush arrangements. The result? well, the keyboard orchestrations, soaring melodies and extented length compositions are more than decent enough, and there's a medieval feel to several tracks (mostly due to the overkill of harpsichord, cello, the entire horn section, etc). The drums are (sadly) very 'low budget' though (sound-wise) and it's basically just a notch or two above tin cans in my opinion. It's otherwise a quite remarkable atmospheric album, where the listener can spend hours on finding several different layers of old Plusch-Prog.

ProgRock 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
3 November 2010

"Remember It" - the sound here is rather intense, with crystal clear guitars and piano/keyboard effects layered on top of each other. It's a flashy and modern display of Prog-Rock and I'am especially fond of their keyboardist Mafalda Brogueira, she's got a knack for coming up with excellent passages and grand piano work in the higher school of things. Very impressive indeed. The debut album of the Portugese band Framepictures brings to the 21st century the non-conformism and artistic expression without boundaries that was so fresh in the past, through musicians like Robert fripp, Brian Eno, Thorn Yorke and Steven Wilson.

Retroactive 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
10 November 2010

The story of U.S. of A's Messiah is quite frankly too surreal and yet strangely real. Messiah were one of the first christian Heavy Metal bands to really embrace the theatrical aspect of the genre in the late seventies. Vocalist Charles Michael came up with the idea to create an incredible live stage show called "The Final Warning", were the main idea was to to raise the devil from hell and send him back to the underworld. Yeah? Well, you can imagine the reaction to this spectacular show as they packed the clubs night after night in the early eighties (1980/81). However, I'm sure you can also imagine the response to touring the Bible belt in Texas with this over-the-top show (death wish?). It surely took its toll on the band members and some "christian" (yeah, right!) audience members even fired shotguns at the band in "religious" protest.

After returning home to rock city Detroit in 1981, Charles Michael was convinced his musical career was over. He managed somehow to bounce back with a new line-up a couple of years later though and this very album, "Final Warning", was recorded in 1984. Copies of the original vinyl are so rare they are considered holy grails of christian metal selling for over $1000. This is the first ever official CD release of the studio album "Final Warning", complete with lines notes and of course remastered. Keep also in mind that Messiah's (crap) management banned the band from performing live due to their wicked stage show and that all this would undermine their christian message. One day Michael's finally had enough of the (crap) management, his angry outburst caused his band mates to replace him with a new singer!!! Wow... did I type surreal???

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
21 November 2010

What to expect from a CD and band where the lead vocalists says the meaning of his existence was revealed to him by a beautiful woman with eight legs and snakes for hair??? Damn right... why do you think they call it dope? Frontman and overall troublemaker, Ken Janssen describe himself as the laziest man in show business (gee, there's a surprise, I neeever expected him to be a slacker!!!), so, he recruited four more slackers (it reads: superheroes in the press-release though) of rock to drink beer, make records and hopefully teach a few hipsters that it's ok if you don't take yourself too seriously. Not a problem whatsoever, dude, we never intended to take your music seriously in the first place.

But... sort of seriously though, Hot Rails have taken the Cleveland Scuzz Rock scene by storm (probably more like a silent fart), playing sold out (really?) shows with a vide variety of acts from Ted Leo and The Pharmacists to L.A. Guns and from Money Suzuki (who?) to Fastball. Well, this Cleveland five-piece lay down the beat like a tourettes inflictied gang - solid, fuzzy, and completely unpredictable. Subsequently, "Single Entendre" and Hot Rails subscribe to the garage/stoner theory of musicianship, it's noisy, loud, and the guitar riffs echo the long gone days of MC5, Stooges, Dictators, Hendrix, vs. the more modern stuff of Monster Magnet and The Hellacopters. Have we heard it before? Yes, indeed, but the outcome is still quite effective.

Frontiers 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
27 November 2010

Having just released well-recieved comeback album of Nelson, Frontiers Records are bringing out more products for the fans. "Strike while the iron is hot" or something like that, huh? "Before The Rain" collects together the demos that lead to the Nelson brothers' major label contract and their short-lived superstardom back in 1990-1991. If you are an owner of the band's debut album "After The Rain", you already have most of these songs as more finished versions, but the disc does feature 10 previously unreleased songs. Or 9, since "You're All I Need Tonight" resurfaced on the aforementioned comeback album "Lightning Strikes Twice".

The quality of the unreleased tracks varies greatly. There are tracks that make you wonder why they were left off "After The Rain" in the first place, whilst others don't make you wonder at all. As you may have heard, "You're All I Need Tonight" is a fine melodic rocker that belongs to the first category. The guys have done the right thing and dusted if off, it would've been too good a song to remain in the vault. "Senorita" is a decent ballad that the guys might want to revisit sometime in the future too, as is "I Wish". It might have been a big hit single back in the day.

"Let's Get This Show On The Road" and "It's Gonna Get Better" are two rather likeable, energetic rockers, even though both of them could've used stronger choruses. "Far Away From Home" is one of the weaker tracks, a song that doesn't seem to go anywhere. The Warrant-like "That's Love" has a dull chorus you've certainly heard done better a few times, while "Avalon" is okay, if nothing else. The hard-rocking "Running Outta Time (The Silence Is Broken)" doesn't even sound like Nelson, it's merely Nelson performing a rather average Jack Ponti-song, which sounds like a leftover from the Baton Rouge or Babylon AD writing sessions. "Love Is All We've Got" is more in line with the Nelson we know, and it's another okay track.

I guess "Before The Rain" can be recommended to the Nelson fans, just don't expect polished production. As an introduction to the band, "Lightning Strikes Twice" or "After The Rain" might be better.

"The Perfect Storm" captures the band live at the height of their popularity on the "After The Rain" tour. What you'll get is the whole album played live plus the song "Two Heads Are Better Than One" from the Bill & Ted movie soundtrack, original recorded under the name of Power Tool. And lots of screaming girls in the background. As a bonus track there's an electric version of "Keep One Heart", which has previously appeared as an acoustic single B-side and on the Nelson video collection. As I'm not much of a fan of live recordings, this album doesn't really move me in any way. The guys pull off the multi-part harmonies smoothly and the songs are good, but still... I won't be listening to this that much now that this review's done.
Website
MySpace

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
17 November 2010

ZZG from Canberra, Australia play riff-based rock inspired by the seventies bands. Vocalist/guitarist David Roberts has been described as having David Bowie elements while musically the album may be said to reflect the influences of Deep Purple, Van Halen, Yes, Pink Floyd and many other classic period musicians. All the above according to their press-release of course and I couldn't disagree more really. Vocalist Roberts sound more like a mix of the tall, bald, dude from Midnight Oil [how can we sleep while our beds are burning?] and Ric Ocasek [The Cars], while the music is more or less like a hardrocking version of these two singers' band, plus a dash of Ace Frehley and yeah, ok, tiny-tiny bits of Deep Purple, but it's more like Uriah Heep really.

EAR Music/Edel 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
24 November 2010

Like In the semi famous words of The Primitives and I quote: "so shut, shut your mouth cause I'm not listening anyhow. I've had enough, enough of you, enough to last a life time throughs. - Na na na na na, na na na na na naa, slow down you're gonna crash", end quote. And what if you can't slow down? Well... then you're just another Foreigner aka juke box hero - hot blooded... yet strangely cold as ice??? Ehem, the 'double vision' band recorded their first new studio album in over 15 years earlier this year (Can't Slow Down) and now there's a double live album to complete their vision of twenty ten. Guitarist Mick Jones - sole survivor of the heydays proudly writes in the booklet: "this album is dedicated to all the Foreigner fans old and new who made 'Can't Slow Down' such a success. Enjoy!". And darn it, they've actually managed to include one full song from their latest album (In Pieces) in the live recording from the Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, Tennessee, March 16, 2010. Yes, yes, the titletrack from above mentioned album is also included, but that's a bonus track from another live happening at the Rock Of Ages festival in Germany. Success!

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
18 November 2010

Highway 414 sound like your average cousins to a global rock music happening that started off innocent enough and ended up as hype. What's that you say? Blues, I'am talkin' about the bluesy kind of rock which took place back in the ancient era of approx: 1965 to 1975. Yeah, these guys are not only a "couple" of years too late with their version of poor white man's music in the tradition of afro-american history. They also sound like any tiresome blues band at your local bar and pubs. Meaning exactly what??? Well, they are neither total crap nor interesting enough to spend more than a couple of beers on and then it's back home and the two of you will never met again. Now that's exactly what I feel towards "Hellbound For The Highway", I've played it - it's done - I don't need to play it ever again in my entire life!!!

