Category Archives: Album Reviews

Album Review – Helloween / Walls of Jericho (1985)

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“Happy, Happy Helloween” revolutionize music with the first Power Metal album of all time.

Rating3

walls-of-jerichoMany Heavy Metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest already had pretty solid careers when Helloween started back in the 80’s, yet they became heavy music pioneers too when they released Walls of Jericho, the first Power/Melodic Metal album in the history of music. By the way, they have also made a lot of people confused ever since about the spelling of “Halloween” (with “A”) vs. the name of the band (with “E”).

Although Walls of Jericho was originally launched in 1985, this review also includes the extra songs added to the 1988 CD Edition from the 1985 EP/mini-LP Helloween and from the 1986 EP Judas for a very simple reason: they’re too good to be left out. Those extra songs are Starlight, Murderer, Warrior, Victim of Fate, Cry for Freedom and Judas, all very fast and heavy songs that at the time they were launched were a synonym for innovation in music. My favorite ones are Starlight and Victim of Fate, especially the first one with its unique intro and amazing riffs.

The intro to Starlight was taken from the movie Halloween III, and because it was so cool it became some kind of anthem sung by the Helloween fans before, during or after their live performances.

“Happy, Happy Helloween, Helloween, Helloween!
Happy, Happy Helloween, Silver Shamrocks!
Happy, Happy Helloween, Helloween, Helloween!
Happy, Happy Helloween, Silver Shamrocks!” 

Of course, the “Silver Shamrocks” part is usually substituted by some generic “oh oh oh oh” by the crowd, but that doesn’t make the song less cool. Due to its great success, the same rhythm was used to generate the intro Walls of Jericho (with no lyrics, though), which opens all Helloween concerts until today.

Then comes one of the top moments of the entire album: Ride the Sky is powerful, it has some crazy riffs and solos, and the lyrics are excellent to sing especially live. The following tracks are not marvelous, but are very consistent and add a lot of value to the album, like Metal Invaders (despite its stupid name). And finally we have what I consider the best songs from the album: Heavy Metal (Is the Law) has those Manowar-ish lyrics, chorus and attitude, while How Many Tears is the most perfect Power Metal song I’ve ever heard in my whole life.

helloween01All band members were amazing in Walls of Jericho, mainly the amazing guitar, singer and composer Kai Hansen and the drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg (R.I.P.). Unfortunately they’re no longer with the band, but at least Helloween still has Michael Weikath and Markus Grosskopf to keep alive the flame of the most influential Power Metal band in the world. And let’s not forget that we also have another great band now, Gamma Ray, which is pretty much Kai Hansen playing the same type of music from Walls of Jericho since his departure from Helloween.

In summary, Walls of Jericho is a revolutionary album that has never been mainstream, nor will ever be, but that is mandatory for all music fans that enjoy fast riffs and solos, superb guitar duos, and songs with a lot of energy. Moreover, if you’re a metalhead and you don’t know if the correct spelling is “Halloween” or “Helloween”, follow my advice and always write it with “E” even when you’re talking about the celebration. It’s a lot more badass this way.

Best moments of the album: Starlight, Ride the Sky, Heavy Metal (Is the Law) and How Many Tears.

Worst moments of the album: Reptile and Gorgar.

Released in 1985 Noise Records

Track listing
1. Starlight* 5:17
2. Murderer* 4:26
3. Warrior* 4:00
4. Victim of Fate* 6:37
5. Cry for Freedom* 6:02
6. Walls of Jericho / Ride the Sky 6:45
7. Reptile 3:45
8. Guardians 4:19
9. Phantoms of Death 6:33
10. Metal Invaders 4:10
11. Gorgar 3:57
12. Heavy Metal (Is the Law) 4:00
13. How Many Tears 7:15
14. Judas** 4:43

* Originally released in the 1985 EP/mini-LP Helloween
** Originally released in the 1986 EP Judas

Band members
Kai Hansen – vocals, guitar
Michael Weikath – guitar
Markus Grosskopf – bass
Ingo Schwichtenberg – drums

Album Review – Sepultura / The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart (2013)

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Another good album from the most important Brazilian Metal band of all time.

Rating5

Sepultura_-_The_Mediator_Between_Head_and_Hands_Must_Be_the_Heart_artworkIf there’s one thing that can be considered a true innovation in the new Sepultura album is its name: The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart is by far their most complex and longest album name ever. Take a look at their discography (if you’ve never seen it) and you’ll notice all albums have very short and direct names, such as Arise, Roots, Against, Nation, Roorback and Kairos. However, despite its creative name, the album doesn’t really bring anything new to the world of heavy music. It’s a good album with some interesting moments, but nothing that can be considered “above and beyond”.

