RAIN ‘HEADSHAKER’
(TWILIGHT RECORDS)
There are many bands called RAIN, but this RAIN comes of
Italy and they sent me a press advanced CD of their
upcoming new CD ‘Headshaker’. The CD features
11 tracks and has a playing time of 45 minutes. The
production is very good, as the CD has a huge sound.
Musically it is a mixture of Melodic Heavy Rock and
typical German Melodic Power Metal, somewhere a mix
between SHAKRA and PRIMAL FEAR. Without a doubt, this is
a high quality CD, as it features professional classy
Heavy Rock/Metal. The songs are very strong and the
guitarwork is also quite impressive, so I can easily give
this a high rating. The best songs on
‘Headshaker’ are “Rocker ram”,
“Face the blizzard”, “Energy” and
“Only your dreams” (best song, high quality
German Melodic Metal). More info at: http://www.raincrew.com and e-mail them at: amos@raincrew.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
HARDLINE
‘LIVE
AT THE GODS 2002’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
Just a few weeks ago I reviewed the audio version of this
live recording and after watching the DVD I was a bit
unsatisfied. This DVD is definitely not one of the best
releases of FRONTIERS. First off, the playing length is
almost embarassing, only 67 minutes!!! No extra’s,
just a 1-hour concert the American band gave at the Gods
of AOR Festival in 2002. The performance itself was good,
but not oustanding. Surely HARDLINE has a great singer
(Johnny Gioeli), who is also an entertainer on stage, but
HARDLINE’s songs are not always sensational. They
have a few great songs like the cover “Hot
cherie”, “Everything”, “Rhythm from a
red car” etc., but also weaker songs like the
terrible “Weight” from their new record. So you
have a concert here with ups and downs songwise, but also
there are some negative comments I would like to add here
on the stage performance. 9 (!) people were on stage, 4
more than expected. The 3 backing singers (including
Gudrun Laos) were useless and very irritating during the
concert, spoiling some of Johnny’s vocal
performances. And why is there a keyboardplayer on stage,
because HARDLINE was a guitar orientated band who
didn’t had a keyboardplayer in their line-up!
It’s a nice DVD to watch once, but not over and over
again, then better go for the AXEL RUDI PELL DVD which
also features Johnny on vocals, or the other new DVD
release by Frontiers, which is the amazing RING OF FIRE!
(Points:
7.0 out of 10)
 RING OF FIRE ‘BURNING LIVE IN
TOKYO 2002’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
This is the 4th DVD release of FRONTIERS RECORDS, and
probably their best effort next to JEFF SCOTT SOTO. The
performance of RING OF FIRE on this DVD is absolutely
stunning! The tight musicianship is from a very high
level (like the DVDs from bands like DREAM THEATER,
JOURNEY, KANSAS) and with a playing length of almost 2
hours much longer than the HARDLINE and HAREM SCAREM
DVDs. The performance itself is terrific, but if you look
at the line-up that’s easy to explain, because in
RING OF FIRE are people like multi-talented guitarist
TONY MACALPINE, classical music skilled keyboard virtuose
VITALIJ KUPRIJ (ARTENSION) and singer of the year in
Japan MARK BOALS (MALMSTEEN). Together with drummer
Virgil Donati (PLANET X) and bassist Philip Bynoe (STEVE
VAI) these 5 guys performed a perfect concert in Tokyo
back in 2002 and this DVD is the perfect registration of
this memorable night. Back then the band only had one
release out, so most of the played songs are from that
record, but also some MARK BOALS tunes are played, and of
course some amazing guitar, bass, drums and keyboardsolos
are present. One of the stunning highlights is the
keyboardsolo of Vitalij, while also the song “E
lucevan le stelle” needs to be mentioned, as this
song shows how amazing singer MARK BOALS really is,
because on this tune he is singing like a perfect Italian
Tenor, which is incredible. Concluded, this DVD offers
you enough pleasure to enjoy and feel the real spirit of
the concert RING OF FIRE gave that ‘Tokyo
Night’ in 2002!
(Points:
9.5 out of 10)
GREAT
WHITE ‘REVISITING
FAMILIAR WATERS’
(MAUSOLEUM RECORDS)
In the late 1980s the American band GREAT WHITE recorded
an album filled with covers of their favourite Rock and
Bluesacts from the past. This album was co-produced by
Bob Kulick, but never got officially released until now.