Lion Music 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
13 November 2010

The previous Seventh Wonder album "Mercy Falls" was a well-recieved progressive concept album, and to call it a "masterpiece" wouldn't be too far from truth in my opinion. To follow up a milestone album as that one is a serious task, but I'm happy to tell you that Seventh Wonder haven't thought much about it - they've just created another progressive metal masterpiece! Yes, "The Great Escape" IS the album that is going to lift this band to another level altogether, and if you haven't paid much attention to them before, now is the time to jump aboard this train. I'm not just talking about prog fans, this album has so much to offer for anyone into melodic metal or rock. They've got some of the finest melodies you're likely to hear anywhere, the vocal harmonies are outstanding, the production is brilliant, not to mention the lyrics... or the exceptional musicianship... I really can not find any reason not to give this album the full points. Okay, the title has been used quite a few times before, but that's something I can live with.

The album has only 7 songs, six of them are of somewhat normal length (four to eight minutes), while the title track is a full half an hour of music. The "easier" six tracks have one thing in common - they all boast massive melodic choruses. You may have heard the video track "Alley Cat", which is a fine example of the band's ability to combine progressive, complex music with superb hooks. Rest assured that there are five other tracks which all fit that description, even though they all have their own identity. There's the uptempo, yet ultra-melodic opener "Wiseman", the complex, many-faced "The Angelmaker" and "King Of Whitewater" which both have balladic elements but also some frantic double bassdrum driven parts. "Long Way Home" might surprise some as it's a short(ish) ballad which should appeal to even the most die-hard AOR fans among our readers. A possible radio hit? "Move On Through" is another shorter track (just five minutes!), again blessed with a chorus that most AOR bands only dream of writing of...

The title track requires a chapter of its' own, as it can not be described in a few words. Based on the space saga "Aniara" (1956) by Swedish Nobel Prize winner Harry Martinson, it starts with an acoustic ballad part, which the band used as their intro tape on their gig I saw a couple of days ago. That's the first two minutes. Next three and half minutes are spent in more of a metallic mood, although the keyboard work reminds me a little bit of Robby Valentine's pomp rock operas. Vocalist Tommy Karevik is let loose after the instrumental part, and he rules the opus for the next few minutes. The mood changes when the the clock hits the ten-minute mark, and the band enters into a piano driven "song within a song". This part of the opus is my favourite one, and it could work as a single song itself - there's another insanely catchy hook hidden here. After this "hit" the tempo is raised to a frantic level and we move nicely into the 16:30 mark. Then it's time to slow it down for a while, and we get a bit of a balladic moment. Then from 18:20 onwards it's probably sheer heaven for prog fans as you'll get plenty of tempo changes and instrumental wizadry. Luckily, the band throws in some very enjoyable melodies so that it never gets boring for those of us who aren't so prog-inclined. Tommy's sister Jenny Karevik adds some vocals to the song, proving that there's plenty of talent in the Karevik family.

That's my humble description of "The Great Escape". If this album doesn't lift Seventh Wonder to the next level in terms of popularity, I really don't know what will.
Website
MySpace

Born To Rock Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
12th November 2010

It’s been a fun ride for the resurrected Skin, from playing Donnington and realizing people still actually care about them, to recording what will probably be the last thing we hear from them. As they all have separate lives (in separate countries as well) to live, they can’t be a permanent fixture these days, so we get this album and a farewell tour to relive those glory years during which they held aloft the classic rock torch against the darkness that was (shudder) grunge.

“Breaking The Silence” is an album that puts it’s balls up on the table and invites the neighbours round to take a look. This is Skin as we remember them, full of big ass guitars and melody, all ties up with the immense vocals of Nev MacDonald. This album isn’t going to start any new trends, but it has the heart and soul of a lion, a big lion with claws of adamantium and a mane of spun gold. Now I’m listening to it as a fan of the band, but you know if it was shit I wouldn’t hesitate to let you know.

In the main, this is an album to match the 1994 debut that still sounds fresh and energetic today. Full blooded rock from the heart, tracks like “Don’t call It Love” and the irrepressible “Born To Rock & Roll” shake you by the scruff of the neck until you puke. There’s a more modern tinge to “Can You Feel It” and “Trigger Inside” that brings to mind the Foo Fighters, and even a country rock feel to “Stronger”. through it all, Nev sounds amazing, and I still can’t believe that when Skin ended he simply stopped singing. Songwriter and guitarist Myke Gray does himself proud all the way through, and the result is a very tight album that simply has no weak spots, although I could live without the ballad “When I’m With You”.

The bottom line is that this is a must for all existing fans of Skin, and should certainly be checked out by anyone else who just wants a kick ass rock album with no pretensions but great songs. After slowing to a stop originally, this is a good end to a band that really showed that Britain could rock when all else was lost.
www.skinfreak.co.uk/

Liljegren Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
12th November 2010

The first time I saw the promo video for “See My Command”, the lead track from this album, I was rather gob smacked. Firstly, it was a terrible, terrible video, cheap as chips and full of gurning, but on the other, more important hand the music itself blew me away. Wow, I thought, it’s like Helloween never went away and have caught religion to boot.

Yes, Golden Resurrection are fully paid up members of the God Squad, but like Stryper they don’t let it stop them pumping out heavy melodic rock music whilst they tell us how wonderful Bod is and how we should worship His Bodliness, Boddammit! For a militant atheist like myself, Christian music has to be almost sinfully good to keep me from laying into it, and I have to say that “Glory To My King” is the best one since “Soldiers Under Command” had me singing along to lyrics like ‘Fighting the Lord’s battle plan’.

For me, the main draw of Golden Resurrection is guitarist Tommy Johansson who sends heavenly light from your speakers every time he dances his fingers up and down the fretboard, something he’s allowed to do with a nice regularity. The majority of the tracks zip along at a good pace, and are great fun from start to finish depending on your tolerance for the lyrics. When they finally slow down, with “Proud To Wear The Holy Cross”, it’s like someone put the brakes on the fun. A passable song that chugs rather than jogs along, it bludgeons you into a coma with the lyrics and tune, like a Jehovah’s Witness at the door with a slegdehammer and a Jack Nicholson grin. Thankfully, this is the only lull in the storm, and after wards the album is right back on track.

Your enjoyment of “Glory To My King” will largely rest on your tolerance for overtly Christian lyrics, because the music is brilliant. Christian Liljegren’s voice isn’t the best, but is far from the worst, and as I have said before the guitar work is widdly gold. Fast, stylish and full of life (everlasting), Golden Resurrection may be the true saviours of melodic power metal. Praise be to Bod.
www.myspace.com/goldenresurrection

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
14 November 2010

Yen Harley??? Hey, as long as they're happy. "So throw away your pearls to the swine - you won't devaluate" is a direct quote from the opening track, "Pearls", a completely new take on the old saying, I believe, yeah? This is the mighty fine debut album from an alternative rock band from Utrecht, The Netherlands and vocalist/guitarist Lukas Batteau is a star in the making. But seriously, how "alternative" can you (still) be if you're inspired by commercial and very successful acts such as Pearl Jam, REM, Alice in Chains, The Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden, Nirvana??? Alternative is supposed to be the... ehh, the alternative to commercial rock, yeah? no? Nevermind...

The good thing about being in a "alternative" rock band, you have the given right to be as hopelessly melancholic as you like without upsetting people to shout ' cheer up you miserable bastard'. And man, these lads (and one lass) give melancholy a bad name in a good way. A band like Yen Harley especially when armed with songs called "Under Black Light" and "Holes In The Sky" are never going to back down from a grungy stare contest. Certainly any band that makes the decision to bring back the darker, heavier sound of the nineties deserves respect. More rightly so when they've managed to come up with a string of fine melodies, which evoke a nostalgic feeling as well as 'fresh' and exciting. That opening, "Pearls", pretty much sets the standard of the record. It's close to top notch mid-tempo rock with strong vocals (hardly any singing accent whatsoever) and they've essentially adopted a 'less is more' approach to their arrangements. Not as "aggressive" as the desperate cries of Cobain and neither as heavy as early Soundgarden. "The Substance Of Things" sits nicely in between the mellow side of Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, Soundgarden and REM.