I enjoyed a lot the opening track, Trauma of War. In my opinion, it has an excellent intro and reminds me of some insane 80’s Thrash Metal! The Vatican, the second track of the album, also has a cool intro, strong lyrics and sounds like classic Death Metal in most of its 6 minutes. Then that’s when the problems start with The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart: all the other songs sound very similar to each other. Impending Doom is one of the closest tracks to what Sepultura has been doing in the past few years, but it becomes quite boring after 2 minutes. Manipulation of Tragedy has the same problem as the previous track, while Tsunami might remind me a little of the old “Chaos A.D./Roots” days but this doesn’t make the song remarkable. The next track,The Bliss of Ignorants, has very “Roots” intro and riffs and this could have evolved to something more interesting. And Grief starts with a very clean guitar that goes on for about 2 minutes, then it becomes Doom Metal-like and that’s it, nothing special.

sepulturaThe last three songs raise the bar a little: The Age of the Atheist (the first single of the album) has awesome drums and it’s a perfect representation of Sepultura post-Roots; Obsessed has the best Metal drummer in the world, Mr. Dave Lombardo, as a special guest, and of course he adds a lot of feeling to the song with his unique technique; and the last track of the album, called Da Lama ao Caos, is a superb version for a song from a non-Metal Brazilian group called Chico Science & Nação Zumbi (it’s way better than the original song, by the way).

Regarding the job done by each band member, Derrick keeps singing like a caveman inside a cave fighting with a saber tooth (or vice-versa). Although his voice will never be as good as Max Cavalera’s, it works well for what the band needs nowadays. Eloy Casagrande is improving his drumming technique year after year, becoming faster and more violent, Paulo does a consistent job on bass, and Andreas shows why he’s the best Brazilian guitar player of all time.

The cover art matches perfectly with the album name, and maybe this is the best thing in its entirety. I’m not saying it’s a bad album, not at all. It’s pretty straight forward Heavy Metal material and I do love all music from Sepultura. It’s just that I know those guys can do better than this.

Best moments of the album: Trauma of War, The Vatican and Da Lama ao Caos.

Worst moments of the album: Impending Doom, Manipulation of Tragedy and Grief.

Released in 2013 Nuclear Blast

Track listing
1. Trauma of War 3:45
2. The Vatican 6:33
3. Impending Doom 4:15
4. Manipulation of Tragedy 4:16
5. Tsunami 5:10
6. The Bliss of Ignorants 4:51
7. Grief 5:34
8. The Age of the Atheist 4:19
9. Obsessed (feat. Dave Lombardo) 3:53
10. Da Lama ao Caos (Chico Science & Nação Zumbi cover) 4:28

Band members
Derrick Green − lead vocals
Andreas Kisser − guitars, vocals on “Da Lama ao Caos”
Paulo Jr. − bass guitar
Eloy Casagrande – drums

Album Review – Motörhead / Aftershock (2013)

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They’re Motörhead, and they play Rock N’ Roll.

Rating4

Motörhead_AftershockAlthough I consider creativity and innovation crucial when reviewing a new album, I simply ignore that if the band in question is Motörhead, AC/DC, KISS or the Ramones. I don’t expect and don’t want to see Lemmy playing the piano and singing about the crisis in Syria or Angus Young adding any electronic shit to his music. I just want them to keep on rocking until the end of the world, and that’s exactly what you’ll find in Aftershock, Motörhead’s brand new album: 100% pure Rock N’ Roll!

The first track of the album, Heartbreaker, has some really heavy bass lines and sounds pretty good for a live performance. Then comes Coup De Grace, another fast track with funny lyrics and good solos, and Lost Woman Blues, which is Motörhead playing a high quality blues with Lemmy singing beautifully from the bottom of his heart. The next track, End Of Time, is simply fast and heavy while the next track, called Do You Believe, is my favorite one from the album for some beers at a Rock N’ Roll pub.

The following three songs make up a nice sequence to listen to while on the road: Death Machine has a cool guitar solo, Dust And Glass can be used as a “strip-tease” ballad, and Going To Mexico, well, as a Brazilian guy I prefer “Going to Brazil” (if you know what I’m talking about), but this song is pretty badass too. Another one of my favorites is Silence When You Speak To Me: this track has a great message from our “God” Lemmy, with some terrific riffs and lyrics. On the other hand, Crying Shame is my bottom one here, because although it’s traditional Motörhead, it sounds just like a filler track.

motorheadworldpromonew_638The last four tracks of the album have their ups and downs: Queen Of The Damned is a good track that reminds me a lot of Ace of Spades (maybe it was on purpose as we have the “ace” on one song and the “queen” on the other one?); Knife is not bad, but it lacks a little more punch; Keep Your Powder Dry is one more suggested song for a day on the road; and Paralyzed is what the band has mastered doing since the beginning. In other words, it is fast, heavy and kicks fuckin’ ass!