Somehow MAUSOLEUM RECORDS secured the rights and released
the unreleased CD of GREAT WHITE. The album is nice to
listen to, but on the other hand there’s nothing new
offered here, as it’s all covers from bands like
FREE, BAD COMPANY, STONES, AC/DC, STATUS QUO, so
basically a Blues based Classic Rockalbum in the 70s
style. Highlights can be found in the shape of
“Burning house of love”, “Love removal
machine”, “Ain’t no way to treat a
lady” (JACK RUSSEL’s voice sounds completely
different here!), “No matter of what” and
“Ready for love”. Earlier this year GREAT WHITE
suffered from the fire tragedy during a gig in the US,
and hopes that they will ever release a new CD are struck
down now, but in the meantime fans of the band can easily
buy this ‘new’ CD on MAUSOLEUM RECORDS.
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
LEVITICUS ‘LIVE
AT BOBFEST 2003’ (BTS RECORDS)
The legendary Swedish Christian/White-Metalband LEVITICUS
released 4 studio-albums in the 1980s before giving up
the ghost. However we are now 13 years later and the band
is back with a hot new CD release. The band features main
members PEO PETTERSSON on vocals and BJORN STIGSSON on
guitar, and the CD they have released is a live album,
recorded at the Bobfest in Sweden earlier this year. The
performance was excellent and showcased LEVITICUS’
high quality Melodic Hardrock from the 1980s which still
sounds very fresh and catchy. Highlights were the melodic
rockers “Flames of fire”, “Messiah”,
“On the rock” and “Born again”, all
classic material from a band that sometimes sounded as
good as their American collegeas in White Metal, such as
ANGELICA, STRYPER, BLOODGOOD etc. Concluded, a must for
fans of the band, and anyone who is into classy melodic
rock/80s christian/white-metal! More info at: http://www.leviticus.se
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE ‘THE AUGUST
ENGINE’
(CRUZ DEL SUR MUSIC/BERTUS)
This
is a rare act, as it is sort of an underground act
settled in San Francisco, USA and their 2nd CD is a
semi-instrumental record based around a concept. The
included music is very good 80s influenced US Power Metal
like a mix between MAIDEN and LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG. The
band also features a member of SLOUGH FEG, namely
guitarist/vocalist John Cobbett. Anyway, only 7 songs are
included, of which the first 2 are not really interesting
(instrumental and a calm song), but the remaining 5
tracks are classy melodic metal. Best songs are “A
room and a riddle”, “Insect” and
“Doomed parade”. A must for fans of SLOUGH FEG,
TWISTED TOWER DIRE, MAIDEN etc.
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
ZERO NINE
‘INTRIGUE’ (POKO RECORDS)
In the mid 1980s ZERO NINE was one of the first
Hardrockbands to emerge from Finland. Of course there was
HANOI ROCKS, but this band was better and more a pure
Hardrockband. The band released a couple of good quality
Melodic Hardrockalbums and for many years these were very
hard to get, and also were only available on vinyl, so
the fact that they have recently been re-issued onto CD
is very interesting for the fans of the band, but also
anyone who digs classy 80s Melodic Rock. The Finish label
POKO RECORDS recently re-issued 2 albums of ZERO NINE
onto CD, and so now we are able to hear that ZERO NINE
were one of the best bands from Finland in the 1980s,
because both albums contain classy melodic rock.
‘Intrigue’ was released in 1986 and it’s
very interesting to see that the album was produced at
the famous Finnvox Studios, years before this studio was
one of the most important studios for hardrock and
metalmusic as it is these days. Mika Jussila
(STRATOVARIUS, SONATA ARCTICA etc.) didn’t produce
it back in 1986, but he took care of the re-mastering
earlier this year. Anyway, the album contains 11 strong
Melodic Hardrocksongs and actually the band created an
own kind of sound, which sounds American, but still
different than bands like RATT, DOKKEN and BON JOVI. I
think it’s best comparable with the other typical
80s Scandi melodic Rock of bands like TREAT, FATE,
TOBRUK, DAVINCI, DALTON (very much like that band!)...