DR2 Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
13th November 2010

TSo who is Steve Senes? If you believe his webpage hype he’s every guitarist you’ve ever loved rolled into one big cuddly heap, but then that’s the sort of crap you get on websites. What he really is, is this guy who loves to play guitar, and this is his first album of original instrumental compositions. Okay, so it’s not very exciting, but the truth rarely is.

Mind you, there’s certainly some excitement to be had on “De-Evolution Of Theory”, as Seles ably demonstrates why he was Guitar Player Magazine’s 2009 Guitar Superstar. This guy can really play, and thankfully he can write some damned good tunes as well. There’s a range of styles on the album, from mood music through to out and out heavy rock. Naturally, my favourites tend to be from the latter end of the spectrum, such as the Satriani-esque “Jam Bomb”, or the mystical opener “The Swami”. There’s plenty here for anyone who likes their guitar music to really rock out, with a few more gentle pieces thrown in to break up the mad widdling.

So on one hand this is another guitar album, hot on the heels of Satriani’s latest, but I think I can truthfully say that if you’re into Satch you should check this out without fail. Fresh, vibrant and eclectic, Steve Senes is a name to watch.
www.senesmusic.com

Gentle Art Of Music 2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
7 November 2010

Just before RPWL's tenth anniversary, Yogi Lang, the frontman and singer, releases his first solo album called: No Decoder. The album features 11 symphonic rock songs and Yogi has asked some really fine musicians to join his solo project. The line up is as follows: Manni Muller(ex RPWL on drums), Torsten Weber ( Doors Of Perception on guitars) and Guy Pratt (Pink Floyd on bass). Furthermore there are a couple of guest performances like violin player Anne de Wolff, guitar player Kalle (RPWL) and French singer Dominique Leonetti, from Lazuli.

The album kicks off with the amazing instrumental Can't Reach You, featuring a heavenly Gilmour-like guitar solo; followed by a RPWL-like prog rock song called: Sacrifice. The typical emotional Yogi Lang vocals and the breathtaking Manfred Mann-like keyboard solo on this track make this a vey nice song to listen to. Our World Has Changed is another highlight, followed by two songs - Sail Away and Our Modern World - that are a bit mediocre and are not of the high standard as the previous songs. The second instrumental, the title track, is again a prog rock gem with a heavenly Floydian guitar solo and melody. However then when I listened to track number 7, Alison, I could NOT believe my ears. This song is really out of place on this album as it is a boring ballad, featuring French vocals and an accordeon solo... So, if you can, skip this one, please!

MelodicRock Records 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
8 November 2010

Fenrik Lane is (so far) the sole provider of contemporary rock on the newly started MelodicRock Records label. They hail from out of Norway and "317" is their professional sounding debut. Remove the boring opening number and the next two tracks are groovy and hook-laden enough to bright, ehh, light up your entire neighbourhood. No doubt, they do experiment with some unusual rhythms and funny beats, and the songs are perhaps just a tad too "Takida". Meaning exactly what??? It's simply too "Scandinavian" at times and dare I say borderline juvenile? These guys are more 'power-pop' than Takida though. Nontheless, "Call Her Name" and its "la la la la la" part is darn kitchy and catchy at the same time. In fact, it's difficult to remove the chorus part out of your head once you've heard it.

"Diamonds In The Waste" display their love (?) for The Killers and those blood thirsty bastards are obviously influenced by A-HA (and U2) so I guess it's the full circle really, yeah? Is it good? Well, in my opinion here are a lot of memorable riffs and sing along moments on "317". Kurt "The Hobbit" Nilsen (Norwegian Idol) co-wrote two of the songs and it's overall a very sunny and happy little platter. And they certainly prove that the spark and sparkle that helped to make A-HA huge are still very much in play in Norway. No, they are hardly as good nor do they sound like them, but you know what I mean.

Indie/PJR 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
12 November 2010

TThis particular soft rocker from Finland has merely one thought in mind - setting the earth on fire with his latest offering to the (soft) Gods of Rock and Roll. Believe it people, high-energy, smooth rock flows through Rautiainen's veins and eventually out through your loud-speakers. It's a truly wicked and nice cross-section of melodies, ranging from pure "yacht rock" to more AOR-ish melodies á la Toto. Indeed, it's a product of the American west coast (and east coast for that matter) and the former House Of Mirrors (Escape Music) vocalist proves to be more than just your 'ordinary' aor/melodic rock artist. PJ "Pekka" Rautiainen recorded and released his debut album already back in 1996 (EMI), but I believe this is a first in the international language of music (English).

"Secret Isle" contains six of the best independent "Westcoast" melodies you'll hear this year (there's a total of eleven tracks on the CD) and evokes memories of summer breeze and overall sunny days (and daze for that matter). All that glitter ain't gold though. There are some truly sappy melodies and arrangements in between the nuggets and we could really do without uninspiring moments such as "Burning" (poor man's Stevie Wonder), "Clarity" or "I Shout". The latter being almost unbearable to listen to due to its hippie groove and utterly weird refrain. PJ is definitely at his best when he simplify things by keeping it catchy and radio friendly such as on the cracking "Falling For You", "This Burden" or "Hey Brother". The latter a great mixture of Steely Dan and Robbie Dupree melodies - including saxophone and percussion in the traditional "west coast" sound of the late seventies, early eighties. The soft R&B piano music of, "Show Me The Way", a crackers version of the Motown sound of the seventies - nice!

TSM/Slw 2010
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
12 November 2010

You can always count on a CD being spacey and 'out there' with a title such as "Passage To Agadir", this was never going to be the exception to the rule of rock. The multi-talented Jack Jeffery (all instruments, vocals, songwriting, production) and his one-man band are taking us on a strange and beautiful journey of ambient, slightly psychedelic and progressive rock influenced by the likes of Pink Floyd (of course), Alan Parson, Brian Eno, The Velvet Undergound, etc. It's quite a laidback affair and the tracks are (according to Jack) sequenced to transport the listener on a trip through ambient, psychedelic, electronic, acoustic, and folk rock soundscapes. It's certainly not your average friday night 'party' album (well, what do I know?).

Ripple Music 2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
11 November 2010

Fen has released three independent albums so far and this is their first cd with Ripple Music. The music on this album is kind of classic seventies prog rock and according to the bio this album is suitable for fans of Porcupine Tree,Tool, Riverside, Anathema and Opeth.... I really like/love the beforementioned bands but I cannot hear any influences from them in the music of Fen! The album sounds too weird to listen to for a long while and songs like "Miracle", "Find That One" or "A Clearing" are merely boring and tiresome pop rock tracks filled with annoying vocals and acoustic guitar parts.

Luckily there are also a couple of songs which I enjoyed. "Through The Night" and "The World Is Young" are rather good alternative rock songs with a grungy edge; featuring dark riffs and some nice guitar solos. These two songs kind of remind me of A Perfect Circle and Tool and if the entire album consisted of more tracks like these two then my rating would be much higher.

Isma 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
2 November 2010

Question: What's so mysterious about this particular man? Answer: He's obviously quite obsessed by the Status Quo sound of the late 60's/early 70's. Riding damn hard on boogie rock and mere hints of The Small Faces train, Sweden's Anders Bodin (vocals/guitars) manage to avoid the usual 'hip factor' traps on his latest album. Sure, it's hardly the most original sounding effort as of lately, however, it's jam-packed with basic boogie, hammond organ, and straight forward rock, straight from the heart. Anyone with a weakness for simplicity and mid-paced rock served with lyrics that are saying something worth saying without actually saying it (huh? well, it's basically everything from simple things in life to more complex living), could do worse than checking out this particular CD.

DeadlightEnt. 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
2 November 2010

So I dive into the pile of promos to hear the "best" of the hard rock world and cast my critical ear(s) over the metal wares. Yeah, sure, Undercover Slut is a ehem, interesting monicker and the title, "America Macht Frei", will certainly attract the sort of attention these lads were looking for in the first place. The band and their music could charitably be described as eclectic and slightly "Marilyn Manson light", and no amount of glossy vampire pictures and posers are going to convince me otherwise. It's the sort of smooth industrial rock with the grace and finess of a serial killer with tourettes and you better watch yer back or end up dead in the alley (splatter-splatter).