The front cover art is by far their best one since Inferno, from 2004, and the lyrics are the same as always, but who cares, right? Regarding the musicians, Phil offers us a ton of awesome riffs and solos again, and Mikkey keeps on smashing his drums perfectly. And what else is left to say about our 67-year old Rock N’ Roll icon Ian Fraser “Lemmy” Kilmister? I think the best definition for Lemmy is a beautiful “poem” declaimed by the characters Chazz, Rex and Chris Moore in the classic movie Airheads (if you’ve never seen it, you’re a loser):

Chazz: Who’d win in a wrestling match, Lemmy or God?
Chris Moore: Lemmy.
Rex: Beeeehhhh!
Chris Moore: …God?
Rex: Wrong, dickhead, trick question. Lemmy IS God! 

In summary, all songs sound the same as many awesome Motörhead classics such as Overkill, Iron Fist, Fast and Loose, Ace of Spades, The Chase is Better Than the Catch, Going to Brazil, among others, which in the end is exactly what we were waiting for. The day Lemmy, Phil and Mikkey record a “Metal Opera” or a conceptual album about the life of some French king, the world will come to an end. Until then, let’s have a beer and bang our heads together with our girlfriends, friends, family or anyone else that enjoys some good Rock N’ Roll, because that’s what this band plays.

Best moments of the album: Do You Believe, Going To Mexico and Silence When You Speak To Me.

Worst moments of the album: Crying Shame and Knife.

Released in 2013 UDR GmbH

Track listing
1. Heartbreaker 3:05
2. Coup De Grace 3:45
3. Lost Woman Blues 4:09
4. End Of Time 3:17
5. Do You Believe 2:59
6. Death Machine 2:37
7. Dust And Glass 2:51
8. Going To Mexico 2:51
9. Silence When You Speak To Me 4:30
10. Crying Shame 4:28
11. Queen Of The Damned 2:41
12. Knife 2:57
13. Keep Your Powder Dry 3:54
14. Paralyzed 2:50

Band members
Lemmy Kilmister – bass guitar, vocals
Phil Campbell – guitar
Mikkey Dee – drums

Album Review – Sepultura / Roots (1996)

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“Sepultura do Brasil” changed the world of music with the most creative Thrash Metal album of all time.

Rating2

Sepultura_-_RootsThe year of 1996 was a very special year in my life: it was my last year in high school, I finally turned 18, I was dating the most beautiful girl of the entire school, and in terms of music I saw Maiden live for the first time as well as some other awesome bands such as Helloween, Manowar, The Ramones, and my countrymen from Sepultura. I used to love listening to Beneath the Remains, Arise and Chaos A.D., but they simply blew my mind with the most innovative Thrash Metal album of all time: Roots.

Every relevant Thrash Metal band in the world has at least one unique album that redefined that music genre somehow, like Bonded by Blood from Exodus or Reign in Blood from Slayer. In the case of Sepultura, it was Roots that made them reach the top of the charts and become a reference for all future Thrash Metal bands. There were so many new elements in this album that I could spend hours writing about each one of them, but I’ll focus on the most important one in my opinion, which was Max Cavalera’s voice. He brilliantly turned his voice into a musical instrument, reaching some insane notes and sounding more violent than ever, changing the way many other guttural singers used their voices from that year on. Check out at the end of this post the video for Roots Bloody Roots, Sepultura’s all-time classic, and you’ll be able to see how his voice fully integrates with the other instruments giving a special punch to the whole album.

Sepultura-RootsThe most famous songs from Roots are Roots Bloody Roots, of course, Attittude with its amazing riffs and lyrics, and my least favorite one Ratamahatta (the lyrics don’t make any sense at all, it’s just a bunch of stupid disconnected Brazilian words, with a guest musician that makes me want to vomit just by hearing his name). However, you must pay attention carefully to the rest of the album because there are so many good guitar riffs, lyrics and percussion that will make you listen to Roots non-stop for weeks. You’ll find heavy and violent tracks, such as Straighthate, Spit, Cut-Thorat and Dictatorshit; some songs that were unimaginable for a Thrash Metal band before that like Lookaway (with the crazy Mike Patton as a special guest) and Ambush; and some material that doesn’t even sound Metal, but are extremely important for the album concept: Jasco and Itsári, this one being recorded with an aboriginal tribe in Brazil called the Xavantes. All songs connected, all representing a sad and violent side of Brazil. And the front cover is just amazing, perfectly summarizing the whole album in one single image.

