Tag Archives: rock n’ roll

Album Review – Witches Of Doom / Obey (2014)

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These Italian guys bring you some awesome Doom and Stoner Metal with a unique goth vibe. They’re the Witches of Doom, yeah!

Rating4

Witches-Of-Doom-ObeyThere were so many brilliant Heavy Metal and Rock N’ Roll bands from the 80’s and part of the 90’s with a strong goth vibe it’s hard to name just a few, like for example The Cult, Paradise Lost and Sisters of Mercy. However, very few bands playing that type of music were created (and survived) in the past decade or so, which unfortunately ended up dragging such a rich genre down to the underground of music. Let’s say that this little “problem” is almost over with the blessed birth of Italian Goth-Stoner-Doom Metal band Witches Of Doom and their outstanding debut album Obey, released a couple of months ago.

Although they’re not reinventing goth, doom or anything else, the way this Rome-based band blends all the elements from those music genres, also adding hints of 70’s Hard Rock and elements of more contemporary heavy music, is beyond amazing. In other words, you’ll be able to easily identify the influence of bands such as Moonspell and Depeche Mode in their music, but it’s far from being just a “cover” band. Witches Of Doom have their own musicality, a modern and personalized goth heavy rock that will please all fans of good occult music.

The Betrayal begins with a Breaking Bad-ish intro before turning into a thrilling mix of Doom Metal and Southern Rock, with highlights to the great vocal performance by Danilo “Groova” Piludu. The last part of the song sounds a lot like American Sludge Metal supergroup Down, especially its raw riffs and soulful solo. Following that excellent beginning, we have Witches of Doom, a much heavier version of that goth music from the 80’s played by Sisters of Mercy and an excellent “business card” from the band (“We are the Witches of Doom, yeah!”), and To the Bone, a song that could be played in any radio station in the world: it’s 100% catchy with a really cool atmosphere. Besides, it’s easy to see how much guitarist Federico “Fed” Venditti loves 80’s rock music based on his guitar lines.

The next track, Needless Needle, is another interesting song full of guitar effects the likes of Paradise Lost and a nice old-fashioned keyboard solo at the end, but its main strength is how the band supports the chorus with their instruments, making it exciting and unique; while the piano ballad Crown of Thorns focus on a more melancholic feeling, especially its lyrics, getting heavier halfway through it.

DSC_0683The second half of the album starts with the awesome distorted guitar and bass lines of Dance of the Dead Flies, which can be considered the first of the two songs that sound like a tribute to the one and only Type O Negative. It’s Doom and Stoner Metal to the maximum heaviness, with kudos to singer Groova for his badass performance on vocals one more time. The second and most Type O Negative-ish song of the album is entitled Rotten to the Core: this is one of those songs tailored to be played during a strip-tease at the most underground Rock N’ Roll strip club in the world, something like From Dusk Till Dawn (and I can even imagine Salma Hayek, or I should say Santanico Pandemonium, doing her sexy dance). In addition, once again the guitar solo enhances the overall energy of the song.

Last but not least, we have It’s My Heart (Where I Feel the Cold), a heavier and a lot better ballad than “Crown of Thorns” with nice piano notes by Graziano “Eric” Corrado and some really dark low riffs, giving it an intense goth vibe; and the title-track Obey, with its tribal intro, powerful keyboards, poetic lyrics (“I was waiting for you in the sky”), and a mesmerizing rhythm. It even has some interesting sitar notes to boost its delicious eerie atmosphere. And just for your information, this song doesn’t actually have 14 minutes: it ends at around minute 8 or 9, “returning” at minute 12 as some kind of “hidden track” that contains only some weird distorted noises.

In summary, Witches Of Doom’s Obey, available at their Big Cartel page, on iTunes and other different places, brings back to you directly from Italy that awesome 80’s goth sonority, offering you everything you loved so much in that era but without sounding obsolete at all. Quite the contrary, those guys are looking to the future of music, supported by their technique, their influences and, more important than that, a lot of feeling and passion for Rock N’ Roll.

Best moments of the album: The Betrayal, Dance of the Dead Flies and Rotten to the Core.

Worst moments of the album: Crown of Thorns.

Released in 2014 Sliptrick Records

Track listing
1. The Betrayal 3:49
2. Witches of Doom 3:54
3. To the Bone 3:49
4. Needless Needle 5:01
5. Crown of Thorns 5:25
6. Dance of the Dead Flies 5:06
7. Rotten to the Core 4:10
8. It’s My Heart (Where I Feel the Cold) 4:17
9. Obey 14:45

Band members
Danilo “Groova” Piludu – vocals
Federico “Fed” Venditti – guitar
Jacopo Cartelli – bass
Graziano “Eric” Corrado – keyboards
Andrea “Budi” Budicin – drums

Website Review – Metal Moose Radio

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An awesome 2-hour 100% indie show based in Oklahoma City featuring all types of heavy music from all around the world.