Highlights could be found in songs like “Drag me to
the moon” (catchy uptempo melodic rocker),
“Dump me” (OK, this sounds a lot like BON JOVI,
great uptempo melodic rocker with a cool keyboardsolo),
“Intrigue” (semi-ballad, AORish), opener
“Banging on the drums” and closing track
“Under the freeway”. Without a doubt, a highly
recommended Melodic Hardrockalbum from the 1980s which
sounds as fresh today as it was made back in 1986! More
info at: http://www.poko.fi
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
ZERO
NINE ‘WHITE
LINES’ (POKO RECORDS)
Prior to ZERO NINE’s album ‘Intrigue’
there was the first album ‘White lines’,
released in 1985 and also produced at the famous Finnvox
studios. Just like the other CD also this one has been
re-mastered in 2003 by Mika Jussila and I must admit that
the sound quality is very impressive, much better than on
the original LP. Anyway, the music included is classy 80s
Melodic Rock with strong similarities to ZINATRA, BON
JOVI, EUROPE, TOBRUK, TREAT, etc. etc. so this is typical
80s with lots of keys, catchy hooks and memorable
choruses. 10 songs are on this CD, and some of the best
are “White lines”, “So hot”,
“Never stop runnin’” and “You talk
like a lover”. Concluded, a must for fans of classy
80s Melodic Rock! More info at: http://www.poko.fi
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
FUNNY
MONEY ‘SKIN
TO SKIN’ (INDEPENDENT)
‘Skin to skin’ is the 4th CD of FUNNY MONEY,
but the first one that features 3 members of KIX, so
actually this FUNNY MONEY is KIX! The former KIX singer
STEVE WHITEMAN has been with the band since the start of
the band 6 years ago and also sang on the previous 3
records of FUNNY MONEY. However, this new record marks
the first time that Steve is reunited with other KIX
members from the past like guitarist Ronnie Younkins and
drummer Jimmy Chalfant. Musically FUNNY MONEY is not that
far away from the original KIX Rock’n’roll
sound which sounded like a mix between CRUE, RATT,
SLAUGHTER, GREAT WHITE and STONES when they were at their
best, so a pure mix of 80s LA Rock and some 70s British
Rock here and there. 13 tracks are included on this new
CD, and it really is a must for all the KIX fans.
Highlights are “Bad luck”, “Good boys gone
band”, “Just one dance”, “You rub me
the right way and “I’m your whore”.
Although it sounds a bit different than the old KIX
style, it still captures the spirit of their 80s
Rock’n’roll sound, so all KIX fans should go
to: http://www.funnymoneyband.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
VARIOUS
ARTISTS
‘MUNICH’S HARDEST HITS MELODIC ROCK IS BACK
VOLUME 4’
(POINT MUSIC)
The German Melodic Rock Internet Radio Station
‘Munich’s hardest hits’ is back with a new
compilation CD, volume 4. Again they have managed to
launch a CD which contains some of the best underground
AOR/Melodic Rock at the moment. And just like their
earlier releases it contains some excellent written liner
notes, complete with all info on each performing band.
Most interesting bands on this CD are COASTLINE,
BRUNOROCK, MERLIN, LAMORNA, KAMERA, ALPHA (what a song!
For this tune alone you should buy this CD!) and the LEC
ZORN PROJECT. Some of these songs are also unreleased and
not available anywhere, so better get this compilation CD
if you’re a dedicated AOR fan! More info at: http://www.munichshardesthits.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
DREAM
EVIL
‘CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT’
(CENTURY MEDIA/SPV/SUBURBAN)
Without a doubt, one of the best new Swedish bands has
been DREAM EVIL. Their 2 Studio CDs are featuring some of
the best Melodic Metal at the moment. After touring Japan
and Europe, the band decided to release a
mini-CD/CD-single of the song “Children of the
night”, one of the best cuts off their latest record
‘Evilized’. The song is featured as the normal
version, but also as a video clip, which is nice to watch
on your computer. Besides “Children of the
night”, also 3 unreleased (for Europe) tracks are
included. These are the faster uptempo melodic heavy
metal song “Dragonheart”, the uptempo melodic
heavy rocker “Betrayed” and an acoustic version
of “Evilized”. The Japanese fans will not find
much of interest here, as 2 unreleased songs can also be
found on the Japanese versions of the DREAM EVIL albums.