My version of the album (which was probably the one released only in Brazil) had two great covers for Celtic Frost’s Procreation of the Wicked and Sabbath’s Symptom of the Universe, this one also featuring in that good Sabbath tribute called Nativity in Black. If you don’t have these two songs in your version of Roots, you should go after them.

There are very few things that make me proud of being Brazilian, and Sepultura and Roots are part of this “selected” group. This album is so great that it has not only changed Thrash Metal, it has changes music in general. Sepultura do Brasil! Um, dois, três… VAI!

Best moments of the album: Roots Bloody Roots, Attitude, Straighthate and Born Stubborn.

Worst moments of the album: Ratamahatta and Endangered Species.

Released in 1996 Roadrunner Records

Track listing
1. Roots Bloody Root 3:32
2. Attitude 4:15
3. Cut-Throat 2:44
4. Ratamahatta 4:30
5. Breed Apart 4:01
6. Straighthate 5:21
7. Spit 2:45
8. Lookaway 5:26
9. Dusted 4:03
10. Born Stubborn 4:07
11. Jasco (instrumental) 1:57
12. Itsári (instrumental) 4:48
13. Ambush 4:39
14. Endangered Species 5:19
15. Dictatorshit 1:26

Band members
Max Cavalera – vocals, rhythm guitar, 4-string guitar, berimbau
Igor Cavalera – drums, percussion, timbau, djembe
Paulo Jr. – bass guitar, timbau grandé
Andreas Kisser – lead guitar, sitar, backing vocals

Album Review – Slayer / God Hates Us All (2001)

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It’s heavy, fast, furious, controversial, violent, and more important than that, it’s Slayer.

Rating3

Slayer-GodHatesUsAllAs Thrash Metal titans Slayer will be performing live here in Toronto on November 21, I decided to write some posts dedicated to them, one of my top bands of all time together with Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. The first one is about an album that might not be as classic as Reign In Blood or South of Heaven, but it is for sure one of their most badass records to date, starting by its controversial name: God Hates Us All. Can you think of a more impactful name for a Thrash Metal album than that? I don’t think so.

There are no ballads in this album (in fact, there are no ballads in ANY Slayer album!), no acoustic songs, no beautiful lyrics or moral lessons. Kerry King may not be the best lyricist in the world, but he delivers the message he wants in every song, which in this album are more focused on religion and revenge than any previous Slayer albums. Not only that, none of the lyrics is suitable at all for any religious person. And what can I say about the album art? It’s a masterpiece that perfectly represents the musical content in God Hates Us All. I just feel sorry for the fans that couldn’t buy the album with its regular version of the front cover, but with that shitty white one instead (see it HERE).

Before the massacre starts, there a truly badass intro, Darkness of Christ, which is there to pump you up and show you what’s about to happen with your neck. Then comes the classic Disciple, one of the best and heaviest Slayer songs ever, with an awesome chorus that will make you scream the name of the album out loud every time you hear it until you lose your voice. God hates us all! God hates us all! If you’re a very religious person, well, stop listening to this album before you reach the next song: God Send Death is another powerful track, also excellent when played live and again with strong dark lyrics.

SlayerThe sequence of tracks after that, from New Faith to Seven Faces, shows a more modern Slayer, maybe not as modern as what they did in Diabolus in Musica but modern enough to make some diehard fans a little distrustful. It’s good material, though, especially the song Exile. After that, the band delivers us a not so fast track, but as heavy as it can be: Bloodline, which also featured in the soundtrack of the movie Dracula 2000, has the best lyrics of the album, a cool heavy riff, and an excellent chorus. It’s the only reason why I would watch that movie again, because honestly it’s a very bad one! After Deviance, the weakest track of the album for me, we have three amazing songs: War Zone is perfect for mosh pits, Here Comes the Pain has a very nice riff, and Payback is recommended for anyone that is looking for, well, a violent payback.

What doesn’t change in the whole album is how amazing the band is: Tom with his unique voice, Kerry and Jeff with an avalanche of sick riffs and solos, and Paul smashing his drums like there’s no tomorrow. Although I consider Dave Lombardo the best drummer in the world, I also enjoy Paul Bostaph with his insane speed and technique. This guy is a monster behind his drums, especially when he plays live, and all the material he recorded with Slayer, Testament, Exodus etc. is pure Thrash Metal worth every penny. In my humble opinion, God Hates Us All is the best album with Bostaph on drums, and if you don’t agree with me just listen to War Zone, Payback or God Send Death and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

In summary, a very substantial Thrash Metal album with a more modern Slayer than usual, recommended for anyone who wants to bang their heads until they break their necks. Besides, it’s FUCKIN’ SLAYER after all!

Best moments of the album: Disciple, God Send Death, Bloodline and Payback.