Retroactive 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
7 November 2010

King James - a christian super group if you so like, formed in 1993 by guitarist Rex Carroll (Whitecross, Fierce Heart, The Heat), vocalist Jimi Bennett (Sacred Fire), plus the two former members of Stryper: Tim Gaines (bass) and Robert Sweet (drums). Not quite sure why I should name-drop the latter two though since they're no longer involved with the band at the time of this release. Indeed, this is a re-issue of their second album, "The Fall", originally released back in 1997. It's a "collectors edition" version features all new and improved(?) artwork and is completely remastered which means it has never sounded and looked (?) better.

Mystic 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
3 November 2010

Retroactive 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
7 November 2010

To make a long, tragic, and rather macabre story short. 20th october 1977 - Lynyrd Skynyrd was en route to a gig at Baton Rouge (the city - not the band), when their chartered Corvair ran out of gas and ended up in the swampland. The band lost its lead vocalist (Ronnie Van Zant), guitarist (Steve Gaines), a back-up vocalist, and a roadie (R.I.P.). Two of the surviving members of the crash (Leon Wilkeson - bass and Billy Powell - keyboards) decided at first to continue with other things (Alias, etc) until they in 1983 hooked up with lead vocalist' Rocco Marshall's newly started band, Vision. In the summer of 83', the youth pastor of Souhsides Assembly of God in Jacksonville, Florida had asked the praise and worship team to do a concert series for the youth group. Alas, the birth of Vision. The band quickly gained a following due to their rather impressive knack of coming up with southern rock met progressive/symphonic kind of music.

Vision's debut album "Mountain In The Sky" was recorded at Pat Travers' studio in the year of 1984. There was a time in the states when playing this kind of music was some kind of pinnacle in any bands career. Perhaps not in 1984 though as this must have been so out of place (and out of touch) in the era of new wave, romantic, heavy metal and such. It's frankly (still) the sound of the seventies and there are unfortunately too many unremarkable tunes and not really one outstanding album that you can't wait to tell the world about. Don't get me wrong, it's nice enough melodies steeped in the tradition of Sweet Comfort Band, Molly Hatchet, 38 Special, and Blue Oyster Cult. The band play their songs nicely enough and tracks like "Old Man",´"Dedicated", "Soldiers Song", "Standing In The Light", stand out from the rest, and they would also re-record the first three (plus "Lord Is My Joy" and "Dynamos") on their sophomore release. This remastered reissue comes with two bonus tracks, not music, but testimonies by Billy Powell and Leon Wilkeson. The latter was actually pronounced dead at the scene of the Lynyrd crash, but a spirit-filled nurse laid hands on him and raised him from the dead. Spooky...

Mystic 2009
Review by Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
7 November 2010

What ever happened to all the cover albums? We used to receive a dozen each week and now it's down to the odd few (Thank God!). There's nothing as truly annoying than listening to some half-baked versions of songs of the past. I'm really against the ones (albums) where the artists merely try to sound as close as possible to the original. Really... what's the point??? Thus why it's at least not completely pointless to have a goo (sorry, that's "go") at The Acid Drinkers. However, when you actually play "Fish Dick Zwei - The Dick Is Rising Again" you're in for a rather... ehhh, interesting rollercoaster ride. Their take at oldies (geezers alert!!!) such as "Ring Of Fire", "Hit The Road Jack" and 'Frankie Blue Eyes' "New York New York" will make you sit up and take notice. It's head's down in heavy metal town and no sleep to hammersmith.

SPV/Steamhammer 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
4th November 2010

Germany’s Fair Warning are one of those bands that is pretty well liked, and for good reason, but absolutely adored in Japan. Sensible, then, to film their live DVD there, as a good audience can really make a difference. There’s actually two complete shows here, on separate discs: one from Loudpark in 2009, and one from Tokyo in 2910.

Before watching these shows I was pretty much unaware of Fair Warning, as they are yet another band that has flown under my radar, although I have enjoyed vocalist Tommy Heart’s work with Soul Doctor. As it turns out, Fair Warning are pretty bloody good at this rock thing, and both gigs are highly enjoyable. The picture and sound are nice and clear, and the camerawork/editing captures the band’s live edge really well. The Tokyo show has 21 songs, 8 more than the other one, making it a good hour and three quarters of music that never slips into being dull or repetitive. Fair Warning play solid melodic Euro rock, upbeat and fun, delivering an entertaining, tight show that showcases all of their albums including the 2006 reformation release “Brothers Keeper”.

“Talking Ain’t Enough” is a memorable documentation of an in form melodic rock act who have plenty of great songs to play. If you’re like me and haven’t heard of them, just track down “Burning Heart” or “Generation Jedi”, and you should be ready to sample them as a live band. A very pleasant surprise.
www.fair-warning.de/

Sanctuary/Universalk 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
9th November 2010

It’s been over thirty years since Magnum announced themselves to the rock world with the slightly hippy “Kingdom Of Madness”, and since then it’s like they’ve been a constant presence in my life. Indeed, one of my first writing jobs was interviewing main men Bob Catley and Tony Clarkin when they rolled out the Hard Rain vehicle. Although the Hard Rain chapters are skipped, “The Gathering” does a bloody good job of throwing some of Magum’s best tracks together, as well as some of the more obscure b-sides and rarities.

At the heart of this 5 disc collection is a 60 page book, in which Dave Ling provides the reader with a brilliant and fascinating history of the band. Packed with photos as well as information, this really was a wonderful read for a fan like me, and will fill in any blanks in your own knowledge. Maybe one day Tony Clarkin will write his memoirs, but until then this does a good job. The whole thing comes packaged like a hardcover book, with a nice little Rodney Matthews cover, and will sit with pride on any shelf. This is the sort of thing bands like Avantasia do so well, and “The Gathering” has obviously been packaged with care and expertise, and I for one will not be letting mine go.

Although it doesn’t go back as far as “Sweets For My Sweet” (which Catley didn’t sing on), “The Gathering” takes Magnum’s career in chronological order, with the first four discs covering “Kingdom Of Madness”, “Into The Valley Of The Moonking” and everything in between. There are some welcome additions to the bog standard greatest hits type stuff, including a much rockier version of “Kingdom Of Madness” itself, and plenty of session outtakes and live tracks. There’s also a good selection of B-sides from the “Vigilante” and “Wings Of Heaven” era, such as the wonderful “Crying Tonight” and “C’est La Vie”. In short, this is a collection that intersperses your favourite tracks with stuff you probably have never heard before, in a constant flow of high quality. To round it off, disc 5 is a live recording from the Hammersmith Odeon in 1988, on the “Wings Of Heaven” tour. There was a video release of this show, but never a DVD, so it’s nice to have here, showcasing the band at the peak of their commercial success and in great form to boot.

Many box sets are a cynical cash in, sure, but “The Gathering” is good enough to make you forget about all that. Although the band weren’t involved in it, it certainly does them proud, and if you are a fan, or you know one, this is an absolute must buy whilst waiting for 2011’s “The Visitation”.
www.magnumonline.co.uk

Mizen Publishing 2010
Review by The Bailey Brothers,
10 June 2010

This is the story about GM JAY, Nick Glam Man, Steve and Pete, four young guys from Brooklyn, New York who head out to Los Angeles USA in search of fame and fortune. Their quest for breast sees a role reversal, its Jay who finds himself on the casting couch of a leading music label scout as he desperately tries to get his starving band that elusive major deal. Author Anna Daly-McCabe has written a credible insight into what life is really like on the road for a young act but most importantly she has done well at character building and slowly adds new twists into the plot. You can’t help but get behind the band wishing them to do well but the moment Jay and the boys turn to booze and drugs the whole rock ‘n’ roll ship is destined to capsize.

With more sex than you could find in an Amsterdam brothel it could have quite easily have been gig, off stage sex with groupies and every day the same. If you are in the music business you could quite easily put names to some of these band members and many musicians would love this book as it’s so on the money regarding the absolute chaos and mayhem you get when 4 young stallions are let loose around the US in a band. If you are looking for good stocking filler for Christmas then this will fit snug as a bug in a rug. Follow Jay and the boys down route 66 it’s a Rocktastic Kick Ass adventure.
Website

Voyageur Press 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
24th October 2010

The recorded output of AC/DC has lasted an incredible 35 years now, from “High Voltage” through to “Black Ice” the band have gone through the ups and downs typical of any bunch of rockers who have managed to stay together for so long. Naturally, any such band will attract unofficial biographers like flies around shit, and there have been numerous books all bursting to tell you pretty much the same story. This latest, by veteran rock journo Phil Sutcliffe, is very much of the ‘coffee table’ variety, a weighty, square tome that calls itself an ‘Ultimate Illustrated History’, and to be honest does pretty damned well at trying to justify that statement.

