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Accessories Review – Iron Maiden 2015 Calendar

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If you don’t have the new Iron Maiden calendar embellishing your wall and your house yet, run to the hills!

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00_Iron Maiden Calendar 2015As another year comes to an end, it’s time to get ready for 2015 in style with the brand new Iron Maiden 2015 Calendar, by Heavy Metal titans Iron Maiden. Do not even think about purchasing one of those mellow calendar full of puppies, or that one with boring flowers from who knows where. You don’t want to let “Uncle Eddie” down with that meaningless sensitive attitude not suitable for a true Maidenmaniac, do you?

Once again published by Danilo Promotions Limited, the material, dimensions (42.3 x 29.7 x 1 cm) and weight (322 g) are very similar to all previous editions, but I’m pretty sure you don’t care that much about those minor details, right? What you really want to know is: which Eddies and/or images were selected to make all your months in 2015 a lot more beastly and fun?

First of all, the layout is a slightly different from the superb 2014 edition of the calendar, with Iron Maiden “abandoning” their traditional typography for a more generic style. Although I understand they wanted to freshen up the final product with this move, I believe all Maidenmaniacs around the world will be a little disappointed with that. I mean, this was one of the most unique characteristics of their calendar, so why changing it to something so bland?

In regards to the images chosen for each month, Iron Maiden applied the same idea as for their 2013 edition, which means they mixed some Eddies from their event T-shirts with live pictures taken during their terrific Maiden England Tour 2014. I don’t know if their plan is to do the same stuff every two years, intercalating a calendar with only event T-shirts/images with a calendar with a mix of images and pictures of the band, but for me the ones without those live shots are a lot more interesting. Besides, they can always add their live photos as an extra smaller item to each month if they want to, which is something they already did in the past.

From the 12 months of 2015, my favorite ones are by far July and September, which represent their event T-shirts from their 2014 Nordic events and their epic performances at Hellfest and Main Square Festival in France, respectively. From their live shots, I would say March, April and October are the best ones.

One suggestion I would make to the band regarding the content of the calendar would be very easy to do and something awesome for all their fans: why not adding a simple note (it can be just a couple of words) to the days where Maiden has a song about? For instance, the song The Longest Day is about the D-Day, the Allied invasion of France during World War II that commenced on June 6, 1944, so there could be something like “D-DAY (The Longest Day)” on June 6, as straightforward as that. Or maybe October 25 for The Trooper, July 31 for Paschendale, and so on.

In summary, despite not being a boring calendar, it’s not brilliant either. It’s still worth the investment, especially because it’s cheap compared to many other calendar types available in the market, but it could have been a lot better and not just one more calendar. You can purchase it at the Iron Maiden official  webshop, at Amazon, and many other online or physical stores. If you don’t have it hanging on your wall yet, what are you waiting for to run to the closest store or buy it online? The Iron Maiden 2015 Calendar is gonna get ya, no matter how far. As long as it’s before 2015 actually starts, of course.

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Metal Chick of the Month – Rachel Aspe

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La femme Nikita? Non, la femme Rachel.

Bonjour! Comment allez-vous? These initial French words have a good reason to be here: la belle femme Rachel Aspe, vocalist of the Heavy Metal/Hardcore band Eths from Marseille, France,  is our metal babe this month. This beautiful girl was born on June 24, 1988, in the city of Grasse, France, about 1,000km from Paris, but she conquered the world after singing Swiss Industrial/Groove Metal band Sybreed‘s Emma-0 on the French TV show “Incroyable Talent” in November 2012, when the video of her performance went viral.

This is the audio she sent to the TV show before being selected to sing it live on TV, and as you will be able to notice her performance was more than just awesome: her guttural vocals are as potent as the world-renowned frontwomen Angela Gossow (ex-Arch Enemy) and Alissa White-Gluz (ex-The Agonist, Arch Enemy), even never taking any lessons on how to do guttural singing. By the way, it always amazes me how ignorant and stupid those so-called “music experts” that judge the participants at any TV show like “American Idol” are: why do they make those faces of disbelief or looks of disapproval when they see a girl singing like Rachel Aspe? Honestly, I cannot believe that they don’t really know at least who Angela Gossow is, or that they don’t know how important, powerful and admired the female guttural in the world of heavy music is. That’s simply ridiculous.

Getting back to Rachel, she has mentioned in several interviews that it had always been her goal to be part of a band, and that this was one of the main reasons she went to that TV show. She had a job at a day nursery at that time and it was hard to find some proper time to work on her vocals, but she managed to do it really quickly in order to have the best possible performance on the show, which was broadcasted just a little time after Candice Clot left Eths. And guess what? Rachel was recruited by the other members of Eths to replace Candice, and then she could finally fulfill her dream. If this is not the perfect mix of hard work, some good luck and being embraced by the wings of destiny, I really don’t know what is.