Worst moments of the album: Seven Faces and Deviance.

Released in 2001 American Recordings

 Track listing
1. Darkness of Christ 1:30
2. Disciple 3:35
3. God Send Death 3:45
4. New Faith 3:05
5. Cast Down 3:26
6. Threshold 2:29
7. Exile 3:55
8. Seven Faces 3:41
9. Bloodline 3:36
10. Deviance 3:08
11. War Zone 2:45
12. Here Comes the Pain 4:32
13. Payback 3:03

Band members
Tom Araya – bass guitar, vocals
Jeff Hanneman – guitar
Kerry King – guitar
Paul Bostaph – drums

Album Review – Trivium / Vengeance Falls (2013)

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Trivium join forces with Disturbed’s David Draiman to produce another good album with an infinite number of pretty cool heavy riffs.

Rating4

TriviumVengeanceAs I already mentioned a few posts ago in my Trivium & DevilDriver concert review, Trivium has become one of the most important contemporary Metal bands, and again with Vengeance Falls they justify why they’ve reached this level. It’s not a masterpiece, but a solid album to follow the great In Waves, with some new elements brought by producer David Draiman (the brain behind Disturbed). The opening track, Brave This Storm, was released a few weeks ago, and its amazing riffs and chorus still maintain it as my favorite song of the album. By the way, the whole album is a lesson in heavy riffs, so if you’re a guitar player don’t think twice and go get your copy of the new Trivium album.

Then we have the title-track Vengeance Falls and another one of my favorites, Strife (best chorus of the album), both with awesome guitar riffs that remind me of some of the old Disturbed riffs, probably due to David Draiman’s influence as the producer. It would have been really interesting if he had also sang one or two songs with Trivium! No Way To Heal has all the elements that are so characteristic in Trivium’s music, making it a very heavy and progressive song. The next track, To Believe, is another song that seems to have a lot of influence from Draiman and one of the greatest positive surprises of the album for me, which is not the case with At the End of This War: just an average song that sounds flat after 3 minutes. But things get back to normal (in other words, HEAVY and CREATIVE) with Through Blood and Dirt and Bone and its excellent “heavy riff and fast drums” work (and I enjoy a lot when Matt screams the chorus!).

Trivium-630x420Villainy Thrives has a good rhythm, which will certainly make the fans jump as the band requires during the concerts, while Incineration: The Broken World, one of the longest songs of the album, starts with another cool riff and has Nick Augusto doing his best job on the drums in the whole album. Closing the album we have Wake (The End Is Nigh), the longest song that starts slowly but then moves to a fast speed, showing a more traditional Trivium again. The bonus tracks in the special edition of the album are all very good, especially their cover for Misfits’ Skulls…We Are 138, and if you manage to find the Japanese version, it has a different bonus: an interesting version for REM’s Losing My Religion.

The lyrics as usual are as crazy as they can be. Well, what else could we expect from Matt Heafy? “Burn us alive for our sins and our crimes / We are the wretched ones: malevolent slime” And regarding the album cover, I personally enjoy when it doesn’t explicitly show the name of the album or the band. In Vengeance Falls, the cover works as a complement to the album title, doing a cool job with the band’s logo. And last but not least, I didn’t mention anything about Corey or Paolo because I don’t need to: they’re awesome musicians doing a very consistent job as always, helping Trivium in being an important reference in heavy music today.

Best moments of the album: Brave This Storm, Strife and To Believe.

Worst moments of the album: At The end of This War, and the lack of the old screams from Matt in most of the songs. I know he cannot scream 100% of the time, but a little more would be great to the entire album.

Released in 2013 Roadrunner Records

Track listing
1. Brave This Storm 4:29
2. Vengeance Falls 4:13
3. Strife 4:30
4. No Way to Heal 4:05
5. To Believe 4:32
6. At the End of This War 4:47
7. Through Blood and Dirt and Bone 4:26
8. Villainy Thrives 4:54
9. Incineration: The Broken World 5:52
10. Wake (The End Is Nigh) 6:00

Bonus tracks
11. No Hope for the Human Race 3:59
12. As I Am Exploding 5:51
13. Skulls…We Are 138 (Misfits cover) 3:31
14. Losing My Religion (R.E.M. cover) 4:41

Band members
Matt Heafy – guitar, lead vocals
Corey Beaulieu – guitar, vocals
Paolo Gregoletto – bass guitar, vocals
Nick Augusto – drums, percussion

Album Review – Tarja / Colours in the Dark (2013)

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While Nightwish unfortunately perishes day after day without a decent singer, Tarja keeps providing us some excellent heavy music with her strong solo career.