However, European fans can easily buy this awesome
mini-CD, because it contains 3 ‘new’ songs and
a videoclip! Next year the third CD of the band will be
release and we will be expecting another gem of these
guys!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
SPYRAL ‘VOLCANO’ (3
OWLS RECORDS/PROGROCK RECORDS)
SPYRAL is another typical German band with a good debut
album titled ‘Volcano’. Musically they play a
mix of Prog. Metal and Melodic Heavy Rock and sometimes
it sounds very impressive. The CD has a playing lenght of
64 minutes, and with 13 tracks on it, the album has a lot
to offer. Highlights can be found in the shape of
“Dried flowers”, the catchy “Talk in your
dreams”, “Hero”, “Kiss of life”
and “Nothing left to say”. Concluded, another
German band you can easily check out, their website is
at: http://www.spyralized.de and also check out
their label at: http://www.progrockrecords.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
 HUMAN FORTRESS ‘DEFENDERS OF THE
CROWN’ (MASSACRE RECORDS)
2 years ago the German band HUMAN FORTRESS released their
fantastic debut CD ‘Lord of earth and heavens
heir’ on LIMB MUSIC. Recently the band switched to
the MASSACRE recordlabel and released their new CD
‘Defenders of the crown’ a few weeks ago.
Without a doubt, this 2nd CD of HUMAN FORTRESS is another
masterpiece in the Melodic Metal scene. Although the
start of the CD (“Knights in shining armour”)
is very typical German Metal (with a MANOWAR twist), the
rest of the CD is a mixture of Euro/German Power Metal
and Neo-Classicial Metal, kinda like PRETTY MAIDS meets
HAMMERFALL meets . This is really an awesome CD and a
total must for the Melodic Metal freaks. 12 tracks are
included on the new CD and again TOMMY NEWTON produced
it, so the sound is HUGE! Highlights are “Defenders
of the crown” (great midtempo melodic heavy rock),
“Gladiator of Rome” (superb uptempo
neo-classical melodic metal), “Schattentor”
(big midtempo Melodic Metal), “Skin and
feather” (huge uptempo Metal, MANOWAR meets
HAMMERFALL) and “Mortal sinful wrath” (catchy
chorus!). Concluded, this new HUMAN FORTRESS is a highly
recommended Melodic Metal Masterpiece (a so-called MMM!).
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
MARTIN
C. STRONG
‘THE GREAT ROCK DISCOGRAPHY’
(CANONGATE BOOKS)
This is the 6th edition of what is called the ultimate
Rock Discography Book. The book was entirely written by
MARTIN C. STRONG, and although it is stated as being a
‘Rock’ book, there are also lots of Popacts
included (even SPICE GIRLS and BRITNEY SPEARS!!!), but as
a book it is well written and a must for the all-round
musicfan. The book has almost 1,200 pages, so it is quite
a ‘heavy’ book to carry with you. It is however
very nice to have with you when you’re interested in
knowing the full discography of a band or artist, because
the book will tell you all the facts. The artists and
bands are featuring in the familiar A-Z formula, with the
following information added under the header of the
band/artist name: short story on the particular
band/artist, Year/Place Formation band (or Year/Place
Artist was born), Full discography of all released
LPs/CDs/Singles, with mentioned songtitles, Year of
release, Labelname in both UK and US, Album rating,
Line-up of band, Possible covers and all US/UK chart
positions (if that occured of course). In other words, if
a band or artist is included in this book, it contains
all info on this band/artist. The Hardrock/Metal fans
will not find that many artist in their genre, but the
ones that are included are such major acts like
AEROSMITH, AC/DC, BRYAN ADAMS, ASIA, BAD COMPANY, PAT
BENATAR, MARILLION, IRON MAIDEN, BLACK SABBATH, BON JOVI,
JOURNEY, KANSAS, STYX, RAINBOW, WHITESNAKE, VAN HALEN,
etc. etc. etc. This is definintely a book highly
recommended to any Musicfan, but also for Music critics
worldwide as it is the perfect encyclopedia for
Pop/Rockmusic, so you don’t have to do any research
to a certain Pop- or Rockband/artist if you own this
book. For us, Hardrock and Metal people, there’s
another book out by MARTIN C. STRONG, which contains info
on Metal, but that book will be reviewed soon. More info
on this book is available at: http://www.canongate.net
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
GUIDO
PRIORI ‘JOURNEY
TRIBUTE’ (DEMO CDR)
JOURNEY fans are everywhere, and I also have heard lots
of tribute bands to one of the best AOR bands ever, but
this Italian tribute to JOURNEY is absolutely stunning!