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Rachel mentioned in one of her interviews that she discovered guttural vocals when she was a teenager, when she used to listen to punk rock and later to more brutal bands. She said that screaming was like a way to escape from her personal problems and it quickly became a “drug” for her. Regarding her music influences, the first singers she listened to were Max Cavalera (Soulfly, ex-Sepultura) and Corey Talor (Slipknot, Stone Sour), who helped her choose guttural as her type of singing, and although she’s a huge fan of Angela Gossow and loves her voice, she said the former frontwoman of Arch Enemy did not influence her way of singing.

As previously mentioned, she never took lessons and searched alone how to do guttural singing, but as with Eths she has to sing clean vocal parts too, she has been receiving lessons from professor Pierre Rodriguez. Another interesting fact about Rachel is the fact that she never thought about singing in French in a band (her vocal covers were almost always in English), but she really appreciates singing in her mother tongue with Eths now.

Rachel’s first studio work with Eths was the excellent EP Ex Umbra In Solem, launched in March this year. The EP contains a brand new song (the title-track Ex Umbra In Solem), three classic tracks of the band recorded live in October 2013 in Paris (Samantha, Bulimiarexia and Crucifère), and three songs from their album III re-recorded with Rachel on vocals (Voragine, Harmaguedon and Proserpina). Prior to joining Eths, Rachel was a member of French Melodic Death Metal band Dividead for a short period of time in 2012, and recorded the vocals for the song Fireblast by French Symphonic Power Metal band Kerion also in 2012.

With respect to her taste for music, mademoiselle Rachel proves us all she’s a true metalhead: her favorite artists include Heavy Metal icons such as Eths, Nightwish, Asking Alexandria and Deftones, and lesser-known but heavy as hell bands like Sybreed, Shai Hulud, Filter, Butterfly Explosion and Obscura. And last but not least, she also said she’s crazy about children and about her leopard geckos. Well, I would love to see her singing a “lullaby” to some kids, and I wasn’t expecting her to have any “cute” pets at all based on her singing style. Let those generic animals to the tedious participants from those annoying TV singing contests, while the wild Rachel and her fun lizards keep on rockin’ our world.

Rachel Aspe’s Official Facebook page
Rachel Aspe’s Official Twitter
Rachel Aspe’s Official YouTube channel

“I’m really proud to be a part of Eths. I’ve been a fan of the band for many years, and it’s a great honor for me to sing songs I have been listening to for such a long time.” – Rachel Aspe

Beverage Review – AC/DC Premium Lager Beer

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Australian Hard Rock icons are back in “beer”, although not as good as expected.

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IMG_1641For the sake of heavy music, Australian Hard Rock gods AC/DC are not going to retire as many websites and newspapers like the National Post and Billboard said a few weeks ago. Those were only false rumors promptly denied by the band itself, which means we can keep enjoying AC/DC’s unparalleled music legacy without worrying (at least for now) about the band breaking up. However, just as many other huge heavy music icons in the world, such as Iron Maiden, Motörhead, KISS, among others, Angus Young & Co. are investing in other sources of income or alternatives for the gigantic tumble all physical album sales and even part of digital sales have been suffering in the past decade due to illegal downloads.

Thus, one of the most explored markets by all of those bands, including AC/DC, is the alcoholic beverage industry, and among the AC/DC beverages we have the AC/DC Premium Lager Beer. The band’s motto for their beer is “Australian Rock meets German beer”, and according to their website, “If you wanna rock hard, you need the right beer. AC/DC, the infamous Hardrock Legends from down under, have been delivering true rock for the last 40 years. Now they give their name for true pint-sized Australian taste as well.” In addition, the information AC/DC provides about their beer is that “AC/DC Premium Lager Beer is 568mL of true German Premium Lager with mouthwatering 5.0% alc. This lager fires up your tongue like TNT, comes with a great beer-loving taste and is brewed in accordance with the Rock`n Roll manifesto of 1973 and the German purity law of 1516.”

The only problem is that, besides those powerful words and the beauty of the can, nothing else really stands out when you actually taste the beer. It’s just an average golden color beer with a tiny white head that doesn’t last for too long, and a not very exciting malt taste with hints of grassy hops. The aroma of corn and grains is not bad, but it’s not as good as many other lagers in the market, and also the beer tends to become too watery after a while if you don’t drink it fast. I know this happens with many other beers, but believe me, with the AC/DC one this “process” is extremely fast, and if you are a head lover you’ll probably hate this beer.