Rating1

Metal Moose Radio“Of all the wonders of nature, a tree in summer is perhaps the most remarkable; with the possible exception of a moose singing ‘Embraceable You’ in spats.” – Woody Allen

Those beautiful and inspiring words by one of the craziest and most amazing filmmakers of all time are perfect for introducing to you the Metal Moose Radio, a radio show/website based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, dedicated to playing and supporting underground and/or unsigned musicians, venues and management companies.

Before anyone asks, the Metal Moose Radio has absolutely nothing to do with The Headbanging Moose, except for our love for heavy music and support for independent bands. It’s just an “amoosing” coincidence! Founded and managed by Moose Jaques, this radio station airs every week The Metal Moose Show, a 2-hour indie show that features all genres and subgenres of Heavy Metal from bands and artists from different parts of the world, from the most obscure Black Metal to 100% mellow Hard Rock.

Metal Moose Radio_Moosefest01

Moosefest Oklahoma City

Here are the main links where you can listen to the show, get in contact with the radio station and check the bands featured on each episode:

Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Tumblr
Spreaker

After taking a listen at some of its most recent episodes, I have to admit The Metal Moose Show can be really mind-blowing for regular people who are not familiar with the independent music scene, and also a total delight for metalheads who are always avid for new stuff. There are so many awesome bands on the show that do not make it to the biggest Rock N’ Roll radio stations for obvious reasons, such as payola (and therefore not being “listed” in their top 40 mainstream), that it’s pretty hard to select a few as an example of how diverse, unique and entertaining The Metal Moose Show can be.

Anyway, here are some interesting bands and songs recently aired on The Moose Metal Show you probably don’t know anything about:

Cadaveria – Flowers In Fire
Zombie Death Stench – Darkstar Creation
Jennasyde And The Watchers – My Poison
Mortuary Science – Harvesting Putrefaction
Gathering After Ashes – Subconscious
Kissing In Graveyards – Little Psycho

Metal Moose Radio_Moosefest02

Moosefest Tulsa

Furthermore, if you have a band (and a functioning brain) and would like to see it on the show together with the ones listed above and many more, here are the very quick and easy steps you MUST follow in order to have your music played at The Metal Moose Show:

1. Send music in mp3 format
2. Include a bio
3. Must give written permission to air your music on The Metal Moose Show

Send all of these requirements to mooseriffworks@gmail.com

And last but not least, the Metal Moose Radio is currently organizing two festivals called MOOSEFEST, one in Oklahoma City and one in Tulsa, with lots of cool bands for a very decent price. These are excellent chances to show your support for the indie scene while enjoying some good heavy music. Just do not expect to listen to any moose singing an old popular song in spats, of course.

And as a taste of what The Metal Moose Show can offer for you, here’s the full September 9, 2014 episode. Grab a beer (or a Cheetos) and get ready to bang your fuckin’ head!

Album Review – Crucified Barbara / In The Red (2014)

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Our beloved Swedish rock goddesses return to give Rock N’ Roll to you and put it in the soul of everyone.

Rating4

coverIt was already time for Swedish bombshells of Rock N’ Roll Crucified Barbara to be back with more of their unmatched heavy rock and their tough attitude. After the awesome releases In Distortion We Trust (2005), ‘Til Death Do Us Party (2009) and The Midnight Chase (2012), those incredible hardrockers offer us, avid metalheads all over the world, another kick-ass album overflowing aggressiveness, sexy tunes and infinite stamina, the electrifying In The Red.

Although all of their albums are so solid and ravishing it’s extremely hard to choose the best one, there’s one major thing that drew my attention on In The Red: the total absence of any type of ballad. The whole album is pure motherfuckin’ heavy and fast rock, with not a single song being slow or romantic at all, and that, my friends, will please the hearts of pretty much all of their diehard fans for sure. In other words, don’t you just love when those sexy beasts simply assault us like that, with no mercy of our bodies and souls?

And their badass Rock N’ Roll party couldn’t kick off on a higher note than with the frantic I Sell My Kids For Rock’N’Roll, which is not only a great name for a song, but also a superb no-frills feast of ultra-hard-riffs and addictive lyrics, with highlights to the mighty bass lines by Ida Evlieye. It’s so thrilling that I challenge you to stand still during this song and to not play it again and again in your car, at home or anywhere else you might be. To Kill A Man, the first single released a while ago, is just an average song, but it’s a good example of how Mia Coldheart’s voice is sounding a lot stronger in In The Red than in any of their previous albums, while the spectacular Electric Sky has their beautiful trademark musicality, being the perfect choice for hitting the road while singing its chorus nonstop, with kudos to Nicki Wicked for her amazing drumming during the song.

crucified barbaraThen we have what can be called “Beer Rock” (or music tailored for drinking beer) in The Ghost Inside, a fast-tempo song with a 70’s Rock intro the likes of Black Sabbath, lots of cool riffs and melodic variations, and the straightforward 80’s Hard Rock in Don’t Call On Me, where their “Motörhead” side strikes again, with the always incredible Mia reaching some really high vocal notes. However, it’s in the title-track In The Red, a thrilling tune with a catchy chorus, where her voice goes even beyond that, enhanced by the awesome job done on guitars by Mia herself and Sweden’s number one blonde stunner Klara Force, and therefore turning the song into one of the best moments of the album.