The first thing you notice is the cover. Yeah, I know that’s pretty obvious, but this cover ain’t just a picture of Angus doing his trademark spin on stage, it allows the reader to actually spin Angus themselves! Idea for drunken sex parties where all the bottles have been broken, I foresee ’Spin The Angus’ taking over from ‘Truth Or Dare’ as the teenage game of choice. Or not. On one hand, it’s incredibly tacky, making a serious book look childish, but on the other it’s so much fun to piss around with I almost forgive Voyageur Press for doing it.

Inside, it’s all business, as Sutcliffe has gone through the vaults with a very fine tooth comb, mixing a straightforward chronological history with snippets from interviews through the years. It’s plain to see that a hell of a lot of research has gone into this, and it reads like a dream. I’m not always a fan of unofficial biogs, but I had a blast going through this one, which had the knock on effect of making me listen to load of AC/DC songs as I travelled the timeline with the author. Unsurprisingly, there’s also shedloads of photographs, including many of unusual releases and promo material that will send some fans scampering for eBay on the off chance someone’s unloading, for example, a pack of “She’s Got the Jack” promotional playing cards from 1977. Along with Sutcliffe’s history, plenty of other authors crop up to offer in depth reviews of every album the band released, with Joe Elliott contributing an afterward. It’s a nice touch, although they do tend to go over the same stuff you have just been reading in the main text.

So should you buy this book? Well, if you know a big AC/DC fan it would be a perfect present, and to be honest it’s even a good read for the casual fan, like myself. You’re not going to learn anything new, but you will certainly enjoy it as a quality biography, with some great pictorial back up.

Inside Out 2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
27 October 2010

It is always a treat if a new solo album of James laBrie is delivered at my home by the mailman, as I still consider James to be one of the best rock/metal voices of our time! However on this album James decided to import hardcore/death vocals (grunting) into Static Impulse which make some songs very difficult to listen to as I am NOT a fan of extreme vocals!! Sadly the two first songs "One More Time" and "Jekyll Or Hyde" have a lot of grunting, produced by Peter Wildoer of Darkane and therefore these songs do not belong to my favourites of this album.

Z Rock 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
25th October 2010

PAt the heart of Eden there’s a very good pedigree. Vocalist Nick Workman released a couple of excellent albums with Kick, whilst guitarist Vince O’Regan has helped Bob Catley make some very good records as well. The problem seems to be that when they get together in Eden the quality seems to drop for no reason I can explain. When I saw them a couple of years back I had no experience of their recorded output and all I could think was that they were a competent melodic hard rock band, but nothing more.

‘Competent melodic hard rock’ is a phrase that sums up “Into the Within” perfectly. O’Regan plays some excellent guitar, both solos and meaty riffs, whilst Workman displays an excellent vocal range. The songs are well constructed and the production is just fine, but there’s just no magic happening here. Seriously, I could listen to this album ten times in a row and be happy but ultimately unsatisfied. From other reviews it seems I’m not alone in this, and it looks like Eden are like chocolate covered bacon - the ingredients are perfect, but the result just doesn’t taste that great.
MySpace

Donkey Ride 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
2 November 2010

The Christian music scene in Finland (and everywhere else, I suppose) is a bit of an isolated entity, with its' own fans, publications and concerts. Occasionally some of the Christian artists break through to the mainstream, but mostly even the most successful artists stay in their own church-related circles. However, it's not like the trends and the successful bands "on the other side" don't influence the Christian scene. Many of the biggest bands have their "Christian counterparts", and in Donkey Ride I believe we have found one for The Poets Of The Fall and others in that genre, post-grunge mainstream rock or whatever you want to call it.

I'm not saying that Donkey Ride are carbon copies of TPOTF, but there are lot of similarities. Donkey Ride's alternative-tinged melancholic rock is likeable but ultimately somewhat forgettable, and when ever I play this album I tend to go from "Hey this is pretty good" to "yawn" after the first few tracks. Maybe it's the fact that the best tracks are early in the tracklisting (first three tracks to be exact)... towards the end of the album the band drifts to darker waters and introduces such things as aggressive hardcore vocals to their sound ("Bullet"), and while that adds variety, I'm not so sure about it. I'd say they are at their best when they don't try to rock so hard and keep it more melodic, like "Amazing Grace" (no, it's not "that" song).

The packaging is impressive, the production is excellent and the vocalist doesn't have a typical Finglish accent, but the songs don't work for me that well. Check it out yourself, there's a free single available on the band's website.
Website
MySpace

MelodicRock Records 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
22 October 2010

One of the first signings of Andrew McNeice's MelodicRock Records is this band from Belgium. Bryan Adams, Van Stephenson, REO Speedwagon and Bon Jovi are cited as influences, which can't be a bad thing, right? Especially when the band members are young dudes... there's still hope for the future, not everyone wants to be a rapper, and indie whiner or aggro-driven metalhead! The band released this album last year by themselves, but the MRR version gets a new artwork and two additional tracks.

The album kicks off with a couple of happy-go-lucky rockers with tried and tested titles. "All Night Long" is a snappy rocker with a good hook, but "Bad Boy" is maybe a bit throwaway but a fun track nevertheless. The real fireworks start with "Asphyxia", a sure-fire hit single if I've ever heard one. Yes folks, this is the kind of balladic track that could've helped any AOR band of the eighties to the charts. That doesn't mean that it couldn't do the same for these guys even today, if all the planets were aligned correctly and so on... The massively anthemic "Rain" is another superb track, although I'm not so sure whether the remix by Beau Hill has done it any favours - the rest of the album sounds more powerful. Maybe this version is more in line what the radio stations want, I don't know.

"Turn Back Time" is one of the new songs, and a winner too. I can see where that Van Stephenson comparison comes from... You'd be forgiven for having Poisoned thoughts of a certain Alice when the intro of "I Need You" kicks in. The song's nothing like "Poison" though, more in vein of Stage Dolls or early Bryan Adams. That goes for the next track "Into Your Heart" as well. Both are very likeable pop-rockers, very eighties' like yet still possessing a modern enough edge.

One would expect a song called "I Wanna Rock You" to be a tougher rock song, yet oddly enough, it's the album's most pop-oriented track. "I Wanna Pop You" might have been more suitable title... or maybe not? Smooth harmonies, but not one of my favourites.

The next couple of songs are about the band's fascination with young girls... "Sweet 17" is the better of the two, again a catchy rocker. "Teenage Queen" doesn't fall far behind, but somehow it's maybe a little too similar to the previous one. Not necessarily the best idea to put them next to each other in the tracklisting. The album's second new track is "All The Way", a decent enough rocker but one that doesn't add much to the album. Neither does the closing ballad "Hope And Dreams", which is pretty uneventful and forgettable.

I can see why Mr. McNeice signed these guys, and to be frank, I'm amazed that they haven't been signed before. At their best the band has immense crossover potential, and hopefully this version of the album does well enough to lift them to the next level.
Website
MySpace

Frontiers 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
19th October 2010

Twenty years ago, Nelson were, let’s be honest, a bit embarrassing. The less than flattering moniker ‘The Timotei Twins” was plastered on them as they played some very wimpy music and looked far too pretty for their own good. Although they continued to make records for the next decade they didn’t bother the charts (or me), and as the Century turned they fell off the map altogether. Until now, obviously.

Frontiers records has thrown a lifeline to the Nelson brothers (Matthew and Gunnar), dragging them from the cruise ship circuit and back to where they belong. I will admit to some trepidation before I first listened to “Lightning Strikes Twice”, because in all honesty I found their big hit “Love & Affection” to be one of the shittiest songs ever, a representation of everything high quality melodic rock shouldn’t be. So yes, I wasn’t exactly jumping for joy when I learned Nelson were back, although it didn’t take long to put a spring in my step.