One thing that really bothered me after drinking the AC/DC beer was the unpleasant bitterness in the aftertaste. I enjoy drinking all types of beer, including some very bitter ones once in a while, but if the beer leaves that strong bitter taste after you’re done with it, then it’s an issue for me. I’m not sure why they called a beer that leaves such an unpleasant taste in your mouth a “German premium lager”, because I’ve never tasted a premium beer with that negative characteristic. And that’s what will probably disappoint all AC/DC diehard fans the most: the fact that a beer that’s being sold as “Australian Rock” with “German beer” feels more like a rip-off marketing strategy than something natural and honest. How can it be German if it’s brewed in France? I’m far from being a beer connoiseur, but that disparity between countries doesn’t make much sense to me.

IMG_1644Anyway, if you’re still interested in trying it, the AC/DC beer is available in Austria, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Germany, Luxembourg, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and probably in some other countries not listed, like Australia, Italy and France. By the way, why is it not listed as available in their home country (Australia) and in the country of production (France)? There’s either something missing from their official website, or their distribution strategy is one of the weirdest and most incomplete things I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

You can go to their “Dealer” section on the official website and search for a dealer where you can buy some AC/DC beer, and if you live in Canada it’s available at The Beer Store, just browse by location to find the nearest store to where you live, and you can also check the list of all other beers available in each store.

To sum up, although we’re talking about one of the biggest Rock N’ Roll bands in the history of mankind, their beer is just average and worth just a single try, nothing more than that. If I were you, as a Heavy Metal fan, I would go for a Trooper Beer, which is a lot more tasty and well-crafted than the AC/DC one, and the price is not that much higher. Unfortunately, the AC/DC Premium Lager will not shake you all night long. At least not in a good way.

Beer details
Category: Imported
Attributes: Light
Type: Lager
Country: France
Brewer: Brasserie Licorne Sas
Alcohol Content (ABV): 5.0%
Price: CAD$ 2.25 (1 × Can 500 ml)

Album Review – Eths / Ex Umbra In Solem EP (2014)

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Rachel Aspe is definitely here to stay. Or should I say she’s here to scream?

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CoverAfter 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.

EthsLast 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

 

Accessories Review – Iron Maiden 2014 Calendar

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Don’t remember what day is today? Iron Maiden can help you.

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Iron Maiden calendar 2014_frontNext year will be my third consecutive year  using the Iron Maiden official calendar. I know that new technologies are pretty cool and that we don’t need almost all types of paper stuff anymore, especially with all the apps we have in our smartphones, but nothing beats an awesome calendar like this one from Iron Maiden. Moreover, as I had two previous versions of it, I guess I have enough “expertise” to review the 2014 one.

First of all, the 2012 calendar was terrific and by far my favorite one, mainly because it was all designed based on the event T-shirts from The Final Frontier World Tour. Each month represented a different country, region or event, providing us some kind of “journey around the world in 12 months”, making the final result really above and beyond. Then came the 2013 calendar (which I’m still using, of course), but this time it was not that good, albeit containing some nice images from event T-shirts mixed with pictures of the band playing live during the Maiden England North American Tour 2012.

Now with the 2014 calendar Iron Maiden go back to almost the same concept as for 2012, with each month representing an event T-shirt from their Maiden England Tour 2013, except for the month of May which is dedicated to their Trooper Beer. I enjoyed a lot the new calendar focusing again on Eddie, especially the months of February (Scandinavia), July (USA) and December (Brazil), and the fact that they left the live pictures as a secondary part of the whole product.

Published by Danilo Promotions Limited, the quality of the material used in the calendar is extremely good and resistant to falls (mine fell off the wall a couple of times and they’re all good) and even to water. Regarding the size, it’s about the same as any regular calendar (42.4 x 29.8 x 1 cm), and its weight is only 299 g.

You can find the 2014 calendar at the Iron Maiden official webshop, at Amazon.ca or at any regular store in your city for about 15 Canadian dollars. I bought mine at one of the Calendar Club stores at the Toronto Eaton Centre, and the cost was about two dollars more expensive than online. However, remember there’s still the shipping to be added to the final price if you decide to buy it online on Iron Maiden’s US Official Merchandise or on their UK Official Shop.

Anyway, the calendar is worth every penny, and it’s a very nice way to remember all those important international dates, all UK, US and Canada holidays, as well as the birthday of each band member. In my opinion, it’s an excellent Christmas gift for that Maidenmaniac friend you have at school or work, and even for your brother if he behaves himself and promises not to touch your Heavy Metal LP or CD collection again without your permission.

Not only that, you can use your calendar for one of those famous “calendar countdowns” we see in so many movies and TV series for a very special day in your life. How about using it for a countdown to that Maiden England Tour 2014 concert in Europe you’re attending during your summer vacation, for Wacken Open Air, Bloodstock Open Air, Summer Breeze, Tuska Open Air, Heavy MTL or any other crazy Heavy Metal festivals all over the world?

Oh yeah, you can use it as a reminder for your spouse or partner’s birthday too. Just please be careful not to “hurt” Eddie’s feelings by adding “things” like flowers and glitter to your calendar.

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