Lunatic #1 reminds me a lot of “Kid from the Upperclass” from their previous album, with its cool lyrics pushing it to probably being one of their selected new songs for their upcoming live performances, while Shadows was born to be a Rock N’ Roll radio hit, with all instruments in perfect synergy and Nicki amazingly pounding her drums from start to finish. By the way, not only Nicki, but all members of the band seem to have almost reached their peak in terms of what they can do with their instruments in In The Red: they sound a lot more polished and cohesive now (needless to mention, of course, their undeniable talent as musicians), but at the same time they managed to keep that crude resonance so important for true Rock N’ Roll to happen. It’s really exciting to see a band evolving like that, don’t you think?

Fortunately for all of us, there’s a lot more to come before the party is over: the southern sonority in Finders Keepers is not bad, but it doesn’t keep up with the rest of the album; Do You Want Me, with its riffs full of feeling, talks about sex, love and troubled relationships (“Do you want me / I can never be your sacred angel”), just like many of Crucified Barbara’s top songs; and finally, the band closes the album with another fast and raw Rock N’ Roll tune the likes of Motörhead, Follow The Stream, leaving us eager for more of their powerful and invigorating music.

In 1973, British rock band Argent sang for the first time “God gave Rock N’ Roll to you / Gave Rock N’ Roll to you / Put it in the soul of everyone”. Then, in 1991, American Hard Rock giants KISS immortalized those lyrics forever in our hearts. And finally, here we are many years later banging our heads to the rock music by Crucified Barbara who, despite not singing the exact same words, are truly making them become reality and helping us enjoy our lives a lot more. Thus, call them goddesses, demonesses, heroines, female warriors or anything else: as long as they keep on playing such delightful music and putting awesome Rock N’ Roll in our souls, that’s all that really matters.

Best moments of the album: I Sell My Kids For Rock’N’Roll, Electric Sky and In The Red.

Worst moments of the album: To Kill A Man and Finders Keepers.

Released in 2014 Despotz Records

Track listing
1. I Sell My Kids For Rock’N’Roll 2:54
2. To Kill A Man 3:21
3. Electric Sky 3:56
4. The Ghost Inside 4:32
5. Don’t Call On Me 4:02
6. In The Red 3:48
7. Lunatic #1 3:11
8. Shadows 3:25
9. Finders Keepers 2:53
10. Do You Want Me 3:35
11. Follow The Stream 3:46

Band members
Mia Coldheart – vocals, guitar
Klara Force – guitar, backing vocals
Ida Evileye – bass guitar, backing vocals
Nicki Wicked – drums, backing vocals

Album Review – Seneron / Parasites and Poets (2014)

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Heavy riffs, catchy choruses and tons of Rock N’ Roll straight from Northern Ireland.

Rating5

1. cd frontI’m almost sure you’ve never listened to any Heavy Metal or Hard Rock bands from Northern Ireland, except maybe for Alternative Metal band Therapy? if you’re one of those guys that love old and alternative stuff. Thus, in order to expand your heavy music boundaries, how about going to Derry (or Londonderry), the second-largest city in Northern Ireland, to enjoy the exciting Rock N’ Roll by Alternative Rock band Seneron and their debut album entitled Parasites and Poets?

This talented three-piece band united elements from some of their biggest influences, such as Foo Fighters, Nirvana and Green Day, with traditional Hard Rock and Rock N’ Roll, creating some cohesive and powerful music that will please all fans of heavy music without a shadow of a doubt. Are they the most creative band in the world? Of course not, but sometimes sticking to the foundations of heavy rock is all you need to generate entertaining stuff.

Parasites and Poets begins with the Rock N’ Roll vibe of Don’t Cave In, which by the way was the lead single chosen by the band to promote the new album. It was indeed the perfect choice, as fans of the heaviest stuff from Foo Fighters will love this due to its Hard Rock riffs and chorus, with its raw vocals adding a good kick not only to this song but to the whole album. Talk the Walk keeps up with its predecessor, offering the listener some heavy and rhythmic rock music, with the catchy chorus (“Stop stop stop the talking / Do the walking”) and the nice drumming by John Hamilton being its highlights, followed by the also interesting Breath, where you’ll find riffs inspired by modern Punk Rock music like The Offspring and Green Day. Despite being a lighter track that could easily become a radio hit, that doesn’t mean it lacks the energy expected in a Rock N’ Roll song.

seneronThe following track, Dig Deep, reminds me a lot of the music done by many excellent Southern Rock bands, with its direct and effective sonority (especially its heavy bass lines) turning it into one of the best songs of the entire album. Then we have What a Way to Go, which will inspire you for banging your head and having a beer (its  chorus doesn’t keep the momentum, though), and It All Ends Here, where the band focuses on a more traditional Rock N’ Roll, but it ends up not being as catchy as the other songs.

