"If I could survive to live one more time
I wouldn't be changing a thing at all
Done more in my life than some do in ten
I'd go back and do it all over again..."
Not many girls accept the challenge to “hide” their beauty behind a drum kit, but when they dare to pick up the drumsticks and start playing, the results are usually awesome. That’s exactly the case with our Metal babe this month, the amazing Heavy Metal/Hard Rock drummer Linda McDonald, also known as “Nikki McBurrain”, from the all-female Iron Maiden tribute band The Iron Maidens, and “Brandy Castillo”, from the all-female Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls . Besides those two tribute projects, she’s also the drummer for the cover bands Valley Dolls, Crabby Patty (I’m So Unclear!) and Unholy Pink, and the drummer/co-founder of the all-female Heavy Metal band Phantom Blue from its start back in 1987 until they parted ways in 2001.
Of Irish and Japanese descent, which kind of explains her exotic traces, Linda Ann McDonald was born in the city of Great Falls, Montana, United States, and by the age of 4 she was already drumming on her mom’s kitchen plastic containers, then taking guitar, piano, drums and violin lessons. Linda also attended several drumming and ear training courses at the Dick Grove School of Music to improve her playing skills.
Her biggest idols in the world of music are of course the beasts Clive Burr (R.I.P.) and Nicko McBrain, but she also mentions important drummers such as Simon Phillips, John Bonham, Alex Van Halen and Phil Collins as other influences in her music style. Linda is currently endorsed by Paiste cymbals, Vic Firth drumsticks, Drum Workshop drums, pedals and hardware, Coffin Case and Monster Energy Drink, and in terms of success and media, she has been featured in lots of music magazines such as Kerrang!, Metal Hammer and Modern Drummer, some Heavy Metal/Hard Rock radio shows, as well as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and won many prizes including “Best Drummer/Performance of Drums and Percussion” at the 7th Annual LA Music Awards in 1997, and “Best Female Drummer” at the 3rd and 7th Annual Rock City News Awards Show, in 1998 and 2001 respectively.
Although she’s more recognized nowadays for her contribution to the music of The Iron Maidens, in my opinion the most electrifying moment of her career were her years smashing the drums with the amazing band Phantom Blue, with whom she recorded two full-length studio albums entitled Phantom Blue (1989) and Built to Perform (1993), an album of previously recorded demos called Prime Cuts & Glazed Donuts (1995), the live album Caught Live! (1997), and finally the EP Full Blown (1998). If you don’t know anything about this band, I suggest you listen to the entire Built to Perform album HERE: it’s impossible not to bang your head with this pure Hard Rock release. Despite the band breaking up in 2001, Linda and Courtney Cox, one of her bandmates from The Iron Maidens, joined former Phantom Blue members Kim Nielsen-Parsons, Gigi Hangach (who was the inspiration for one of our previous Metal chicks, Mia Coldheart) and Tina Wood for a reunion at a very special öne night only” concert in 2009 for the benefit of brain research in memory of Phantom Blue co-founder Michelle Meldrum, who died of a cystic growth in her brain in 2008.
With The Iron Maidens, Linda has recorded the albums World’s Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden (2005) and Route 666 (2007), the EP The Root of All Evil (2008), and a video in 2010 entitled Metal Gathering Tour Live in Japan 2010. You can find a lot of excellent videos from Linda and the other “Iron Maidens” kickin’ ass on YouTube, as for example this amazing version for The Evil That Men Do live in Las Vegas in 2012. And it’s easy to understand why The Iron Maidens are so good in what they do: according to Linda, excelling as a tribute band is all about recreating the whole live show vibe of the original band, including first of all the sound, with the stage, clothing and signature moves of the members up next.
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When asked about her favorite Iron Maiden songs to perform live, she always mentions the unparalleled classics Phantom of the Opera and Revelations as her top ones, mainly due to all the power and emotion they have. Furthermore, our gorgeous drummer considers the superb Maiden Japan as one of the most important albums of her life: in her own words, “Clive Burr is just on fire on that recording!”, and it was Clive’s perfect drumming on that album that made her decide to play the drums. Besides Maiden Japan, Linda said she would truly love to play the all-time classic Somewhere In Time from beginning to end one day. What can I say about that? That would be an impeccable concert without a shadow of a doubt.
In addition, among her favorite non-Iron Maiden bands and musicians, there’s a lot of awesomeness such as Pantera, Judas Priest, Stormtroopers of Death (S.O.D.), Steve Vai, some non-traditional Heavy Metal bands and artists like Static X and System of a Down, and even Barry Manilow. Linda also mentioned during one of her interviews that the song Fast as a Shark, one of Accept’s biggest classics and by far my favorite song from those Teutonic Heavy Metal masters, really opened her eyes to the power of Heavy Metal. All those formidable choices just corroborate her marvelous taste for music, don’t you agree?
And at long last, Linda is also an avid pet lover, having a dog, a cat and a parakeet in her home. I wonder if she has ever tried to teach any of those animals how to do that weird scream Nicko always does in between some songs during an Iron Maiden concert, or how they react to her intense drumming and to the music she listens to at home. Anyway, one thing I’m certain about is that those are really lucky pets.
The Panther is back with another good album, although not as captivating as their previous ones.
After three long years waiting for more profanity, boobs, pussy and especially good heavy music, American Heavy Metal/Hard Rock band Steel Panther is finally back with their third full-length album, the good All You Can Eat. And that’s the main issue with this album: it’s only good, not awesome, and very few songs are truly exciting or memorable.
Of course we were not expecting anything so fuckin’ awesome such as the classics Death To All But Metal, The Shocker, Asian Hooker, Tomorrow Night or Gold-Digging Whore, not even that the whole album was as original as Feel The Steel and Balls Out, but the lack of punch and the annoying repetition of most of the choruses make me wonder if the band was feeling “tired” while recording All You Can Eat, and even if they recorded it only as an excuse for more touring and selling more merchandise.