This sounds almost too good to be true, just listen to
“Girl can’t help it” and you're thinking
it is the original JOURNEY recording. The production and
sound quality is very good, the musicianship is excellent
and the lead and harmonyvocals are fantastic. This is
one-helluva JOURNEY tribute! Besides the already
mentioned “Girl can’t help it”, we can
find 10 more JOURNEY covertunes on this demo CDR.
Vocalist is GUIDO PRIORI, who sings very well, although
the high pitched vocals of STEVE PERRY are not always
easy to sing, but Guido is able to sing the JOURNEY
classics without too much problems. Highlights are the
versions of “Stone in love” (the guitarsolo at
the end is quite impressive, getting close to Neal
Schon’s unforgettable solo), “Anyway you want
it” (perfect harmonyvocals), “Don’t stop
believin’”, “Who’s crying now”
and “Girl can’t help it”. Without a doubt,
one of the best JOURNEY tributes I have heard so far!
More info at: http://gpriorijourneytribute.homestead.com and e-mail at: Pierguid@libero.it
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
GLITZ
‘LIVIN’
LIKE A BULLET’ (MTG)
We’re back in Finland once again with the band
GLITZ. They have released a high quality CD titled
‘Livin’ like a bullet’. The CD contains 11
tracks and sounds like a perfect mix between HAREM SCAREM
(the choruses), HIM (the vocals) and TEN (the sound). The
CD sounds very impressive, from start to finish and I
think especially Melodic Rockfans will like this a lot!.
Most of the songs are uptempo melodic rockers, with as
highlights uptempo stuff like “Flames of hate”
(first song), “Reaching
for you” (the single and video, which is also
included on this CD!), “Divine” (very catchy,
very much like HAREM SCAREM!), “All this time”
(HIM meets TEN) and “Everything was meant to be this
way” (pure TEN). Also very good and radio-ready is
the fantastic semi AOR/Melodic Rockballad “Away from
you” and the midtempo melodic rocker “Fooling
myself” (like STRATOVARIUS with HIM vocals). These
guys could easily get HUGE if they got enough promotion,
and especially in Finland they could follow the footsteps
of HIM, STRATOVARIUS, SONATA ARCTICA and TAROT. More info
on GLITZ at: http://www.glitz.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 ARK STORM ‘BEGINNING OF THE
NEW LEGEND’ (NTS RECORDS/ROCK INC,)
Japan has been VERY Neo-Classical Metal orientated since
MALMSTEEN scored a couple mega-selling number 1 hitalbums
in the early 1990s. Bands like ROYAL HUNT, STRATOVARIUS,
KAMELOT and SYMPHONY X are very popular in the land of
the rising sun and the influence of all these big
sounding Neo-Classical Metalbands from the West also had
it’s impact on the Japanese Hardrock and Metal
scene. It’s a pity the Japanese are hard to get in
touch with, because there are MANY excellent Japanese
Metalbands out there at the moment. Most notable acts are
CONCERTO MOON and KELLY SIMONZ BLIND FAITH, but there are
also a lot of underground acts and one of them is ARK
STORM. Somehow this band has found a label in France, NTS
RECORDS, and they have released the 2nd CD of this new
Japanese band. The music on ‘Beginning of the new
legend’ is pure Neo-Classical Metal with influences
from the 80s Melodic Hardrock here and there. It sounds
like a mix between CONCERTO MOON and MALMSTEEN. The
vocals of singer Hiroaki Imanishi are very good and
guitarist Katsu Ohta is giving us a great MALMSTEENish
guitarsound. The songs are also very sensational and
super melodic, with as highlights “Only time will
last”, “Soldier’s drift” (fantastic
melodic rocker, very much like 1988 MALMSTEEN),
“Voyage of the new legend” and “The
burning flame”. Concluded, a highly recommended
Neo-Classical Metalalbum, especially a must if you enjoy
CONCERTO MOON, MALMSTEEN and BLIND FAITH!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
DAY
SIX
‘ETERNAL DIGNITY’ (ICEMAN RECORDS)
The 4 members of DAY SIX are barely 20 years old and with
‘Eternal dignity’ they have released a high
quality record. It’s incredible to see so many high
quality releases coming out of Holland, because this year
we have had fantastic Progressive Rock/Metal releases
from CASUAL SILENCE, SUN CAGED, SILENT EDGE and now we
can add DAY SIX! This band used to be called PEANUTS, of
whom we even reviewed a demo sometime ago, but since late
last year they are called DAY SIX. The music they play is
pure Progressive Metal with a lot of Symphonic keyboards,
not unlike KAMELOT, POWER OF
OMENS and VANDENPLAS. The CD has a good production and
the included 7 long songs are very impressive. The CD has
a playing length of 54 minutes and it’s really a
pleasure to listen to such a great record from start to
finish. Highlights are “Legend of the hollow”,
“Day 6” (a masterpiece!) and “The
crypt”. The band has a very good lead singer
(guitarist Robbie van Stiphout) and like I said before in
this review, this is a high quality Prog. Metal record.