And the album ends with two more professional and enjoyable performances by Seneron: Freakshow has a very cohesive sonority, with highlights to its nice chorus; while Outbound offers us everything a good Hard Rock song needs, from heavy riffs mixed with slower melodic parts, to strong vocals lines. You can visit Seneron’s SoundCloud, BandCamp and ReverbNation pages for more information about the band and their high-end rock music. If you’re a fan of honest straightforward heavy rock, just go for it. You won’t be disappointed at all.

Best moments of the album: Don’t Cave In and Dig Deep.

Worst moments of the album: It All Ends Here.

Released in 2014 Independent

Track listing
1. Don’t Cave In 4:05
2. Talk the Walk 3:17
3. Breath 3:14
4. Dig Deep 3:27
5. What a Way to Go 3:27
6. It All Ends Here 4:23
7. Freakshow 3:13
8. Outbound 3:17

Band members
John Shields – vocals, guitars
Ivor Ferris – bass, vocals
John Hamilton – drums

Album Review – Septekh / Plan for World Domination (2014)

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These Swedish metallers show us all how to dominate the world with violent and creative heavy music.

Rating4

SEPTEKH - Plan for World Domination cover artFrom the obscure island of Mörkö, Sweden, comes a band that plans to dominate the world with an awesome mix of Thrash, Death and Black Metal, Rock N’ Roll, and even Blues in their musicality. After two EP’s, entitled The Seth Avalanche (2012) and Apollonian Eyes (2013), the latter with the outstanding song (and video) “Burn It To The Ground”, it’s time for Swedish Death/Thrash metallers Septekh to release their first full-length album, the excellent Plan for World Domination.

Formed in 2008 in Stockholm, those Swedish guys are not only very technical in what they do, but there’s an extra dose of dark humor that ends up adding a lot of value to the music they play. I think it’s more than obvious that without humor no one can blend the brutality of Slayer with Motörhead and Blues music, and sing about death and depravity, without sounding cheap. I mean, you have to be completely arrogant and out of your mind if you think you can do Thrash Metal better than Slayer, don’t you agree? Fortunately, that’s not the case with Septekh, and what they offer us in this album is beyond enjoyable and fun, starting by the brilliant album art, featuring the big horse (also known as “Playmate of the Year – The Hippocalyptic Messenger”) by Swedish artist Richard Damm.

When you see such an amazing front cover like this one, you automatically know the content inside is going to be good, which is exactly what happens as soon as the band starts blasting everything on their way with the opening track, Into The Void Of My Mind, a frantic crossover of Thrash Metal from the 80’s and Death Metal, with riffs and guitar solo the likes of Anthrax or Exodus. The following track of the album, Going Down In Style, is some kind of “Blues Metal”, with highlight to the bass lines and the rhythmic drumming by Patrik Ström and Staffan Persson respectively and its fun lyrics about selling your soul to the devil  (“I’m going down in style / I got better things to do than survive / I’m going down in style / See I’ll be burning up and I’ll do it with a smile”), turning it into the best song of all; while Saving Graces goes back to a more direct Thrash Metal with some nuances of Punk Rock. In addition, it should work really well if included in their live performances due to its high level of energy.

In Neanderthal, which sounds like the band’s “tribute” to the unique Rock N’ Roll by Motörhead, Septekh present a faster and rawer side of their music, while in Don Asshole the band offers a more modern sonority focusing on heaviness instead of speed, with David Wikström doing an awesome job on the guitars. Then we have Left Handed Man, a very melodic and exciting tune that truly elevates the quality of the album with excellent vocal lines by Nils GRZNLS Meseke blending perfectly with the riffs, and the dark sonority of Black Shores, with its heavy bass intro and a huge dose of melancholy.

SEPTEKH band photoThe Man Who Died A Million Times can be summarized as two minutes of pure violence, or maybe as “the perfect soundtrack for some insane circle pits and furious headbanging”, but things get even better with Superheated Liquid Iron Core, another intense track with superb drumming and riffs that sound so much like 80’s Thrash Metal I can even visualize this song being recorded by Anthrax with Joey Belladonna on vocals.

The last part of the album starts with Eyes Of The Grave, with riffs that remind me of the early days of Slayer plus some very interesting lyrics (“There is no light / There is no youth / There are no eyes but the eyes of the grave”), followed by the fuckin’ heavy song Fuck Dollar, probably the weirdest track of all, sounding almost like traditional Black Metal in the end. And lastly, we have more traditional Thrash Metal with powerful riffs in Desdaemonia, and the 11-minute “epic” title-track Plan For World Domination, with so many different elements it gets hard to label this song. Let’s just say it’s a brutal music voyage, and that you will enjoy it for sure.

If you got hooked by Septekh’s crazy sonority and want to know more about the band, the best thing you can do is purchasing Plan for World Domination (available on the official Abyss Records store or for digital download on iTunes), because supporting this very creative Swedish band will at the same time keep the fire of metal alive and, even more important than that, help them in their amazing “plan” for dominating the entire world with fuckin’ heavy music.