However, the “Fanthers” don’t need to get too worried about it, as the Panther’s main characteristics are still there keeping the album at a good level: their talent as musicians continues to be impeccable, especially Michael Starr’s voice, and their lyrics full of profanity and obscenity give the album that special touch that makes us laugh while listening to it in our cars even during a snow storm or a traffic jam. Moreover, another positive thing in the album is the addition of some elements from Blues and Thrash Metal, giving some tracks an extra dose of originality.
And the album starts in a very promising way with the heavy and funny (and undoubtedly one of the best of all tracks) Pussywhipped, with its “epic” intro and amazing riffs and drums, and Party Like Tomorrow is the End of the World, the album’s first single with inspiring lyrics (“Have sex (yeah!) / With every female of the species he say / The end is near (yeah!) / So don’t you worry about the HIV”) and a video (see below) that cannot be described with words. Well, if I do so, this website will probably be banned due to censorship.
Then we have the amazing Gloryhole, which is exactly what we want to listen to when the band is Steel Panther: it’s by far the most Hard Rock of all tracks, with Michael Starr at his best, and it’s impossible not to sing along with the lyrics (“I don’t wanna know / Who will suck my cock tonight”). The following two tracks are totally forgettable songs called Bukkake Tears, which is not a bad ballad but at the same time nothing really exciting, and Gangbang at the Old Folks Home, with a chorus so repetitive it’s really hard to listen to the entire song. Fortunately after that torture the Panther redeem themselves with the excellent mix of Hard Rock and Blues from Ten Strikes You’re Out, which not only has the best instrumental of all but also awesome lyrics.
That’s when all problems really start in All You Can Eat, as the rest of album is pretty much filler and there’s actually nothing we’ll be eager to see them playing live: The Burden of Being Wonderful might have its funny lyrics, but it’s a horrible song overall; Fucking My Heart in the Ass might have a very funny name, but the lyrics are way too repetitive (how many times does he have to say “fucking my heart in the ass”?) and the riffs are too generic; although B.V.S. has a very good riff by Satchel, the lyrics are way too silly (“Big Vagina Syndrome is becoming a common disease / Ladies that have this affliction are never easy to please”? Was that really necessary?); You’re Beautiful When You Don’t Talk is another ballad inspired by some 80’s mellow classics that doesn’t work at all; If I Was the King is more Stoner and has some good moments, but it’s a bit tiring after a couple of minutes; and last but not least, She’s on the Rag is a very generic song that, after the classics Girl From Oklahoma (from Feel The Steel) and Weenie Ride (from Balls Out), makes the ending of the album really disappointing. Where’s that traditional love/sexist ballad to end the album in a magnificent way?
Finally, if there’s one thing that really stands out in All You Can Eat is the album art: it’s just perfect, a true masterpiece, and a serious contender for “Best Album Art of the Year”. In my opinion, only Mel Brooks’ all-time classic History of the World: Part I and the testosterone-fueled movie The Expendables 2 were capable of recreating the Last Supper more brilliantly than the Panther. But as what really matters is the music itself, that doesn’t make All You Can Eat a must-have album in the end. In other words, it’s good, but not what we really wanted to eat.
Best moments of the album:Pussywhipped, Gloryhole and Ten Strikes You’re Out.
Worst moments of the album:Gangbang at the Old Folks Home, The Burden of Being Wonderful, Fucking My Heart in the Ass and She’s on the Rag.
Released in 2014 Kobalt Label Services
Track listing 1. Pussywhipped 4:37
2. Party Like Tomorrow is the End of the World 4:01
3. Gloryhole 4:32
4. Bukkake Tears 4:47
5. Gangbang at the Old Folks Home 3:47
6. Ten Strikes You’re Out 3:24
7. The Burden of Being Wonderful 3:29
8. Fucking My Heart in the Ass 4:14
9. B.V.S. 3:57
10. You’re Beautiful When You Don’t Talk 3:49
11. If I Was the King 3:42
12. She’s on the Rag 3:50
Band members Michael Starr – lead vocals
Satchel – lead, rhythm and acoustic guitars
Lexxi Foxxx – bass guitar
Stix Zadinia – drums, percussion, piano
It doesn’t matter if you’re a marauder or even a cannibal, always remember not to mess with Sheriff Rick Grimes.
***WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS***
If you haven’t seen A yet, I suggest you scroll down to the end of this post first and watch the entire episode before reading the rest of the text.
So AMC’s The Walking Dead season 4 is finally over and, after all those flashbacks, introspective moments and just a few minutes of sheer violence (I was expecting a lot more of that, based on what the producers of the show were promising) in the last episode, curiously named only “A”, all fans will have to wait until October to get some extra doses of brutality and lots of answers for many things that were not explained at all, such as where Beth, Carol, Tyreese and Judith are, who will die on the hands of the people at Terminus, and how Rick and the others will escape from that nightmare.
I must admit the first five minutes were awesome, with that flashback showing our beloved hero Hershel back in the day where the prison was still a safe place, always helping everyone with his words of wisdom, and Rick was trying to be more human in order to become a better father, and then Rick covered in blood a totally away from reality. How did Rick reach that point? When did he snap and why? All that tension and mystery already put “A” well above most of the episodes from the second half of season 4, but unfortunately that didn’t last as long as we were all eagerly waiting for.
Of course, that sequence where Joe and his gang finally find Rick, Michonne and Carl, and the vision of Carl almost being raped by one of the marauders turning Rick into a merciless wild beast, was simply amazing. Our sheriff ripping Joe’s throat with his own teeth, like if he was some type of “alive zombie”, was awesome and showed why he and Carl have survived the apocalypse up to now and, of course, proved once again why the walkers are the least dangerous of all their problems. Rick almost surpassed Stallone ripping a guy’s throat with his own hand in the last Rambo movie in terms of bestiality, but let’s admit it’s pretty hard to be more violent and reckless than Mr. John Rambo.