Highly recommended to fans of this genre! More info at: http://www.day-six.com and e-mail them at: t.stiphout@planet.nl
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
GARY
SHARPE-YOUNG AND DAVE REYNOLDS ‘80S ROCK
BOOK’
(ROCK DETECTOR/CHERRY RED BOOKS)
Although this Book by GARY SHARPE-YOUNG from ROCK
DETECTOR.COM and DAVE REYNOLDS holds more than 700 pages
together, and is a very interesting read for many
dedicated fans of the 80s Rockstyle, not all bands are
included, so it is not a complete book. Nevertheless, I
can highly recommend this excellent book, because the
subject ‘80s Rock’ is pretty clear after you
have read the book. Although it is called 80s Rock, it
would have been better to call this book the ‘Hair
Metal’ book, because basically every band included
in here had big hair, from MOTLEY CRUE, DEF LEPPARD,
EUROPE, BON JOVI, BONFIRE, you name it and they had huge
perms in their big hairstyle. We all know that ‘Hair
Metal’ is linked to the 1980s, so therefore 80s Rock
is also understandable. Without a doubt, it was a fun
time and I must say that in the late 80s/early 90s I was
a big fan too, with the same amount of hair as most of
the bands in the book. Currently, many of the included
books are making a return to the scene (WARRANT,
SLAUGHTER, DOKKEN, RATT, Y&T, LA GUNS, MOTLEY CRUE,
SKID ROW), but they will never achieve the same high
quality of the music they made in that decade. Happily,
this book contains all the info on almost all the bands
that dominated the US charts back in the 1980s, so
finally you will be able to read and check all the info
(band background, line-up, singles, albums, chart
positions etc.) of your favourite bands. For almost 10
years (ever since NIRVANA scored big time in 1991/1992)
80s Rock was not cool and you couldn’t talk about,
especially the big hair was unspeakable and people
laughed when you mentioned any of the bands in this book,
BUT recently the interest in all those bands has emerged
and this Book is a first example of a Rockstyle which
will never fade away. If you’re a fan of the 80s
Rockstyle, you will love this book, but also people who
grew up in the 1990s need to check out how
‘cool’ the 1980s actually were! This is a book
you buy without hesitation, and without a doubt, you will
read it over and over again, as it is filled with lots
and lots of interesting facts and information on most of
the bands that created the whole ‘1980s Rock’
movement!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
HELANGåR ‘EVENING IN
VALHALLA’ (INDEPENDENT)
HELANGåR is coming out of Germany, and they play a sort
of Euro Power Metal style a la BLIND GUARDIAN and ICED
EARTH, but with aggressive vocals like a mix between
VENOM and METALLICA, so very raw in approach. The artwork
looks very professional and the CD has a big
sound/production level. 21 songs are included and with a
playing length of 71 minutes it’s a very long
record. Fans of aggressive Power Metal will like this
record a lot, and therefore I cam highly recommend it to
fans of ICED EARTH and perhaps NEVERMORE! Highlights are
“Baldrs draumar”, “Farewell
Valhalla”, “Lament of mankind” and
“The new world”. Concluded, a nice CD, more
info at: http://www.helangar.de.vu and e-mail at: helangar@web.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 DORO PESCH AND WARLOCK ‘LIVE DVD’
(CLASSIC PICTURES)
DORO was one of the first female Metal ladies in Europe,
after LEE AARON and BITCH started in North America. She
was very important for especially Germany, where hundreds
of new female fronted bands followed after WARLOCK and
later DORO solo had a lot success. This had an impact on
getting women into the male orientated Hardrock/Metal
scene. Back in the early 80s DORO started singing in the
band WARLOCK, with whom she recorded about 4 albums, and
also toured worldwide. In September 1985 she performed at
the Camden Palace Theatre in London, and this DVD is the
perfect live registration of what went down that night.