Best moments of the album: Going Down In Style, Left Handed Man and Superheated Liquid Iron Core.

Worst moments of the album: Black Shores and Fuck Dollar.

Released in 2014 Studio 508 Productions / Abyss Records

Track listing
1. Into The Void Of My Mind 3:50
2. Going Down In Style 4:29
3. Saving Graces 4:28
4. Neanderthal 2:27
5. Don Asshole 4:53
6. Left Handed Man 5:05
7. Black Shores 4:33
8. The Man Who Died A Million Times 2:07
9. Superheated Liquid Iron Core 3:12
10. Eyes Of The Grave 3:54
11. Fuck Dollar 5:39
12. Desdaemonia 4:39
13. Plan For World Domination 10:58

Band members
Nils GRZNLS Meseke – vocals
David Wikström – guitars
Patrik Ström – bass
Staffan Persson – drums

 

Album Review – WhiteNoise / The Herd EP (2014)

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Searching for an interesting mix of Rock N’ Roll, Metalcore and Hard Rock? This cool Israeli band might have exactly what you need.

Rating5

whitenoise_the herdTheir official Facebook page states they’re a Hardcore Rock N’ Roll band from Tel-Aviv, Israel, formed in 2004 by four childhood friends, all children to immigrants who moved from Soviet Russia to Israel in the early 90’s. That multicultural mixture alone is already enough to confirm how difficult it is to label the music by Israeli band WhiteNoise, but it’s when you start listening to their new EP entitled The Herd that things will get even more confusing (in the best way possible, of course).

Although it might seem at first glance that there’s nothing new in the music by WhiteNoise, their unique crossover of many different heavy music genres such as Hardcore, Rock N’ Roll, Hard Rock, Death Metal, Metalcore and many others stands out and turns their musicality into something very entertaining for all types of metal fans. It’s almost as if they tried to add all their influences and personal experiences at the same time into their music, a bold move that actually ended up working for them.

whitenoiseThe Herd consists of three professional and honest tracks, with a high level of energy flowing throughout its entirety. The first one, 4 AM, is the best of all with a nice medley of Hard Rock, Glam Rock and Metalcore, with highlights to its melodious guitar lines and fun powerful screams by lead singer Yula. You can even check a live version of it at the D2O festival in Russia in 2013 by clicking HERE. The other two are Between The Lanes, a song that flirts with Thrash Metal (especially its chorus), with an inspired guitar solo full of feeling, and Near Life Experience, a modern American Thrash Metal/Metalcore tune where drummer Vladi fires up the song with his outstanding performance.

Lastly, the album art showing an evil skeleton dressed up as a wolf and his herd of demonic sheep is very artistic and old school, representing in a fun way everything the band wants to tell us with their music and corroborating their professionalism and passion for heavy music. So let’s show our support to WhiteNoise by checking their official SoundCloud, YouTube or BandCamp pages for more details about the band, their previous and new releases, and of course by purchasing their music. When heavy music is full of energy and creativity like this, it truly deserves our appreciation.

Best moments of the album: 4 AM.

Worst moments of the album: Let’s wait for a full-length album to do that, right?

Released in 2014 Independent

Track listing
1. 4 AM 3:20
2. Between The Lanes 3:15
3. Near Life Experience 3:27

Band members
Yura B. – vocals
Max G. – guitar
Greg P. – bass, vocals
Vladi A. – drums

Album Review – Ann My Guard / Innocence Descent (2014)

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A very professional and vigorous album of alternative heavy music enhanced by an amazing feminine touch.

Rating4

AnnMyGuard_IDI’ll be honest with you and admit Alternative Metal has never been on my top picks whenever I want to listen to music. As I’ve said a couple of times here, I usually stick to the foundations of Heavy Metal. However, sometimes it’s interesting (and good for your brain) to listen to bands outside of this traditional world, especially when the band is as technical and pleasant as Hungarian “Doll Metal” band Ann My Guard, who have recently released their debut album, the energetic Innocence Descent.

This 4-piece band from the stunning city of Budapest, Hungary, took around six long years to thoroughly write the whole album, a process that might look too exhausting at first but that was definitely worth every second and penny spent in the end. Produced by the most renowned producer in their native Hungary, Gábor Vári, the album couldn’t sound more professional and ready for the absurdly competitive and demanding music market than that: Innocence Descent is a great mix of Alternative Metal and Rock with a huge focus on melody and harmony (something commonly done by most European bands), which will please fans of Evanescence, Hole, Kittie, H.I.M. and all other bands that are part of that more “delicate” side of heavy music.

As soon as the interesting intro Enchant begins, you can already notice all the band’s aforementioned influences, which becomes even clearer in Grey Witch, with its Alternative Metal riffs and the smooth vocals by Eszter. Moreover, its high-end production and the excellent chorus make it an excellent option for becoming a radio hit. Another important detail in Innocence Descent are the lyric themes, with pretty much every song talking about women, witches, sex and all other taboos present in the feminine world.