Put simply, “Lightning Strikes Twice” is one of those albums that leaves you with a big, sloppy shit eating grin on your face. Stacked up against the recent releases by House Of Lords or Danger Danger it actually comes off well, as it contains the same sort of energy and vigour that so many middle of the road AOR releases lack nowadays. The opening salvo of “Call Me”, “Day By Day” and “Ready Willing & Able” is as good a start to an album as you are likely to get, with all three showing a masterful grasp of just what melodic rock is about. Lively, catchy and fun, but without scrimping on the guitars. Don’t think it all stops here, either, as there’s plenty more great tracks on offer. Nothing that’s going to re freeze the ice caps or save the whales, but leave all that soul searching to the likes of Queensryche, as Nelson just want to make you have fun.

Okay, so there are a couple of dips on the album (Who said ‘Matthew and Gunnar’? - SHAME on you!) but it’s nothing too serious. “Lightning Strikes Twice” is definitely a cut above in the AOR stakes, and will be enjoyed by anyone who just likes to have fun with throwaway melodic rock.
www.thenelsonbrothers.com

Avenue Of Allies 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
20 October 2010

Who ever thought that "Fabri Kiareli's F.E.A.S.T." is a good and snappy name for a band should really think again. The goddamn dots in rock band names are becoming really annoying, and does Mr. Kiareli really have to have his name attached to the F.E.A.S.T. as well? Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let's get to the music, which is far better than the project's monicker.

Fabri Kiareli has done pretty much everything on this album, except for playing drums, and he's done an admirable job. The album sounds good, his gritty vocals suit the tunes to a tee and his guitarplaying is excellent. He's not too bad a songwriter either, as the best tracks of the album prove.

To be honest, after the first three songs I was ready to lump in with the other two Avenue Of Allies releases I've reviewed this week (Fire and Perfect View) - competent, yet not very exciting. Then the album got a jumpstart with "Dangerous Love", a cool midtempo rocker with more than passing resemblance to the Steelheart track "Can't Stop Me Lovin' You". The Dokken-like "Follow The Way" proved to be even better, as did the ballad "Cold Hearted". (Ain't Done) 'Til It's Over" didn't end the winning streak, and while the metallic "Win Or Lose" wasn't as good as the previous few tracks, it wasn't bad either. The winning streak more or less lasts all the way to the end of the album, with only "Shock Me" being a token average track.

If the likes of Dokken, Gotthard or Victory are your kind of hard rockin', may I suggest that you head to the web addresses below and check out this band. The name may be dodgy, but what's in a name anyway...
Website
MySpace

Frontiers 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
24th October 2010

Five years after the debut “The Battle”, and three years after the second album "Revenge", Russell Allen (Symphony X) and Jorn Lande (Masterplan) have teamed up again with songwriter/guitarist Magnus Carlson (Primal Fear/Starbreaker) to produce a high quality album that mixes dramatic metal with melodic rock and comes out with a big smile on it’s face.

I’ve been listening to “The Showdown” for a few weeks now, but have put off the review because I reall am finding it hard to remember many of the tracks later on. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoy it every time I listen, which is an unusual state of affairs. The balance between the two vocalists is excellent, as is Dennis Ward’s production (nothing new there), and the songs are all well balanced, veering between the out and out heavy rock of the title track to the AOR of tracks like “Judgement Day” or “Maya”. The album pulses with crunchy guitar, interspersed with keyboards to lighten the metal edge, and the overall effect is very comfortable, although the bombastic, dramatic nature of the songs can render them a little samey.

This just seems to be one of those albums that has oodles of talent blatently on show, but never quite lives up to the promise of it’s parts. This is not to say that it’s not a good album, because it certainly is, it’s just that I feel it could have been a real belter. Suffice to say if you liked the first two Allen/Lande/Karlsson collaborations you will certainly dig this one.
www.myspace.com/allenlande2

Avenue Of Allies 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
22 October 2010

Perfect View are an Italian band who play "keyboard ladden AOR spiced up with rocking guitars, brilliant melodies and fabulous harmonies" according to their label. Sure enough, their first album showcases a competent band and a bunch of well-produced melodic rock songs, but I'm afraid their melodies are far from brilliant. It's a bit of a shame, as the band and the producer Roberto Priori have obviously worked hard to create a masterpiece - the arrangements are rich, lush with plenty of keyboards, lively guitarwork and backing vocals. Vocalist Massimiliano Ordine has what I would call a "mediterranian" voice, lots of vibrato and and a kind of a strained higher register. I've got to wonder why so many Italian or Spanish vocalists sound like this, maybe it's a cultural thing? Anyway, he does a good job here, even though his type of vocals aren't to my liking really. It all comes down to the material, and most of these songs cannot hold my interest for too long.

The band's at its' best when it doesn't try to re-write the AOR songbook but adds a bit of a progressive edge to their songs, such as "One More Time" (White Sister meets Shotgun Symphony?), "Where's The Love" (Winger'ish) or "Showtime". Some of you will get a kick out of the Journeyisms of "Closer" and the likes, but somehow I'm not won over by them at all. And "A Reason To Fight" borrows its' verses from Warrant's "Heaven" so shamelessly that one hopes they would've borrowed the chorus too, as their own isn't quite as catchy.
Website
MySpace

Avenue Of Allies 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
22 October 2010

This might be the first Maltese band I've ever reviewed... Last year the Avenue Of Allies released Fire's second album "Thrill Me", and apparently it was so successful that there was demand for a re-issue of this album, their 2006 debut, previously only released in Malta. I haven't heard "Thrill Me", so this my first taste of Fire.

Straight away, the band makes it clear that basic hard rock is their thing. "Get Out Of My Way" is a no-frills rocker, kinda similar to early Gotthard material, only with less gritty vocals Kenneth Calleja. He actually sounds like more like two other Swiss vocalists, namely Math Shiverow and Patrik Mason who both were singers of China back in the eighties. There's a bit of a Danny Vaughn-vibe to his voice too. Anyway, the opening track isn't too bad, but nothing earth-shattering either. "Make Believe" is slightly weaker, with more of a laid-back Tyketto feel but a slightly dull chorus. The downward spiral continues with the next three songs, which are a bit too "meat-and-potato" hard rock to keep me interested.

The China-comparison rises up again with the balladic "Goin' Down", which sounds very much like a left-over from their "Sign In The Sky" album. It's much better than the previous few tracks though. "Behind Your Eyes" adds a bit of a contemporary edge to the band's sound, yet it boasts the best hook of the album, and gets my vote as the album's highlight. "Home And Dry" is another contender, again with a strong Tyketto vibe and a good chorus.

This re-issue features two bonus tracks, both of which are better than some of the duller boogie-rock tracks of the actual album. First of them is a rocking version of Bryan Adams' classic "Run To You", and another an admittedly cheesy, yet catchy Christmas song "Miss You This Christmas". Especially the Adams' cover pushes this album from a fiver to a 6.
Website
MySpace

Frontiers 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
22nd October 2010

The name Strangeways takes me back 25 years or so to when I saw them supporting Europe on the parptastic ‘Final Countdown’ tour. The band, and their ‘Native Sons’ album, impressed me greatly, and it’s certainly good to see them back in the studio after 20 years, oddly competing with lead singer Terry Brock’s very well received solo album ‘Diamond Blue’.

It’s a mixed bag, this one, with big, melodic masterpieces like the title track offset by moody stuff like the second track ‘Borderlines’, which is a nice song but ultimately as exciting as socks for Christmas. The quality of the songs, however, is offset by a production that is not a million miles away from listening to the album underwater. Couple this with the fact that the vast majority of the songs are pretty darned slow, and you get an album that just doesn’t call me back for repeated listens. Whilst Brock’s solo album has upbeat, catchy songs, it seems that Strangeways have been left all the meaningful, willowy crescendo builders.

There’s really little here to encourage a purchase, unfortunately. A few good, hard tracks and a lot of yawners, cooked up in a half assed production that is most unlike what we’re used to from Frontiers. If you have to revisit the old days, get Brock’s solo album, as that is a peach. This, however, is far from perfect...

Riff City Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
15th October 2010

Never a band to release a 3 track EP when they can do 9, FM have plugged the gap between albums with an official single release of “Bring Back Yesterday”, the song that garnered decent airplay on UK radio against all the laws of probability.