WARLOCK was quite popular in England, especially because
they played a sort of NWOBHM influenced Melodic Metal
style. 13 tracks were played and although the concert
only lasted for an hour, it was quite spectacular to
watch, and also the performance was very good. The
filming of the concert was very professional, and this
DVD is absolutely a must for DORO/WARLOCK fans! It’s
a pity there are no extra’s included, but apart from
that, this is a perfect DVD which features WARLOCK
classics like “Out of control”, “Shout it
out”, “All night”, “Burning the
witches” and “Time to die”. Without a
doubt, a must for DORO/WARLOCK fans! More info at: http://www.classicpictures.co.uk
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 UFO ‘THE MISDEMEANOUR
TOUR DVD’ (CLASSIC PICTURES)
This UFO DVD is another DVD featuring an 1-hour concert
recorded in September 1985, just like the elsewhere
reviewed DORO DVD. The line-up of UFO had changed a lot,
with the demise of guitarists MICHAEL SCHENKER and PETE
WAY, but somehow this line-up in 1985 (with Phil Mogg on
vocals, the Japanese Atomik Tommy M (where is he now???)
on guitar, Paul Gray on bass, Jim Simpson on drums and
Paul Raymond on keys) sounded excellent. The band’s
records were definitely changing into an AOR format, with
songs like “This time”, “The only
ones” and “Heavens gate”, but live the
band sounded as rocking as the good old days,a nd
especially during the encores “Only you can rock
me” and “Doctor doctor”, although the
‘newer’ songs sounded great as well. After the
‘Misdemeanour’ record, which was anothe rpeak
in their career, UFO’s magic vanished once again,
until the late 1990s when they made another comeback that
even re-introduced MICHAEL SCHENKER, but not for long, as
this line-up also didn’t stood the test of time. One
way or the other, this DVD shows UFO in the glory days of
their 2nd comeback in the mid 1980s. Without a doubt, a
must for UFO fans, although once again I need to add that
there are no extra features here, just the 1-hour concert
from 1985. More info at: http://www.classicpictures.co.uk
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
VARIOUS ARTISTS ‘LET IT ROCK‘ (CLASSIC
PICTURES)
CLASSIC ROCK from the 1960s-1980s is the kind of Rock
which is currently being promoted heavily with many new
DVDs of old recordings released throughout various
labels. CLASSIC PICTURES is an interesting new UK label
that releases a lot of DVDs, and ‘Let it rock’
is one of their compilation DVDs recently released. The
DVD includes 22 songs from mostly the 1970s, a decade
where Classic Rock was the big thing in the musicscene!
It’s really nice to watch all these bands performing
classic tunes in either a videoclip or a live recorded
performance somewhere (apparantly a lot were recorded
here in Holland!). Highlights include DEEP PURPLE, MEAT
LOAF, ALICE COOPER, THE WHO, HEART, JOAN JETT and YES.
YES is featured with an excellent perfomance of their
classic “Yours is no disgrace” in an extra long
live version. The additional info on each song is also
interesting to read, while the DVD includes those 22
visual performances of the bands. I can highly recommend
this DVD to fans of Classic Rock/Hardrock. More info at: http://www.classicpictures.co.uk
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 SWEET CRYSTAL ‘POWER-N-GLORY’
(NIGHTCRIER MUSIC)
We’re going back 18 years in time when a certain
Christian Rockband called SWEET CRYSTAL released an
obscure and very rare debut Tape. The Tape became that
obscure that even the band couldn’t find the
original master Tapes. In the late 1990s however a
certain magazine in Holland (Strutter of course) became
aware of a new CD released by SWEET CRYSTAL and that
particular record got a rave review. The band was still
playing Classic AOR a la SURVIVOR and JOURNEY, and I
highly recommended the band. Now a few years later the
band returns to the scene with the release of a CD which
contains that very rare debut Tape recording from 1985.