Getting back to the music, it seems the band loves deep key notes such as the ones found in Dark Sea Blue, a song that flirts with Pop Rock without losing that heavier approach from Alternative Metal, and the melancholic Ivory Ballad. Then we have the strong bass lines and nice drumming from Crush Honey, which sounds like some old songs from Hole, and the awesome rhythm from the powerful Morgana’s Song, another excellent example of how Ann My Guard took care of all details in their musicality to sound as professional as possible. Once again, I should say this song could easily be played in any Rock N’ Roll radio around the world.

AnnMyGuardThe next part of the album slows things down a little in a very introspective way, starting with the short acoustic ballad Hollow Red (which focus 100% on Eszter’s voice to enhance its atmosphere), followed by another ballad, My Lullaby, with beautiful lyrics and lots of harmony, and Easy, a melancholic tune with highlights to the good work done by guitarists István Tagcherer and Krisztián Varga both in the slow and the fast parts of the song. But it’s when the band accelerates their music that they hit the bull’s-eye in my opinion: H.K.A. Bitch has lots Punk Rock elements blended with Nu Metal, which together with its heavy riffs and acid lyrics turn it into a perfect choice for entertaining a more energetic audience during their live performances; while the vigorous Fallen follows a similar pattern as the previous track, boosted by some rhythmic variations and a delicate but strong chorus.

And lastly, Ann My Guard offer us the semi-acoustic ballad Gone, with highlights to the good guitar solo at the end of the song, and Circles, a unique Pop Rock track that gets heavier halfway through the song before fading into a melancholic rhythm to close the album.

You can take a good listen at the entire album HERE, and also support Ann My Guard by purchasing their official merchandise, or a digital copy of the album on iTunes or Amazon. As I said before, if you’re a fan of alternative heavy music with a feminine touch, Innocence Descent is indubitably one of the best new options in the market. I’m pretty sure all members of the band are proud of their “baby”, and you won’t be disappointed at all with the professionalism and vitality of their music.

Best moments of the album: Morgana’s Song, H.K.A. Bitch and Fallen.

Worst moments of the album: Dark Sea Blue and Gone.

Released in 2014 Smash Fabric Records

Track listing
1. Enchant 1:23
2. Grey Witch 3:11
3. Dark Sea Blue 3:48
4. Ivory Ballad 4:01
5. Crush Honey 4:15
6. Morgana’s Song 3:19
7. Hollow Red 1:19
8. My Lullaby 3:59
9. Easy 2:57
10. H.K.A. Bitch 1:55
11. Fallen 3:42
12. Gone 3:35
13. Circles 7:44

Band members
Eszter Anna Baumann – vocals, bass, flute, keys
István Tagcherer – guitars
Krisztián Varga – guitars
Joci Vadász – drums

Album Review – The Order of the Solar Temple / The Order of the Solar Temple (2014)

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A fresh and psychedelic music journey through the realms of heavy music, engendered by a very talented Canuck band.

Rating4

The_Order_Of_The_Solar_Temple_front_coverWhen you put together music genres such as Rock N’ Roll, Hard Rock and Doom Metal, the final result is at least interesting, especially in terms of creativity and feeling. But if you really want to spice things up, simply add to that some nuances of occultism and lots of groove from the dawn of Heavy Metal and you have the excellent self-titled debut album by Canadian Hard Rock/Doom Metal band The Order of the Solar Temple.

Let’s say that if people asked me to describe The Order of the Solar Temple in just a few words, I would call it a psychedelic heavy music journey. This Vancouver-based band was capable of sounding fairly original during the entire album even using only really old music elements in all compositions, mainly due to the above average skills and the passion for music of each musician involved. Not only that, the production of the album, which also seems to be inspired by the music from the 70’s, helps enhance that classic occult sonority regularly found in the music by bands like Blue Öyster Cult and Black Sabbath.

The album opens with the groovy Fallout Woman, a pure Rock N’ Roll song that makes me feel like I’m listening to an album from the 70’s, with highlights to its smooth vocals, soft and melancholic atmosphere and a soulful guitar solo, followed by Aeon Of Horus, a dark tune with lots of Doom Metal elements from bands such as Danzig that curiously starts with an ominous intro but ends in an acoustic way  and, of course, focus heavily on all the obscurity in the lyrics (“Mother Egypt sets the stage for the dawning of an age / Har-par-Khered / Ancient magick is exhumed to free us from our doom / Abrahadabra”) to make the entire song more vibrant and meaningful to the listener. By the way, their classic but unique lyric themes are one of the greatest strengths of the band, staying far away from all the repetitiveness and lack of depth so common in the world of music nowadays.

the_order_of_the_solar_templeGetting back to the album, The Cult (Of Rock’n’Roll) sounds like a “tribute” to the good old KISS, with an awesome work done on riffs and drums, elevating it to the status of best track of the album. Moreover, it’s perfect for becoming a Rock N’ Roll radio hit as it would certainly please not only traditional hard rockers but also any fan of some good quality music. Then we have the psychedelic rhythm and melody of Jervas Dudley, a song that could be summarized as “when Black Sabbath meets Jethro Tull” and also an excellent “journey” for guitar players that enjoy the groove from the 70’s, followed by another fast and classic tune the likes of Deep Purple named Pale Horse, which I’m pretty sure you’ll get addicted to its melodic riffs and keyboards.