AT the core of the EP is the aforementioned track and a brand new song, “Start Up”. I don’t know if this is brand new or a leftover from the “Metropolis” sessions, but it would certainly have sat well on the album, a happy, upbeat track that will make you miss the Summer. There’s also a nice new acoustic recording of the band’s classic track “That Girl”, which sounds wonderful. The CD is rounded off by 5 live recordings of various songs from “Metropolis”, including the stupidly catchy “Over You” and the bluesy “Flamingo Road”, plus an extended mix of “Bring Back Yesterday”, just like we used to get on 12” singles!

The whole thing is very well packaged and sounds great, making it a top notch addition to any FM collection. It seems that the boys are still back, and I hope they stay awhile.
www.fmofficial.com

Frontiers 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
25 October 2010

I'm not a fan of live albums, and this one isn't going to change that. That's not to say that it's bad, I like the band and many of my favourite songs of theirs are on the CD, but let's face it: if I want to listen to them, I'm more likely to put on the studio versions. These live versions are good and faithful to the originals, the audience noise is kept to a minimum and keyboard parts and possibly some other stuff is coming from backing tapes I believe. Therefore most of time these versions sound almost identical to the studio ones, maybe only a bit rawer... so what's the point? This would have been a great show to watch, I'm sure about that, but somehow listening to it at home doesn't quite have the same effect.

A live DVD is another thing, because it adds the visual dimension to the experience. It's a good thing that such an item is going to be released at the same time, it'll be called "In The Flesh" and it'll feature some extra material, like a Poodles "movie" and promo videos. If was about to invest in some Live Poodles, I'd go for that package. This album, as good as it is, would most probably only end up collecting dust in the shelf.

Tracks: Too Much Of Everything; Caroline; Seven Seas; Metal Will Stand Tall; Like No Tomorrow; One Out Of Ten; Lullaby For Jimmy; Drum Solo; Echoes From The Past; Thunderball; I Rule The Night; Night Of Passion; Flesh & Blood; Line Of Fire
Website
MySpace

Niji Entertainment 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
21st October 2010

Sometimes it’s hard to accept the fact that Ronnie James Dio has ceased to be. One of the few people who envisioned the term ‘legend’ as far as music is concerned, Dio will always have a place in my heart, and whenever two or more metalheads are gathered together they will remember him whilst making devil horns and burping “We Rock”. I remember seeing him and his excellent band at Donnington in 1987, and the BBC recording of that gig is whet we have here, along with his first Donnington appearance in 1983, promoting his debut album under the Dio moniker.

The good news here is that the recordings are wonderful, just what you’d expect from the boys and girls at the Beeb, who would have ensured that they were of broadcast able quality even twenty seven years ago, although I’m sure they have been suitably tweaked for the CD release. Each disc is a straight recording with no gaps or farting about, with the band on both comprising of the same people apart from Vivian Campbell in 1983 and Craig Goldy in 1987 (on lead guitar). Inevitably, there’s a few duplicated songs, but because there was 3 albums between performances the sets are varied enough for this to be a trivial matter. The variety of tracks is great, with unusual stuff like “Starstruck” and “Naked In The Rain” getting an airing alongside the usual suspects of “Man On The Silver Mountain” and “Heaven & Hell”.

Live albums can be a mixed bunch, and I’ve never been a mad fan of them in general. Good mixing makes all the difference, and you want a “Live After Death” rather than “Unleashed In The East”. “Dio At Donnington” is up there with the best of them, giving you 18 individual songs (plus a few doubles) over the course of two tight as fuck shows. The promotional material promises “a booklet filled with rare interviews and liner notes”, but that’s not what I’ve got, unless there’s an even more deluxe dig pack on the way. The fold out dig pack is nice, and the booklet is rather thin (there must be LOADS of fan photos they could have sourced, surely?). There’s a nice piece from the magic pen of Dante Bonutto, but there should have been much much more. In conclusion, buy this for the music, as the packaging doesn’t quite cut it, even with the two reproduction laminates that are included.
www.ronniejamesdio.com

Kyrbgrinder Music 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
21st September 2010

I like to be surprised. Not when people jump out screaming and make me piss myself, but by albums that just don’t like the look of that turn out to be something special. “Cold War Technology” is the second from Londoners Kyrbgrinder, and the name and cover made me expect something shouty and dumb, and what I got instead was something original and intelligent. It’s like going out with Amy Winehouse and finding out that not only is it all an act, but she’s got a doctorate in rocket science.

Kyrbgrinder’s main man is Johanne James, known to many as the drum master from Prog metal group Threshold. Here he also sings, but there’s no comparisons to Don Henley. James writes some rather brainy lyrics that come under the heading ‘deep, meaningful shit’, backing them up with some seriously heavy and funky music and a voice that suit’s the music down to the ground. After I listened to the album a few times, I couldn’t help think of 90s bands like Scrap Iron Scientists and 2 Tribes, even a bit of Living Colour, bands who were beautifully in your face, smart and not afraid to turn up the volume. If this album was being shouted, it would not have half the power it does, and I seriously think it’s James’ voice that makes all the difference, turning what could have been an angry, dull album into an angry, fascinating one that you can play over and over again. He’s not a superstar vocalist, but he has that something that brings out the best in the music. Mind you, the music is pretty bloody good anyway, with Tom Caris pulling out some intense, widdletastic solos when he’s not laying down catchy, heavy riffage.

In a nutshell, take Living Colour, throw in some Rage Against The Machine and stir well with defunct black 90s Brit metal bands, and you have Kyrbgrinder. Alternatively, head over to their MySpace and have a listen. If you like what you hear you will love the rest of the album, I guarantee it. Oh, except for the cover of Nirvana’s “Heart Shaped Box”, which is totally pointless, adding nothing at all to the song itself or the album. Glad I got that off my chest, but get the album anyway and just don’t load that one on the iPod.
www.myspace.com/kyrbgrinder

Frontiers 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
04 October 2010

"When Worlds Collide" is more than just a comeback album of a cult AOR band. The band has released 3 albums since their debut (1992) with different singers, but now they have reunited with the original vocalist Marcie Free. She's been inactive as a singer since her gender-change operation, but with this album she steps back into the limelight. Many of you might wonder whether the voice has changed, but rest assured, it hasn't and she's still one of the finest singers of the genre. The whole ordeal might be a little bit confusing, but I hope it doesn't prevent anyone from enjoying these songs.

It's been 18 years, but I'll have to say that this album does sound like a natural successor to the self-titled debut. It's maybe a bit more mellow and less urgent, but just as polished and well-excecuted piece of melodic hard rock. The musicianship is as top-notch as you'd expect from a group of seasoned rockers, and on top of that, the incredible vocals of Marcie Free. There may be singers who are technically better or have a wider range, but for the sheer emotion and delivery, she's in a class of her own. I'll have to hand it to the background vocalists, there's some truly fine moments here.

After all that praise, why am I giving this "only" 8 out of 10? Well, the songs itself are mostly good or even very good, but there are a couple of tracks I could've done without. For some reason, "Insane" doesn't work for me at all, despite all the wonderful things the rhythm section does on it. The chorus is kind of annoying really, as are Marcie's "lovingyou-hatingyou-lovingyou" ad-libs. Another culprit is "Life Death" which brings back bad memories of melodic rock bands trying to "adapt" to the grunge era. Free's vocals are fine, but the song just sounds "wrong". like Toto playing Soundgarden or something. Then there's the opener "Show Me The Money", which is an okay song, but somehow it sounds like it was tailormade to sound like the first album's heavier songs.

Enough of this negativity, and onto the good songs... the smooth AOR of "When We Were Young" and "Very First Time" is impossible to resist, and damn it, the chorus of "Love Is Blind" is pure magic! When Free sings that "this love is blind and then it's gone" you can not help but believe it. Othe key tracks of the album are the title track, "Read My Mind" and the ballad "You Don't Understand". Welcome back, Unruly Child, and welcome back, Marcie! We've missed you!
Website
MySpace

Sony Music 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
2nd October 2010

Back in the day, I was a bit of a Joe Satriani fan. One of the first CDs I bought was “Surfing With The Alien”, partly because all the reviews liked it, and partly because it had a picture of the Silver Surfer on the cover. It was the first instrumental album I ever got into, and as such has stayed with me, especially the title track and the beautiful “Always With Me, Always With You”. Fickle as I am, I didn’t really listen to him much after that, although I was impressed with his vocal “Big Bad Moon”. In truth, I’m just not a big sucker for instrumental albums, so it was with some trepidation that I agreed to review this, his 14th solo album.