Anyway, as I said, that scene was too short and Rick, Carl, Daryl and Michonne started the last part of their journey to Terminus. That bite surely turned Rick into a different person, and his survival instincts are now stronger than ever, which could be easily seen in each and every moment before and when the group reached the “sanctuary for all”: he left a bag full of weapons outside Terminus (which will most likely be their salvation next season), and he didn’t seem to trust any of the people there, especially this new guy, Gareth. Well, he was more than right, because when creepy Mary and Gareth offer them some food, Rick sees those strangers wearing Maggie’s poncho and Glenn’s vest and watch, and he then realizes that’s no sanctuary at all.
But the worst was still to come, when amidst all the shooting Rick notices they were aiming at their feet and that they were not trying to kill them. Do you want to know why? Just think about the meat that Mary was serving them before and you’ll get it (and probably will be disgusted by that). They end up being caught by Gareth and the others members of that dreadful cult and sent to a train wagon, where not surprisingly they reunite with Glenn, Maggie, Bob and Sasha, and get to know Sgt. Abraham Ford, Eugene and Rosita.
And to end this season in a very exciting way, badass Rick doesn’t seem worried at all with the fact that they’re about to become Gareth and his bunch of cannibals’ afternoon snack. “They’re screwing with the wrong people.”, our sheriff said. Any doubts about that?
And this will be the last review about The Walking Dead on this website. Not because the show is not good anymore (it’s still awesome), but because the focus will be exclusively Heavy Metal and Hard Rock. So unless Rick starts listening to AC/DC during his fights against zombies and other humans in the following seasons, like Andrew Lincoln said he does prior to shooting some of his scenes, that’s all, folks.
Gamma Ray return with their unmatched empire of Heavy Metal.
After a very long and exciting wait, Empire Of The Undead, the new album by German Power Metal masters Gamma Ray is finally among us, and once again the one and only Kai Hansen and his crew deliver us excellent music full of great riffs, nice lyrics, and above all that, lots of passion for what binds us all together. Yes, I’m talking about pure HEAVY METAL. And yes, Germany keeps on rockin’ nonstop in 2014.
As a long-time fan of the band, from the times when Dirk Schlächter was still the guitarist and Ralf Scheepers was still on vocals, I, for one, am a huge advocate of Gamma Ray’s music and style. In my humble opinion, they have reached that same stage bands such as Motörhead, AC/DC and The Ramones have, a stage where changing their music direction would be the major mistake of their lives. Who wants to see to Kai Hansen singing Rap or the band adding any electronic elements to their music? Other less important bands can try that, but Gamma Ray exist to provide us the most traditional heavy music we so much love.
To kick off things in an exceptional way, how about the 9-minute epic tune Avalon, with its excellent solos and harmony, which reminds me of one of their biggest classics, “Rebellion In Dreamland”? Then comes the best, fastest and most awesome song of the album, the pure fuckin’ metal song Hellbent, with its lyrics and especially chorus being a tribute to Heavy Metal fans all around the world (“Hellbent for Metal / That’s what we are / Hellbent for Metal / Straight from the heart”). Kai Hansen is not only always amazing on vocals and on the guitar, but he’s also one of the best Heavy Metal poets of all time.
Empire of the Undead CD Jewelcase
And Empire of the Undead continues in a very enjoyable way, with the excellent Pale Rider with its totally Judas Priest-ish riffs and another awesome performance from the whole band; and Born to Fly, a very traditional Gamma Ray tune with a great chorus. The following two tracks are not exactly new, as they featured in the Master of Confusion EP, released in the beginning of 2013, but who cares? Both Master of Confusion and Empire of the Undead are powerful songs, with the latest having those classic riffs and guitar solos that explain why Gamma Ray are so fuckin’ awesome. Moreover, I had the pleasure to see them playing both live already last year, and those songs kick some serious ass.
Empire of the Undead LP
In order to give us some air, Kai & Co. come with the smooth ballad Time for Deliverence, with its beautiful lyrics, and Demonseed, which despite its weird intro and headbanging riffs, is not a very entertaining track; however, the band gets back to their roots with Seven, another classic tune that will surely please all of their fans. And to end this pretty cool album, we have the song I Will Return, which starts with Arnold Schwarzenegger’s famous “I’ll Be Back!” quote, but doesn’t keep up with the same energy level as the previous tracks. And if I were you, I would buy any of the special editions of the album (each with a different front cover color), because all bonus tracks and other stuff are worth the extra money.
In terms of the musicians, kudos to drummer Michael Ehré, as although he had some big shoes to fill he nailed it, and of course to Mr. Kai Hansen, the creator of Power Metal, Helloween and Gamma Ray. Kai is the “Midas” of heavy music: everything he touches becomes GOLD, and that’s valid for Empire of the Undead, another very good release from one of the most influential German bands of all time. May the amazing empire of Heavy Metal built by this great guy “hellbent for Metal” live forever more.
Best moments of the album:Avalon, Hellbent, Pale Rider and Empire of the Undead.
Worst moments of the album:Demonseed and I Will Return.
Released in 2014 earMUSIC
Track listing 1. Avalon 9:21
2. Hellbent 5:23
3. Pale Rider 4:24
4. Born to Fly 4:32
5. Master of Confusion 4:55
6. Empire of the Undead 4:26
7. Time for Deliverence 5:11
8. Demonseed 6:39
9. Seven 5:07
10. I Will Return 6:56
European bonus track 11. Built a World 4:23
Limited Edition Digipack bonus tracks 12. Avalon (Live from Studio) 9:52
13. The Spirit (Live from Studio) 4:19
14. Empire of the Undead (Live from Studio) 4:27
Band members
Kai Hansen – lead vocals, rhythm & lead guitar
Henjo Richter – lead & rhythm guitar, keyboards
Dirk Schlächter – bass
Michael Ehré – drums
According to the Merrian-Webster Online Dictionary, the definition of the word shame can be “a painful emotion caused by consciousness of guilt, shortcoming, or impropriety”, “a condition of humiliating disgrace or disrepute”, or “something that brings censure or reproach; something to be regretted”. However, there should be a new item added to this list: the new album from Finnish Power Metal band Sonata Arctica, the horrible Pariah’s Child.