The last part of the album consists of the excellent Back Home, a song with lots of elements from good old Blues that sounds like a “pub song” perfect for having a beer with friends; the most Hard Rock track of all, Dominance And Submission, which also reminds me of the good times of Deep Purple, with kudos to Matt “Macabre” Emery for his performance: he might not have the most powerful voice in the world, but it fits perfectly into the musicality of the band. And finally, closing the album we have the obscure track The Order, which is good (especially if you’re a fan of “black magic”), but maybe more variations would make it a more intense song.

Sorry if I kept repeating the expressions “70’s”, “journey” and “psychedelic” every two or three sentences, but there’s no better way to describe the music from The Order of the Solar Temple: it truly is an awesome combination of past and future, carefully brought forth to people like us who live and breathe Rock N’ Roll and Heavy Metal. Even the album art is a tribute to the music that enchanted the world 40 years ago. Not only that, these guys are here to remind us how magic Rock N’ Roll was in its inception and how it can still be exciting even after all those years with the music industry trying to kill everything that sounds real, and we all should thank them for keeping on rockin’ and staying true to the roots of heavy music. And if you don’t want this magic to disappear, you can support the band by listening to their music and purchasing their album at their BandCamp page.

Best moments of the album: The Cult (Of Rock’n’Roll), Pale Horse and Dominance And Submission.

Worst moments of the album: The Order.

Released in 2014 Independent

Track listing
1. Fallout Woman 3:47
2. Aeon Of Horus 8:31
3. The Cult (Of Rock’n’Roll) 3:09
4. Jervas Dudley 6:58
5. Pale Horse 5:31
6. Back Home 5:01
7. Dominance And Submission 5:23
8. The Order 6:37

Band members
Matt “Macabre” Emery – lead vocal, electric guitar, theremin and primordial howls
S. Mulleady – organ, synthesizers, guitar, additional vocals
A. MacGreagor – bass guitar, additional vocals
M. Morrison – drums

Album Review – GlassBullet / Black Eyes EP (2014)

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A British band playing modern American Hard Rock? These guys not only can do it, but they do it really well.

Rating5

glassbullet_black eyesIf I ask you to list some rock bands from the UK, names like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Sex Pistols and Oasis will probably come to your mind. However, although the band I’m about to review here is from the West Midlands in England, their music has nothing to do with the NWOBHM, Punk Rock or Britpop: we’re talking about a musicality almost 100% inspired by a more contemporary American Hard Rock from bands such as Soundgarden, Black Stone Cherry and Alter Bridge. With that said, let me introduce you GlassBullet, a very good British Hard Rock band who are about to release a new EP called Black Eyes on July 19, which is definitely worth a listen.

This talented Birmingham-based quartet has all it takes to become a great success not only in the UK, but also in any other part of the world, including the much-desired North American market. All band members look really focused on what they’re doing individually and, more important than that, collectively, which is essential for the cohesiveness and professionalism found in their music. If they’re already starting on such a high note, one can imagine how far the band can go with some extra years of experience and good support in terms of marketing and logistics. But lest we forget the most important part here, in other words, the music, and that’s their biggest strength on the path to stardom, as it never sounds cheesy, boring or shallow.

If you don’t believe me, just listen to the opening track, Black Eyes, and you’ll see how good GlassBullet are: the Velvet Revolver-ish intro to this song has that cool feeling from modern Hard Rock, plus all instruments and vocals sounding very clean and professional without losing that rawness so important in true Rock N’ Roll. Not only that, its catchy heavy riffs together with a nice guitar solo at the end turn it into an excellent choice for any Rock N’ Roll radio playlist, even with the song surpassing the 6-minute barrier. And the awesomeness goes on in the song Pride & Pain, with its even catchier riff and an above-average performance by guitarist Ben Evans (who’s also a member of British Heavy Metal band Hostile) and drummer Alex Caldicott.

glassbulletThe song SID (which means “Society Is Dead”, according to my reliable sources) showcases a more straight-forward Hard Rock with hints of Southern Rock, especially the riffs and the interesting guitar solo with lots of feeling after the 4th minute of the song, while the last track, Shot In The Dark, simply shows us this band is really good in composing totally addictive riffs. Besides, it surely has all the necessary elements to become a radio hit: an awesome chorus, good lyrics, a heavy and exciting rhythm, and even some pleasant progressive parts halfway through the song.

Even the nice album art, designed by FarhaRAWRR Photography, reminds us of some album covers from the aforementioned Hard Rock bands from the US. And if after all that information you’re really curious to know more about GlassBullet and how they were able to be so British and American at the same time, you can take a listen at their previous EP called Misguided, released in September 2012, at their official bandcamp page, while you wait for Black Eyes (which will be available on the same location and also on iTunes and other online stores) to be released in July.

Best moments of the album: Shot In The Dark was my favorite of the four tracks.