First off, I should warn the shred heads that “Black Swans & Wormhole Wizards” is not a kick ass rock album. Sure, there’s a fair slice of rockin’ tunes to enjoy, but Joe in his fifties is much less urgent than Joe in his thirties, and there’s stuff on here that is gentle and moving, stuff to impress jazz friends with and stuff that shows that he’s still got the blues (he probably picked them up when Gary Moore dropped them). There’s eleven tracks here, with not a single vocal in sight, and I can see existing Satch fans being very happy with the selection: It’s powerful, it’s fun, and it’s eclectic.

So there’s plenty to like here, and even I found myself enjoying the simple act of just sitting and listening to a guy who is as good as he ever was, a guitar master who has earned the tag ten times over. Joe Satriani may be ripping things up with Chickenfoot nowadays, but this album is proof he isn’t about to forget where his roots are, delivering yet another album that will make anyone who has ever played guitar sit back and say “Fuck! He can play!”.
http://www.satriani.com/

Century Media 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
07 September 2010

It seemed like Firewind were destined to remain in the second division of Eurometal, churning out decent but somewhat average albums one after another. Their fourth album "Allegiance" changed that at least for me, as the band introduced more melody and hooks to their metal, not to mention a new vocalist Apollo Papathanasio. It was one of the better metal releases of 2006. The follow-up "The Premonition" was a slight disappointment for me but it did reasonably well, and the band made a lot of fans during their live shows. Last year the metal world was shaken by the news that Firewind guitarist Gus G. would replace Zakk Wylde in Ozzy Osbourne's band. Virtually overnight Gus G. went from a cult guitar hero to a guitar magazine cover star! While it undoubtedly made things a bit complicated for Firewind, it also raised their profile a lot, and I'm sure that this album will be the band's biggest seller so far. It damn well should be, as it's a very strong album.

The album kicks off with probably the heaviest track of the album, "The Ark Of Lies". Unfortunately it's also one the least interesting ones. The first single "World On Fire" and "Chariot" are better, but still somehow reminding me of "The Premonition" album - OK songs but still lacking that extra spark.

"Embrace The Sun" really starts the album for me, with cool keyboards and a huge chorus. Now this is more like it! "Heading For The Dawn" has more than a little bit of a Stratovarius vibe, and it's armed with a highly melodic chorus, which is allright by me. Very much allright is the balladic "Broken" too, featuring another killer chorus. "Cold As Ice" sounds a lot like At Vance at their very best, and again we get another catchy hook. Four in a row... and "Kill In The Name Of Love" is another good track with a good, anthemic chorus, so let's make that five in a row!

The widdle-fest that is "SKG" will probably please the guitar fans, as Gus G. shreds like a... shredder on it. I prefer actual songs, and one of the best of the album is next, the melodic "Losing Faith". The last two tracks are worthy additions to the tracklisting as well, if slightly weaker than the previous few tracks (the instrumental notwithstanding). "When All Is Said And Done" is the better one of them, and strangely enough it reminds me a bit of Firewind's touring partners Kamelot.

Ozzy connection or not, this album is a safe bet for anyone into melodic metal.
Website
MySpace

2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
20 September 2010

Vonassi is an American band from Chicago and The Battle Of Ego is their debut. If you enjoy bands like Rush, Porcupine Tree, Spock's Beard and most of all Tiles, then you can buy this cd without furher ado. The music on this album is a mix of prog rock, AOR and plain straightforward rock. Opening song "The Drudge" is a good rock track with excellent riifs and a catchy guitar solo. "Gini" features a lot of acoustic guitar passages and is therefore a lot mellower than the opening track.

"Beginnings" is again a true rocker with lost of rather heavy guitar parts. The musical highlights of this album are: "Authenticity" and the last song called "Coiled". The latter kicks of with an acoustic intro, followed by lots of funky passages, reminding me very much of Tiles. The last 4 minutes of silence at the end of this song is a true disappointment; heard it before and I still do NOT get it... "Authenticity gets" you moving with its great bass and drums passages and the guitar solo in this track is the best one of the entire album.

www.progrockrecords.com 2010
Review by Martien Koolen,
20 September 2010

Saturnine is the second album of prog rockers Dante and it probably is not their best effort as most of the melodies and solos on this album are TOO familiar to really enjoy. The vocals are rather mediocre and the singer Alexander Gohs has a rather strong German accent. Dante mixes elements of Genesis, Pink Floyd, ELP, Porcupine Tree and Nela Morse and their sound is rather "bombastic"; meaning lots of orchestrations, huge melodies and lots of intimate musical moments.

"All My Life" is a good opening song, filled with prog rock riffs, lots of bombastic passages and a rather nice guitar and keyboard solo. The follow up "Drifting" is however a bit too sweet as it is a typical ballad like prog rock song which I have heard too many lately. Dante keeps the best for last because the epic song "Vanessa" - clocking over 19 minutes - is a true prog gem. The overture of this song features a breathtaking guitar solo and the rest of the song is also amazing. Lots of diversity so you are not bored during the entire 19 minutes; lots of tempo changes, lots of solos and even the vocals on this track are outstanding.

Valery Records 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
2nd September 2010

Just to show that Italians can do Goth as well as the next country, Bloody Mary roll up with an album that pretty much out Goths The Addams Family, although they’ll never better that funky theme tune. It has got a great cover, though, one that sets out exactly what the band is about, which is sexy Goth chicks dancing to songs about doom, gloom and partying.

“Party Music For Graveyards” certainly doesn’t break any new ground (even to bury someone in), taking the path of least resistance previously trodden by the likes of The Cult, Sisters Of mercy and The Ramones (they do a nice but redundant cover of the latter’s “Pet Semetary”). Even so, they have a good ear for melody and the album is a strong one, with plenty of catchy songs given a deathly pallor by Aldebran’s dark vocals that aren’t a million miles away from Andrew Eldritch. If it wasn’t for him, some of the songs here would actually be quite jolly, but that’s not necessarily a criticism, as he does his job well.

If you are an old school Goth then Bloody Mary should give you lots of ghoulish fun, and even passing fiends will get a kick from the quality of the songs here. Sure, we’ve heard it before, but as Zombies go it’s not at all bad.
www.myspace.com/bloodymary

Escape 2010
Review by Kimmo Toivonen,
20 September 2010

This one's been sitting on my desk for quite a while I see... or actually on my HD, since we rarely get actual CDs anymore. Firecracker is Vindictiv guitarist Stefan Lindholm's band from the days before his current "employer". The album features the vocals of one Tommy Parevik, known for his work as the lead singer of Seventh Wonder, the highly acclaimed progressive metal band.

"Born Of Fire" is well-produced, well-played prog metal with exceptional vocals. Fans of complicated arrangements, long solos and even longer songs are surely going to get a kick out of this, but for me this album doesn't work. The musicianship is flawless and I'm sure that the guys play some incredibly difficult things, but that doesn't really matter when none of the songs really leave a lasting impression. "The Refrain" comes closer with some tempting melodic moments, but before and after that it's perhaps a bit too "widdly-widdly" for me. And the lo-fi demo of "Speed Devil" could've been left to collect dust in the archive.

AOR Heaven 2010
Review by Alan Holloway,
7th October 2010

Australia has given us many nice things, such as Bill Bryson, Paul Hogan (up to a point), Airbourne and some of AC/DC. Melbourne rockers White Widdow are hoping to capture people’s hearts and wallets with this, their debut release, but it seems unlikely.

As a piece of music, the album is pretty hard to fault. Vocalist Jules Mills has a good enough voice, backed by a competent band and produced to perfection by Martin Kronlund. There’s some nice melodies, catchy choruses and solid if unremarkable guitar solos. It should be a slam dunk, but try as I might I just can’t get excited about White Widdow. The problem is that this is probably the most average AOR album ever made. Every song is like a dozen you have heard before, every “Whoaaahoooaahh” like one you remember from Early Bon Jovi. This is cliché city, people, and whilst there’s nothing wrong with a good cliché, it needs to be boosted by at least a spark of originality and passion. There’s absolutely nothing here that makes you sit up and take notice, leaving you with perfect background AOR that is enjoyable enough on a surface level but no more.

Tough criticism? Sure, but when you love AOR and melodic rock like we do you need bands that have that special something to make them stand out from the herd. White Widdow have produced an album of perfectly serviceable melodic rock but nothing more.
www.whitewiddow.com