Honestly, I don’t even know where to start, or even if I should start talking about what was supposed to be called “music” in Pariah’s Child. It’s not Heavy Metal, Power Metal, Hard Rock, or even basic Rock N’ Roll, it’s just pure garbage that will make your ears bleed of annoyance if you don’t stay away from what is a serious contender for “worst album of the year”. There’s some blah blah blah that Pariah’s Child marks the return of wolf-themed songs, that “wolf” is a metaphor for fear, that it’s “old” Sonata, but nothing really works in this shameful disgrace. Instead of keeping drinking some good old Koskenkorva Viina, it seems Tony Kakko had a really bad trip with counterfeit LSD.
You might be deceived by The Wolves Die Young, which not a terrible way to start (even with that irritating sound from the keyboards), and think I’m exaggerating when I say the whole album sucks, but after listening to the “happy garbage” Running Lights, the most generic thing you can find in the world of heavy music (especially the totally forgettable guitar solos), and the even worse Take One Breath, you’ll start asking yourself “what the fuck is this shit?”, or even screaming out loud “please, make them stop!”
Still not convinced? Well, even if you have ears of steel like the Superman, the “kryptonite” song Cloud Factory will take care of it and make them explode, so stupid and boring this thing (which some people dare to call a song) is. Or maybe after listening to the more than awful Blood you might considering burning all your Heavy Metal albums and become a monk in Tibet, where the only thing you’ll hear is beautiful SILENCE.
But believe me, as incredible as it may sound, the last part of Pariah’s Child gets A LOT worse than that. What Did You Do in the War, Dad? with its cheesy lyrics is so bad, but so bad, that I have no words to describe it; Half a Marathon Man is a totally failed Hard Rock attempt (it’s NOT a beautiful day!); and X Marks the Spot is pure nonsense and, more important than that, a warning to stop listening to the album before things get even more nightmarish.
If you love Sonata Arctica more than your life and didn’t get the warning from the previous song, then it’s your fault you’ll have to listen to the mellow torture called Love. I think even Ukko, the High God of the sky, weather, harvest and thunder in Finnish mythology, would cut his wrists and blood would rain over Finland after listening to this trash! And finally comes Larger Than Life, a 10-minute torment that in the hands of a supreme tyrant like Kim Jong-un could be used as the most powerful torture device ever seen in the history of mankind.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Finnish Metal and was really expecting with an open heart another good album from this decent band from the land of ice and snow, but in this case it’s impossible not to hate every single minute of this shit. I’m just giving Pariah’s Child a 0.5 for some respect I have for Sonata Arctica’s old stuff and for the band members being nice guys, because it actually deserved a HUGE FUCKIN’ ZERO. Not even the well-done album art showing a lonely wolf (or a pariah) saves it. Unfortunately that’s the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but a very sad and shameful truth.
Best moments of the album: A few parts of The Wolves Die Young are somewhat acceptable.
Worst moments of the album: Everything else. Pariah’s Child is a total nightmare.
Released in 2014 Nuclear Blast
Track listing 1. The Wolves Die Young 4:13
2. Running Lights 4:26
3. Take One Breath 4:19
4. Cloud Factory 4:17
5. Blood 5:54
6. What Did You Do in the War, Dad? 5:13
7. Half a Marathon Man 5:43
8. X Marks the Spot 5:20
9. Love 3:50
10. Larger Than Life 9:57
Band members Tony Kakko – vocals
Elias Viljanen – guitar
Pasi Kauppinen – bass guitar
Henrik Klingenberg – keyboards
Tommy Portimo – drums
When you put together heavy music, beer, Jägermeister and talented musicians, the result is usually pretty good, and that’s what happens with German Heavy Metal/Hard Rock band Motorjesus. They used to be The Shitheadz until 2006, when they had to change their name due to censorship, but it doesn’t seem they ended up chosen a name less controversial than “Shitheadz”. Anyway, their new “concept” album, Electric Revelation, is a really good alternative for fans of Anthrax, Pantera, Motörhead and any other bands perfect for motorbikers and beer drinkers.
And I’m not kidding when I call this a concept album, even if it’s extremely hard to imagine this type of band trying to add a storyline to their album: how about all songs and the amazing album art being inspired by the story of a fictitious (or not) character called Motorjesus? If you’re a religious person that enjoys Heavy Metal you shouldn’t be mad at the band for doing this. Consider this a tribute Motorjesus is paying to the religious figure of Jesus Christ (it even sounds like White Metal sometimes), but with the mighty power that comes from Heavy Metal amps.
What other name could have been given to the motorized intro if not The Arrival? Got it now? Anyway, the first real song of the album, the amazing Trouble in Motor City, seems to be totally inspired by the great classics from Motörhead and Anthrax, especially those Hard Rock riffs we all love so much, while the next track, The Run, has some damn heavy bass lines and is pure Stoner Rock. And pay attention to the lyrics, you’ll enjoy them a lot (“Raise your dead from the sleep / There’s a sacrament to keep / After all dead and gone / There’s an army of one…”).
Honestly, I’ve never heard a song with “beast” in its name that’s not badass, as for example Iron Maiden’s “The Number of the Beast”, Exodus’ “Strike of the Beast”, Cradle of Filth’s “Beast of Extermination”, Rob Zombie’s “Superbeast” and so on, and the same can be said about Speed of the Beast, a very fast tune tailored for hitting the road with some excellent guitar solos. Then we have Back in the Action Car with its “Long Live Rock N’ Roll” type of riff and a very 80’s Heavy Metal approach, and the semi-ballad Rust, an average song that’s not memorable at all.