Worst moments of the album: It’s not fair to choose a “bad” song out of only four, especially due to the high quality of all. Let’s wait to do it when they release a full-length album, right? That’s also the reason why it didn’t get more than a 3.0.

Released in 2014 Independent

Track listing
1. Black Eyes 6:16
2. Pride & Pain 4:59
3. SID 6:16
4. Shot In The Dark 5:07

Band members
Lewis Ward – vocals, guitar
Ben Evans – lead guitar
Tom Bushell – bass guitar
Alex Caldicott – drums

Album Review – Iron Knights / Iron Knights (2014)

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Behold the Iron Knights, as they’re ready to rock.

Rating4

coverFinally after almost two years since their debut album, and especially after some huge lineup changes (only bassist Paul “Beam” Robbie and drummer Lawrence “Larry” Paterson remain from the original lineup), British Heavy Metal warriors Iron Knights are back with a new release, the excellent self-titled album Iron Knights, which will surely please all fans of that raw “old school” heavy music from the 80’s.

If someone asks me to summarize the music from the new and invigorated Iron Knights, who by the way ditched their pseudonyms a while ago and have been using their actual names since then, I would say it’s pure Heavy Metal created by the fusion of hot metal blood from New Zealand with an absolute passion for heavy music from the UK. All band members sound totally fired up and excited, which translates into great music full of stamina, and in my opinion the addition of British singer and guitarist Jamie Gibson (ex-Possession) was crucial for their new “formula” to actually work. As Mr. Larry Paterson stated in his interview to this webzine a couple of months ago, “The new stuff coming out is sounding really strong to my ears and I can’t wait to get it on the road.”

We can say Larry was absolutely right in his statement as soon as we hit “play” and the amazing opening track, Transparent, fills our ears with pure Heavy Metal:  a very traditional intro, extremely heavy riffs, pounding drums, some Thrash Metal elements from bands such as Anthrax, and an awesome chorus that will work perfectly live with the fans screaming “I SEE RIGHT THROUGH YOU!” with the band, are the perfect mix for inflaming the listener and making him start headbanging like hell. And the band keeps on rockin’ with Falling from Grace, with its Southern Metal riff, lots of groove and a very pleasant melody, and the 80’s Thrash Metal sonority from Vicious Circle, with highlights to the great vocals by Jamie Gibson on top of all the shredding and fast beats.

The next track, a ballad named A Chapter’s Lesion, might not be bad but it sounds a little generic, maybe showing the band should stick to the heavier and faster music from the first three songs, which is proven in Genocide, with its very traditional heavy sonority full of interesting riffs, guitar solos and especially the breaks halfway through the song. Then we have the good Cry for Help, with its intro and riffs a little similar to Iron Maiden’s classic “Flight of Icarus”, where it’s clear how much the band members put their hearts and souls into this album. Moreover, I could see this song being played a lot at most Rock N’ Roll radios in North America if the band had signed with a major record label.

IronKnightsAlthough the last two original tracks in Iron Knights might be completely different in terms of speed and violence, they are truly awesome and achieve their purpose almost flawlessly: I’m pretty sure Mr. Larry Paterson loves to play what is the best song of the album for me, Blind, a fast, heavy and furious mix of Heavy and Thrash Metal with a magnificent chorus; while Jacob’s Ladder, the second ballad of the album, is a lot better than the first one due to all the emotion in it, and besides, it gets a lot heavier after 3 minutes, ending the album in a very energetic way.

Last but not least, in regards to the bonus tracks (all re-recordings of some songs from their 2012 album New Sound of War), they’re all very powerful and perfect for hitting the road, especially the amazing Jericho. The only thing I didn’t understand in the album is the absence of the awesome single “Destroyer”. What the hell happened to it? I thought it was going to be part of the album for sure. Anyway, I downloaded it a while ago and will simply add it to my album folder as an “additional” bonus track.

And after Iron Knights (which can be purchased at the band’s official online shop) is over, you’ll probably grab another beer, hit “play” again and enjoy this great traditional Heavy Metal album one more time, because that’s how things should be when the music in question is not only good, but also potent and rightful. So behold the Iron Knights, as those guys are ready to rock and keep the fire of Heavy Metal alive, hopefully for many years to come.

Best moments of the album: Transparent, Vicious Circle, Blind and Jacob’s Ladder.

Worst moments of the album: A Chapter’s Lesion.

Released in 2014 Metalbox Recordings

Track listing
1. Transparent 5:05
2. Falling from Grace 3:41
3. Vicious Circle 3:47
4. A Chapter’s Lesion 4:20
5. Genocide 4:00
6. Cry for Help 4:42
7. Blind 3:21
8. Jacob’s Ladder 4:39

Bonus tracks (re-recorded from New Sound of War)
9. Bloodstorm 3:54
10. The Messenger 4:33
11. Jericho 4:21

Band members
Jamie Gibson – vocals, guitars
Wayne Mann – guitars
Paul “Beam” Robbie – bass
Lawrence “Larry” Paterson – drums