Rating4

Tarja_Colours-In-The-Dark_StandardWhen Tarja Turunen (the prettiest female singer in the world!) left Nightwish a few years ago, everybody thought she was over in the world of heavy music (she even said so in some interviews). Tuomas Holopainen is a very talented and creative musician, and without him nobody knew how she would be able to survive. Well, today I guess it’s the exact opposite: Tarja has a very solid solo career, while Tuomas is completely lost with his band due to his gigantic ego. And now once again Tarja releases a very good album full of melody, consolidating her as one of the most important female voices in Heavy Metal of all time.

Victim of Ritual, the opening track, is a kind of “Metal Opera” that joins Tarja’s beautiful voice, a nice rhythm, and an interesting mix of different sounds. I love the chorus when she sings victim of rrrrrrrrrritual! Then comes 500 Letters, a regular song from Tarja with nothing new to show us. The next song, Lucid Dreamer, is a good example of what she can do with her voice, while in Never Enough she gives her special Nordic ingredient to it by starting with the words y, ka, ko, ne! This is our famous one, two, three, four, but in Finnish, and I must say a nice start to one of the best songs of the album, followed by a track called Mystique Voyage, a good ballad totally focused on her unique voice.

Tarja_Colours-In-The-DarkThe next track is a cover song: I listened to the original version from Peter Gabriel for the song Darkness, and I think Tarja’s version is very similar to it. It’s good, but not even close to the quality of her version for Alice Cooper’s Poison. Anyway, I would really enjoy seeing Peter and Tarja doing a duet for Darkness live someday! Deliverance is just another one of Tarja’s typical ballads, while Neverlight has that type of heavy riff I was expecting to find more in the rest of the songs. The album ends with another nice ballad, Until Silence, and the song Medusa, which in my opinion is the most beautiful song from Colours in the Dark.

Regarding the musicians, it’s always good to listen to Mike Terrana. He is amazing on drums even when he’s not playing at full speed. The other band members do a good job too: nothing extraordinary, though, but enough for what Tarja needs. The front cover is beautiful, of course, as it has Tarja on it! and not only that, it has a psychedelic touch that makes it very interesting for album art lovers.

To sum up, Colours in the Dark is not as original as My Winter Storm, which is my favorite Tarja album, but it’s a good work worth buying if you enjoy heavy music with a female voice, just not so heavy as Arch Enemy or The Agonist. And did anybody notice how Tarja is getting more and more beautiful year after year? I hope she comes to Canada for a full tour soon.

Best moments of the album: The songs Victim of Ritual, Never Enough, Neverlight and Medusa.

Worst moments of the album: The keyboards and piano seem to be more important than the guitar, which is not that bad, but I feel there’s a lack of good riffs and solos in the whole album that could have given more punch to it.

Released in 2013 earMUSIC

Track listing
1. Victim of Ritual 5:54
2. 500 Letters 4:22
3. Lucid Dreamer 7:28
4. Never Enough 5:20
5. Mystique Voyage 7:14
6. Darkness 5:38
7. Deliverance 7:27
8. Neverlight 4:33
9. Until Silence 5:03
10. Medusa (feat. Justin Furstenfeld) 8:12

iTunes edition bonus tracks
11. Neverlight (Full Orchestral Version)
12. Until Silence (Orchestral Version)

Band members
Tarja Turunen – Lead vocals and piano
Alex Scholpp, Julian Barrett – Guitar
Kevin Chown, Doug Wimbish – Bass guitar
Christian Kretschmar – Keyboards
Mike Terrana – Drums
Max Lilja – Cello

Album Review – Heaven & Hell / The Devil You Know (2009)

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Dio, Iommi, Butler and Appice deliver us the heaviest and darkest Black Sabbath album of all time, even with the band not being called Black Sabbath.

Rating2

The_Devil_You_Know_coverI’ve never been a fan of Black Sabbath with Ozzy on vocals, although I understand and respect his importance to Heavy Metal, and also like his crazy performance on stage. I even consider the new 13 a good album, but I personally enjoy the band a lot more with Dio as the lead singer, when Sabbath produced some of the heaviest albums of their career. When The Devil You Know was launched back in 2009, it wasn’t simply a band called Heaven & Hell, but that obscure Black Sabbath that mixed the devilish riffs from Tony Iommi with the unique voice of Ronnie James Dio.