The “ceremony” goes on with 100.000 Volt Survivor, which despite having another good classic riff, falls flat after a while, and the awesome title-track Electric Revelation, one of the best tracks of the album with highlights to the pretty cool bass intro from Roman Jasiczak. Midnight Rider, a heavy song that will please all fans for sure, sounds inspired by some old Anthrax tracks, and The Warning is another good example of how traditional Hard Rock should be done.
In my opinion, the last three tracks of the album are the ones with the most creative and interesting lyrics: Ressurection Man could be easily turned into a true religious song if all the heavy riffs and drums were removed from it; Dead Army offers a little more of that Motörhead sonority, with a great job done by singer Chris “Howling” Birx; and The Right Hand of the Devil was made for banging our fuckin’ heads while listening to the important “message” in it.
To sum up, another excellent album that comes from Germany in 2014, but this time with a total American Hard Rock approach instead of that traditional German Power Metal we all know, making it an excellent alternative for hard rockers searching for new music. If you think Rock is dead, bands like this one are here to prove you wrong. Because while Jesus saves, Motorjesus rock.
Best moments of the album:Trouble in Motor City, The Run, Speed of the Beast and Electric Revelation.
Worst moments of the album:Rust and 100.000 Volt Survivor.
Released in 2014 Drakkar Records
Track listing 1. The Arrival (Intro) 0:40
2. Trouble in Motor City 3:35
3. The Run 4:06
4. Speed of the Beast 4:03
5. Back in the Action Car 3:10
6. Rust 4:52
7. 100.000 Volt Survivor 5:12
8. Electric Revelation 4:03
9. Midnight Rider 4:08
10. The Warning 3:21
11. Ressurection Man 4:20
12. Dead Army 3:52
13. The Right Hand of the Devil 4:01
Band members Chris Birx – vocals
Guido Reuss – guitar
Andreas Peters – guitar
Roman Jasiczak – bass
Oliver Beck – drums
If you haven’t seen Us yet, I suggest you scroll down to the end of this post first and watch the entire episode before reading the rest of the text.
Just one episode to go, and I’m still not really pumped up with season 4 from AMC’s The Walking Dead. I remember that during seasons 1, 2 and 3 I couldn’t wait for the next episodes, but now it really seems they’re dragging the show as much as possible just for (a lot of) money. Besides, many of the main characters have become so boring, like a shadow of what made them so good, especially Michonne and Daryl. Are the writers doing this with them to find an excuse to kill them in the show? And what about that “love is in the air” trend? Shouldn’t they be worried about zombies, food, water or anything else before spreading all that love in a world that doesn’t give a shit about it anymore?
First of all, Glenn’s quest to find Maggie no matter what has been really stupid. He has the right to go after the love of his life, no problem with that, but putting the lives of other people in danger because he’s too stubborn to follow a simple plan or request that would lead him to Maggie but in a relatively calm and safe way is too much. As soon as he saw the signs Maggie, Sasha and Bob left him, he started running like a moron. Why? When did running by yourself like an idiot become a good thing to do in the show? Anyway, he’s lucky that Abraham, Eugene and Rosita are really patient people, and that Tara is so “busy” fighting against her inner ghosts that she doesn’t really care if his ideas and actions are way beyond stupidity.
Talking about Eugene, Tara and Rosita, their dialogues yesterday were for me the highlight of the episode. It was so funny seeing Eugene telling Tara she’s smoking hot, just to hear her replying to him “Yeah, and I like girls!” That was a really awkward moment, and add to that Abraham telling Tara she saw her staring at Rosita’s tits, and you multiply the awesomeness by a million! Unfortunately, that’s all the fun we had last night, because later there was just the action scene inside the tunnel full of walkers, where Glenn almost got Tara killed with his “brilliant” plan, but it wasn’t that exciting in the end.
And what about Daryl and his new “friends”? Joe seems to be a pretty straight-forward guy, always going by the rules (if it’s claimed, it’s claimed!) and always telling the truth, so why not get along with him and forget about Beth for a minute? As I said, Daryl is not the same, and I don’t think this is going to end well for him. His childish fight against Len for that rabbit, and then Len trying to incriminate Daryl in that old garage for getting his piece of the rabbit just to be killed by the other members of the gang later, didn’t make too much sense at all. At least things will get a lot better when Joe finds Rick and gets his revenge (or not?) for what rick did in that house he was trying to relax a few episodes ago. Even Rick seems to be too calm, as per that brief moment he appeared in the episode watching Carl and Michonne play in the rails, but let’s hope next episode the good old sheriff is back in action doing what he’s supposed to do: fighting for his life, for Carl’s and for the people he cares about.
Finally, Glenn and Maggie are reunited (thanks to Eugene’s plan to drive to the other side of the tunnel), there’s that stupid scene burning that picture of Maggie (that was totally unnecessary), and after some useless talking they got to the promised sanctuary, Terminus, where they find that mysterious woman called Mary. But is that really a sanctuary? Doesn’t it look creepier than any other place they’ve been? At least it’s the season finale next week, which means something will actually happen, right? Because if not, the second half of season 4 will be indeed a total waste of time.
Get ready for some really interesting extreme and experimental heavy music from the Middle-East.
At least from a music perspective, Globalization doesn’t seem as disastrous as we all think it is: when in our lives would we ever imagine we could one day listen to an Experimental Death Metal band from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with just a few clicks? Not only that, the band is actually good and goes by the “friendly” name of Benevolent, and their first full-length album, The Covenant, deserves a shot.
As expected in any experimental or progressive band, most of the songs are long, usually surpassing the 6-minute barrier, and are not easy to digest if you’re not absolutely crazy for innovation or “weird voyages” in the world of heavy music. Right after the atmospheric intro Void, the band already offers us a very good example of their chosen path for creating music: the excellent Asphyxia is a really experimental and at the same time brutal song, maybe something in between Progressive and Death Metal, with a good mix of guttural and clean vocals by brothers Fadi and Hadi Sarieddine, respectively. This song is almost 10 minutes long, which means if you can reach the end of it and enjoy all its variations and breaks, then this album is for you.