Just start listening to Atom and Evil (or should I say Adam and Eve?) and all those accusations against Tony Iommi, saying he has a deal with the devil, will totally make sense. His riffs in this album are mesmerizing, darker than the darkest night, and impossible not to get addicted to them. He’s one of those geniuses that makes us left-handed people feel really proud of being more skillful with our left hand! All the songs have awesome riffs, but I would say the most memorable ones are from the opening track, from Bible Black and from the last song, Breaking into Heaven, and if you don’t feel anything special while listening to these songs, go listen to Justin Bieber or any other crap. You’re not worthy!

heavenandhellGeezer Butler also does an incredible job with his bass lines, especially in the songs Double the Pain (one of my favorites from The Devil You Know) and Neverwhere. Also, having the talented and precise drummer Vinny Appice working with Geezer makes the music flow a lot smoother during the entire album, which by the way was never supposed to be a regular fast Heavy Metal record: only two songs (Eating the Cannibals and Neverwhere) have a fast rhythm, while all other focus on more sinister melodies commonly found in Doom Metal. And I’m not going to say anything about the amazing front cover: it’s too evil to be real, more terrifying than any Black Metal album cover I’ve ever seen.

Finally, what can I say about the unparalleled voice of Ronnie James Dio (R.I.P.)? The Devil You Know was his last record, and he sings every single line from each song perfectly, turning poetry into music. I love Bruce, Halford and many other Metal vocalists, but there’s no one that can sing with such passion and emotion as Dio. The entire world of music will forever miss that little guy, who became a real giant every time he started singing for us any of his songs. Unfortunately Dio is gone, but his legacy will remain with us, and The Devil You Know is the perfect representation of his vocal power. If this record had been launched in the 80’s, I’m pretty sure it would have been considered one of the best and most influential Heavy Metal albums of all time.

Best moments of the album: Bible Black, without any doubt. This is by far my favorite Black Sabbath Heaven & Hell song of all time. Watch the video below from the band playing it at Wacken in 2009, pay attention to the perfect lyrics, and tell me if this is not wonderful? Isn’t Dio fuckin’ awesome? “He locks himself away and tastes the silence / Hungry for another bite of wrong”

Worst moments of the album: I cannot say anything bad about this album. Maybe the fact that it ended up being just a project due to Dio’s death? I cannot even imagine how many more great albums Heaven & Hell could have recorded if Dio was still alive.

Released in 2009 Rhino Entertainment

Track listing
1. Atom and Evil 5:15
2. Fear 4:48
3. Bible Black 6:29
4. Double the Pain 5:25
5. Rock and Roll Angel 6:02
6. The Turn of the Screw 5:02
7. Eating the Cannibals 3:37
8. Follow the Tears 6:12
9. Neverwhere 4:35
10. Breaking into Heaven 6:53

iTunes exclusive bonus tracks
11. I (live) 6:30
12. Die Young (live) 6:46

Band members
Ronnie James Dio – vocals
Tony Iommi – guitar
Geezer Butler – bass guitar
Vinny Appice – drums, percussion

Album Review – Blaze Bayley / The Man Who Would Not Die (2008)

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1

One of the best and at the same time most underrated Heavy Metal albums of the past 10 years.

Rating1

Blaze_Bayley_-_Man_Who_Would_Not_Die_coverI still cannot believe how many Metal fans know absolutely nothing about Blaze Bayley’s career before and after his years with Iron Maiden, and even worse than that, they don’t even know The Man Who Would Not Die exists! This is by far one of the most amazing albums of the past 10 or 15 years, with over 60 minutes of PURE FUCKIN’ METAL! There isn’t a single song of the album that is not meaningful or powerful, and Blaze is singing better than never here.

The first three tracks are so heavy and so intense that I can never decide which one is my favorite: the title track with its perfect lyrics “On and on, I’m cursed to live…”; the kick to the face of some people that messed with Blaze in Blackmailer; and the epic song Smile Back at Death, based on the movie Gladiator. It’s impossible not to get addicted to these songs, all full of great riffs and solos. I’m a true Maidenmaniac, but I dare to say these songs are much better than most of the material Maiden has produced in the past few years.

The rest of the album is a sequence of so many awesome songs that I could write about each one of them for hours: the ballad While You Were Gone is just beautiful and a great tribute to his deceased wife Debbie Hartland, Samurai has a very nice bass line, there’s a lot of melancholy in At the End of the Day, and every time I listen to Robot or Voices from the Past I instantly start banging my head. And what can I say about the dark and heavy Serpent Hearted Man? I wish I can see Blaze playing it live someday, as heavy and fast as possible.

blaze_bayley_picMoreover, what makes this album even better are Blaze’s band members, especially bass player David Bermudez and drummer Larry Paterson, who literally smashes his drums in almost every song. The same band also recorded another masterpiece, Promise and Terror (which I plan to write about one day), but unfortunately due to some internal issues they are not together with Blaze anymore.

And finally, I’m a big fan of everything Blaze has done so far: his Hard Rock-ish years with Wolsfbane, his controversial albums with Iron Maiden, and his brilliant solo career. This guy is a true metalhead that has never given up doing the music he loves even in the worst moments of his life. Very few artists can produce something as relevant as Silicon Messiah, Promise and Terror and especially The Man Who Would Not Die nowadays, so don’t waste your time with MTV and go listen carefully to this great masterpiece from Mr. Blaze Bayley now!