The following tracks are The Seeker, another totally experimental track the likes of Opeth and Tool showcasing all the talent of the musicians involved, with a nice guitar solo by the end of the song; Radiate, an instrumental song with focus on the piano/keyboards lines; and Illusion, a pretty good song with an acoustic guitar intro, heavy riffs and melancholic rhythm, and that sounds a lot like what Dream Theater would be if they had guttural vocals.
Another one of my favorite songs is Heathen, a very progressive song with hints of Blackened Death Metal and excellent instrumental parts in general, especially the keyboards. Then we have The Collector, a more Death Metal track with an interesting duo of guitars and drums, with a very nice job done by session drummer Andols Herrick; Dissipate, which is another instrumental “bridge” song; and Metamorphosis, the longest and more progressive track of all, with awesome bass lines by Mohammed Gad and a continuous “tone” that gives the song a freaky sensation, reminding us of many songs by Tool.
The last two tracks in The Covenant keep up with all the progressiveness and obscurity of the previous tracks: Ascension begins with an eerie electronic intro before becoming a very progressive tune, while Rebirth is a very “melancholic” ending to the album, with a nice work done with the riffs in order to give the song (and the whole album) that “fade away” feeling commonly used in many movies.
In addition, the emblematic album art, which was professionally done by artist Edidong Udo, positively consummates the objective of Benevolent with their music. So why not give this complex band from the Middle-East a try, especially if you’re a huge fan of progressive heavy music? You can listen to all tracks and buy The Covenant HERE, and by doing so you’ll support those talented guys to keep the fire of heavy music alive in that part of the world.
Best moments of the album:Asphyxia, Illusion and Heathen.
Worst moments of the album:The Collector and Ascension.
Rachel Aspe is definitely here to stay. Or should I say she’s here to scream?
After the departure of singer Candice Clot from French Heavy Metal/Hardcore band Eths, no one knew exactly what was going to happen with the band, as she was considered an essential part of its musicality. However, the other band members didn’t waste any time, immediately replacing her with the gorgeous and talented Rachel Aspe (who will pretty soon be our “Metal Chick of the Month”), and now releasing a new EP called Ex Umbra In Solem.
Although the music from this Marseille-based band is entirely in French, “le langage de l’amour”, they’ve chosen Latin instead to name the EP, which in English means something like “From Shadow to the Sun”, maybe as a representation of the moment the band has been through in the past few months before finding Rachel. Anyway, Ex Umbra In Solem is a special digipak limited and numbered 1 to 1,000 (available exclusively at the Season Of Mist’s official e-shop and other French stores), containing a brand new song, three classic tracks recorded live on October 24, 2013 at the Divan du Monde in Paris, France, mixed by Nikhertz at Studio Phantom, and three songs from the III album, re-recorded with Rachel on vocals.
So let’s get down to business with the title-track, Ex Umbra In Solem, the only original song of the EP, with its slow, obscure and delicate intro that suddenly turns into pure violence with great riffs, all fostered by a really nice chorus (“Et je mâche, au plus profond je nage / J’abandonne lentement / Vide, elle flotte à déraison / Isolée, je tombe (in solem)”). Rachel’s voice is really powerful when guttural and smooth when clean, sounding like some of The Agonist songs, and I really wish there were more original tracks here. Well, we’ll have to wait for their next full-length album for that.
Then come the three live tracks recorded last year in Paris, with all instruments cleanly captured for our delight: Samantha might be a very short song, but its live recording sounded amazing, explaining why it was included in the EP. Moreover, Rachel is pretty good live, which is when it really matters, and it’s interesting how she can quickly change her voice in a very consistent way without any sudden breaks. Bulimiarexia shows that, in my humble opinion, although Rachel clean vocals live are not bad at all, she just needs to adjust them a little. And kudos to drummer Guillaume “Yom” Dupré in this track, he sounds amazing. The last live track is the classic Crucifère, and as you can see in the official video below, Rachel’s onstage performance is another reason why she was the chosen one.
In regards to the re-recorded songs from III with Rachel on vocals, they all sound very professional and as heavy as they should be: I have the III album and after listening to both old and new versions of Voragine I’m pretty sure even diehard fans will love Rachel as much as they loved Candice; Harmaguedon is my favorite of the re-recorded versions and will probably be Rachel’s “secret weapon” to win the hearts of the “unfaithful”; and finally Proserpina closes the EP in a very good way, following the high quality of the recording of all songs.
Last but not least, the album art was once again created by photographer and designer Nicolas Sénégas, who already worked on the art of III, and it is a very good graphic translation of the dark, gothic and heavy music generated by Eths.
So after all those good things I’ve said about Ex Umbra In Solem, you might be asking why only a 3.5, right? In fact, it was supposed to be only a 3.0 for having just one brand new song, as there’s a lack of originality and creativity in the whole EP, but at the same time Rachel’s performance is so electrifying in all tracks that it deserved a 4.0, which leads to an average of 3.5: simple math to represent how awesome this new singer will be for the future of the band.
Best moments of the album:Ex Umbra In Solem, Crucifère and Harmaguedon.
Worst moments of the album: The fact that the EP has only one brand new song.
Released in 2014 Season Of Mist
Track listing 1. Ex Umbra In Solem 4:06
2. Samantha (live) 2:38
3. Bulimiarexia (live) 4:22
4. Crucifère (live) 4:33
5. Voragine (Rachel on vocals) 3:49
6. Harmaguedon (Rachel on vocals) 4:45
7. Proserpina (Rachel on vocals) 5:48
Band members Rachel Aspe — lead vocals
Stéphane “Staif” Bihl — guitar, samples
Damien Rivoal — bass
Guillaume “Yom” Dupré — drums
Excellent drummer (and a great guy too!) Geir Arne “The Cannon” Dale talks to The Headbanging Moose about the history of his Hard Rock band Humbucker, their excellent new album King of the World, the music scene in Norway, his “dream tour”, his favorite Canadian bands, among some other cool stuff. And, of course, he answers the mysterious question “Who is Dirty Nelly?”