Best moments of the album: Everything, from the very first second of The Man Who Would Not Die until the end of Serpent Hearted Man, including its amazing front cover and all the deep and dark lyrics of each song. I guess I listen to this album almost every week since it was launched back in 2008.

Worst moments of the album: There’s absolutely nothing bad at all here, not even regular. It’s a perfect Heavy Metal album.

Released in 2008 Blaze Bayley Records

Track listing
1. The Man Who Would Not Die  4:35
2. Blackmailer  4:43
3. Smile Back at Death  7:38
4. While You Were Gone  5:27
5. Samurai  5:39
6. Crack in the System  5:53
7. Robot  3:10
8. At the End of the Day  3:39
9. Waiting for My Life to Begin  5:10
10. Voices from the Past  5:55
11. The Truth Is One  4:22
12. Serpent Hearted Man  6:15

Band members
Blaze Bayley – vocals
Nico Bermudez – lead guitar
Jay Walsh – rhythm guitar
David Bermudez – bass
Lawrence Paterson – drums

Album Review – Chthonic / Bú-Tik (2013)

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Chthonic prove one more time why they are currently the best Heavy Metal band of the East.

Rating3

Chthonic-Bu-TikWhen a band reaches a very high standard like Chthonic with Takasago Army, the expectations for their future albums become so high that even if they launch something really cool, many people will still think they are not a good band anymore. I’m pretty sure lots of fans are complaining everywhere in the world about Bú-Tik because it’s not a “Takasago Army”, but always remember it isn’t supposed to be so.

Bú-Tik is an evolution, it is fresh music for people who love speed, strength and awesome lyrics, without being just a copy of the band’s old material. Of course many elements are still there like the erhu (a Chinese two-stringed violin), which is a crucial part of the band’s soul, and the lyrics focused on all the war and revolution that happened in Taiwan, but each song is different and has its own meaning and intensity.

Regarding the album art, the band tried to represent “the idea of an armed body and mind” in the front cover, which looks a lot sexier and less brutal than what they used to do in the past, but it’s great anyway. About the music itself, Freddy Lim does an amazing job with his screaming, the beautiful Doris Yeh seems to be even more important to the band with her intense bass lines, and the drummer Dani Wang is a beast as usual in all album tracks! I just think there should be more guitar solos in some of the songs, because although I love the sound of the erhu and the keyboards together, a good guitar solo always adds a lot of energy to heavy music. And let’s not forget the Intro and the Outro of the album, which together do a great job getting us pumped for what’s coming next and then showing us that the “war” is over.

Chthonic+BuTik++Album+Promo+2013+PNGThe lyrics are also an essential part of the whole album, either when they’re entirely based on historical facts such as the 228 Massacre in 1947, or with simple but strong lines such as “Let me stand up like a Taiwanese / Only justice will bring you peace”. Chthonic doesn’t usually write generic lyrics, an issue that happens with most of the Metal bands nowadays.

To sum up, a very good album that deserves the attention of all heavy music lovers. Going back to my initial idea, unless the music is a complete piece of junk like Metallica’s St. Anger, I always believe we should embrace the evolution of our favorite bands. And Chthonic is far from producing something so bad as St. Anger.

Best moments of the album: Supreme Pain for the Tyrant and Defenders of Bú-Tik Palace, especially if you watch the superb videos they shot for both songs. Those are two of the most creative music videos I’ve seen in many years.

Worst moments of the album: Sail Into the Sunset’s Fire and Resurrection Pyre just fall flat in my opinion. Maybe it’s the English version of the album that does that to those songs, because I’ve listened to the Taiwanese versions and they sound a lot more powerful.

Released in 2013 Spinefarm Records / Universal Music

Track listing
1. Arising Armament (Intro) 2:27
2. Supreme Pain for the Tyrant 4:45
3. Sail into the Sunset’s Fire 4:00
4. Next Republic 4:12
5. Rage of my Sword 4:37
6. Between Silence and Death 4:38
7. Resurrection Pyre 4:59
8. Set Fire to the Island 3:47
9. Defenders of Bú-Tik Palace 5:22
10. Undying Rearmament (Outro) 1:49

Band members
Freddy Lim, “Left Face of Maradou” – lead vocals, erhu
Doris Yeh, “Thunder Tears” – bass, backing vocals
Jesse Liu, “The Infernal” – guitars, backing vocals
Dani Wang, “Azathothian Hands” – drums
CJ Kao, “Dispersed Fingers” – keyboards, synthesizer