The Headbanging Moose: Let’s start with some details about the history of Humbucker: although the band was created back in 1998, it was only in 2012 with your debut album R.O.C.K.S that Humbucker really became alive. In addition to that, your official website states that “In 2000 the band had five original songs and made a demo that did not do any good for the band. In 2002, due to difficulties combining their day jobs with the rocking, the band called it a day and took a “vacation” that lasted until 2010!” What exactly happened with you guys? And why was that 2000 demo so harmful for the band?
Geir Arne Dale: Well, the demo wasn’t directly harmful for the band, but it was what it was. We didn’t have a singer back then for starters. Three of us shared the vocal duties and let’s face it: We’re better musicians than singers so the demo was made more for ourselves than to make something happen for us. But you know, we believed even back then in our stuff so we shipped it around a bit. Most of the record companies didn’t even answer us. And the few that did were very short in their description of the project’s future: “No!” 🙂
Back then we were only in it for fun, and in 2002 we thought a vacation would do us good as some of us changed day jobs and all of a sudden had to leave for weeks at a time so it became difficult to get the rehearsal routines going as they should. We also was, let’s say, a bit tired of each other I think after heavy partying for four years. We didn’t take it too serious back then. The focus was all wrong. We were all like Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. Taking all the fun right there and then, not caring about the future, so a break was needed. After eight years, in 2010 we started again to see if it still worked. It certainly did and after getting new singer Jan Boen in, we decided in 2012 we had everything we needed to make a record. The before mentioned five songs from 2000 were re-recorded and ended up all on the first album R.O.C.K.S, so something good came out of the old days eventually! The response from that album was mind-blowing and that gave us a reason to do another one as we have just done. Who would have thought that back in ‘02! 🙂
THM: The beautiful country of Norway is renowned for its many Black Metal bands, such as Mayhem, Burzum, Gorgoroth, Emperor, Dimmu Borgir, Satyricon and many others that pretty much helped define that music genre. How was it to grow up as a Hard Rocker in an essentially Black Metal country, and how difficult it is for any Hard Rock band to succeed there?
GAD: WOW! You’ve done your homework Sir! You know the black metal guys did their music and we did ours. It wasn’t hard at all cause in the eighties the melodic hard rock scene was just as big in Norway, if not bigger, and the two genres didn’t do too much together. The black metal bands from Norway have really set their marks on the world. They’ve done a great job for themselves for sure. And all these bands have created more interest for Norwegian rock in general too, so it’s all a good thing and I think everyone that does any kind of Norwegian rock owe these guys a big thank you. They’ve been excellent promoters for all of us.
THM: As mentioned in our album review, King of the World is a truly kickass Hard Rock album. How was the whole creative process for the album? What worked well, and what ideas did you guys have to give up because you felt they were not good enough?
GAD: The writing process was very relaxed as we wrote the songs in between gigs during last part of 2012 and during 2013. We were finished with the last song just a few weeks before we went into studio to start the album. Like I said before, we thought we would only make one album so we didn’t rush anything. We wrote the new songs just as much to widen our live set. When it was clear that we wanted to do a second album, we were almost there with the songs. We recorded drums and bass in our nearest town called Notodden with acclaimed engineer Njal Frode Lie. Then we moved the operation to Trondheim. That’s why we did the drums and bass in Notodden so we didn’t have to drag the drums to Trondheim which is pretty far from where we live. We met up with one of Norway’s most decorated producers, Mr. Hallgeir Rustan. From a small country like Norway, he has produced albums that have sold worldwide some 25 million copies all together and he’s also produced over 40 Top-10 hits in the UK so he knows what he’s doing. I went to school with him in 86/87 and we’ve kept in touch from time to time since then. We all had a great time in the studio except Lars Stian, the bass player, who did his part in Notodden and had to stay home to perform his day job during the time we were in Trondheim. The atmosphere was great with lots of jokes being thrown around. Hallgeir has an incredible know-how when it comes to arranging songs and he did an amazing job for us. He’s the one who founded Stargate you know so he’s a guy who knows his business. When his two partners decided to move to the USA, he stayed home and is doing his thing from there. We can’t thank him enough for the job he did for us and co-producing with him is one of the nicest experiences I’ve had in years! I really hope we get to do it again ‘cause I think we then would be able to develop our music and sound further.
We’ll see… no one knows what the future brings, but I don’t see us do another album without Hallgeir… With Hallgeir to produce and engineer, Beau Hill to mix and master, Mr. Cordelières on the artwork and Hugh Gilmour to design the package and put everything together, we really feel we have found ourselves a “Dream Team” here! I can’t remember a thing that really didn’t work well actually. We had a great time working with this album and it was all a joy.
THM: This question might sound silly, but one of the best songs of the album, Dirty Nelly, seems to be inspired by some special girl. Who’s she? What’s the story behind that song?
GAD: Hahaha! Well, it’s a cool question cause it could very well be for real but I’m very happy to say it’s not!:-) I wrote that song so I can tell you it’s all pure fiction. I’ve never, thank GOD, experienced a girl like that. At least not that I can remember…and I think I would have! BUT: There’s probably thousands of “Dirty Nellys” out there and guys who wonder what their baby’s up when she comes home with the morning light with her boots in her hands so who knows…maybe someone will recognize the situation…:-) Thank you for liking the song. I appreciate that. It’s one of my favorites on the album too!
THM: How about your tour plans to promote the new album? Are you playing only in Norway, or are there already any dates being scheduled for other European countries and even other parts of the world, like North America?
GAD: We are going to tour Norway as much as we can this year. You know, it’s easiest for us as we’re here. But in September we plan to embark on a month and a half tour in Europe. We would most certainly love to tour North America if we could! We have a lot of favorites from that part of the world: Coney Hatch, Triumph, Loverboy, Rush…you guys have produced some serious rock bands during the years so we’ll do it if we can. Only trouble is that it’s so damn expensive you know, so we will have to see how the new album does for a starter and take it from there. But who knows? We would love to shake hands with you at a show one day Sir!:-)
THM: What would be Humbucker’s “dream tour”, I mean, which bands would you just love to go on tour together, and why?
GAD: That’s a great question and a very tricky one to answer actually…there’s so many…but if I have to mention one band, I think maybe a tour with Whitesnake would be great for us. Mainly because of the audience. I think the audience would have picked up on us a bit too as both bands represents the same time period in music style. I think a lot of their fans would have like our stuff too, so some gigs with them would have done us real good…
THM: When Humbucker started in 1998, Hard Rock was still really big on the radio and TV, fans loved buying the albums of their favorite bands, and there were no such thing as illegal downloads, so it was basically a paradise for any new Hard Rock bands and an easier path to success. On the other hand, nowadays any new or independent band has to work their asses off to get some recognition, and even so no monetary return is guaranteed. How do you see this evolution of music and media, and how does it impact what Humbucker are doing or plan to do in the future?
Album Review – Humbucker / King of the World (2014)
GAD: It’s really hard to say what will happen. All I know is that if people keep wanting music without paying for it, I think the music scene will be very boring in a few years. When all the old heroes and arena bands are gone, few can take over cause they will never get there ‘cause of devastating income. It costs a lot to keep a band alive and if you don’t get a radio hit or something on TV, it’s very hard to make it to arena-level just by touring. I think that if we want new arena bands to continue we just have to pay for their music, simple as that.
But the world moves on you know so we have to adapt in a way. I’m just not sure that we will ever have the time we had in the eighties and early nineties again. We probably never will, but one can only carry on as long as possible and hope something “happens”… My only advice to people would be: Buy the music! Everyone can afford it so why not? Music business today with all the piracy and streaming is like asking a carpenter to build you a new dog house for your Shetland Sheepdog…after putting a lot of work into it, after he’s made an awesome place for your dog, you don’t want to pay him for his work? I just don’t get that…..
Our mixer/masterer Beau Hill in the US said that if we had released this music in the eighties, we would have been instant worldwide dominators. Today that’s not possible. That says a lot…
THM: The album art from King of the World is awesome and couldn’t be more Hard Rock than that. Why and how did you choose Ludovic Cordelières of Rusalka Design for designing the front cover, and how much did the band influence on his process of generating it?
GAD: Thank you very much for those nice words! I appreciate you bringing that up because Mr. Cordelières most certainly deserves it! If you want to see how he made it, and other amazing artworks of his, please visit his website at www.rusalkadesign.com. For an album called “King Of The World”, I don’t think anyone could have made a better cover! It’s just the perfect thing…That “guy” on the cover IS the king of the world! 🙂
The cover was an already existing artwork of Cordelières called “Monarch”. I was searching the internet for pictures to use for the cover (The album was originally going to be called “One Size Fits All”) when his site turned up. I looked at this picture and as we also had a song called “King Of The World” on the album, I just thought that would be perfect and totally awesome for the title and we talked about it at rehearsal and decided to go for it. I then sent Ludovic a mail asking if he would let us use it. Luckily he answered back with a clear yes, and I then asked if we could add some stuff and suggested a couple of things added to make it more “Humbucker-ish” to put it that way and he didn’t mind at all. He’s a fantastic guy and I loved working with him. Everything came back with exactly the right addings and it turned out great. We added the “R.O.C.K.S.” cover under the left foot there and added some more instruments, had our “H” placed on the hat and “Priscilla” on the nametag on the honey box. “Priscilla” is a song title from our debut album, so people who have that album knows “who’s there”… That’s pretty much it. The rest is the original artwork. I asked Hugh Gilmour what he thought of it and he said: “It’s classic, a bit provocative and very rock and roll! I Love it!” For us that means: Perfect! 🙂
THM: How much do you know about Canadian Heavy Metal and Hard Rock? Are any Canadian bands part of your day-to-day playlist? If so, which are your favorite ones and why?
GAD: Personally, that’s a very easy question to answer. There’s a lot of great Canadian bands! Always was too! I have to say I’m a huge Coney Hatch fan! “This ain’t love” is one of my favourite songs to date! I love the drum sound on that record! I was stunned when I heard it and I still enjoy listen to them today. Triumph is another favorite. I think that the “All The King’s Horses/Carry On The Flame” track from their “Surveillance” album is one of the finest pieces of music ever made in the genre. The groove and tempo when “Carry On…” takes over is just awesome! And the vocal lines on that song are amazing with one of the coolest “bridges” out there. (As a matter of fact, I had to listen to it again as we speak!) I think Thom Trumbo did a phenomenal job producing that album at the time. Again with a great drum sound exactly as I like it! I had my youth time in the eighties you know so there you go… 🙂
THM: Thanks a lot for the interview. Do you have any final words to all Heavy Metal and Hard Rock fans worldwide, especially to the ones in Canada that have recently discovered the music from Humbucker?
GAD: Thank YOU Sir! You know, we need all the help we can get in this business and fine people like yourself who devote your time to pick up bands that you don’t see on the cover of Rolling Stones Magazine every day, is fantastic! It’s really really helpful and very appreciated indeed! To the fans in Canada who like our music: We are honored that you do! And if you like “King Of The World”, please check out our debut album ‘R.O.C.K.S’ too! Due to change of distribution partners in Norway, the new album is unfortunately delayed worldwide but will be available at Amazon and wherever you buy your fine music during first half of April. We don’t take anything for guaranteed and every new fan is a thrill! If you want to join our Facebook page we would surely appreciate it! Just follow the link here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Humbucker/194616527226293.
THE HEADBANGING MOOSE 