The band did find the mastertapes and therefore this is
the original record, and happily the sound and production
is very good, of CD quality, so I can easily recommend
this CD. It’s actually a mini-CD, with 6 tracks
spanning 25-minutes in total playing time. Musically
it’s of course pure 1980s AOR like a mix between
SWEET COMFORT BAND, 80s PETRA, LE ROUX and SURVIVOR.
Especially the first 3 songs (“Power and the
glory”, “Lead me to the rock” and
“Now or never”) are great uptempo AOR rockers
with nice keys and catchy hooks and memorable choruses.
Although their only CD from a few years ago is still
their best effort, this mini-CD is highly recommended to
fans of 80s AOR-Rock! More info at: http://www.nightcriermusic.com and e-mail at: info@nightcriermusic.com
(Points:
8.0 out of 10)
DAVE
VARLET
‘TOTALLY, FAITHFULLY AND DEEPLY’ (INDEPENDENT)
Out of Belgium comes singer/songwriter DAVE VARLET. He
used to be in a band called RUNAWAY, of whom I reviewed
some great AOR demos years ago. Now he’s back with
new solo-material. A full-CD will be released soon, but
in the meantime he launched a single. The single features
2 songs, the titletrack “Totally, faithfully and
deeply”, a soft melodic Pop/Rocksong a la RICHARD
MARX/TOTO and the BON JOVI cover “In these
arms”. Both are performed very well and I definitely
need to add here that Dave’s vocals are very
impressive. I only hope for some uptempo rockers on his
upcoming
CD, but this cd-single already shows that Dave is a
skilled musician. More info at: http://www.davevarlet.com and e-mail him at: dave_varlet@hotmail.com
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
TWENTY
FOR SEVEN ‘SAME’
(INDEPENDENT)
Out of Texas, USA comes TWENTY FOR SEVEN, a band playing
typical nu-breed melodic rock, yet with a different
approach. First off all, they can play guitar, just
listen to the solo in opener “Mean 2 U”. And
secondly, these guys are also adding influences of the
80s Poprockstyle, because sometimes it sounds like RICK
SPRINGFIELD early 80s period, yet with a modern approach,
although some of the choruses could be lifted straight
off the RICK SPRINGFIELD ‘Working class dog’
record. However, it’s still a modern sounding
record, with mostly faste uptempo Punky Nu-Breed rockers
with catchy sing-a-long choruses. Highlights are
“Mean 2 U”, “Promise”,
“Lovesong”, “Tear my heart out”,
“2000 for me” (funny lyrics about good old 1983
US AOR) and “Ridiculous things”. Concluded, a
nice record, and highly recommended to fans of nu-breed
poprock! More info at: http://www.twentyforseven.net
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
BUTTERFINGER ‘SAME’
(INDEPENDENT)
20 years ago all independent rockbands from the USA
wanted to sound like either JOURNEY, VAN HALEN or MOTLEY
CRUE. Now in the year 2003 there is a new rockstyle which
is very popular and that’s called Nu-Breed. This
kind of music is actually Poprock from the early 80s with
raw punky guitars and a modern approach with the raw
vocals, sort of like putting RICK SPRINGFIELD in a
Punkrockband. Anyway, many of such bands made it on my
desk and also many of them were not interesting, but
BUTTERFINGER is clearly an exception to the rule, because
this band from Canada has released a very good record.
Their sound is very melodic, due to the impressive vocals
by singer Tyler Penny and their songs are catchy and not
as punky as the rest. I am not a huge fan of bands like
GOO GOO DOLLS, MATCHBOX 20 etc. and although they are
compared to those bands, BUTTERFINGER is better I think.
They have created a good melodic poprockstyle that will
also attract fans of AOR/Melodic Rock. Basically, this
band has a typical ‘ATENZIA RECORDS’ sound, so
if you like the records of that label, you will love this
band as well. Highlights on the BUTTERFINGER CD are
“Fall”, “Hand me downs” (chorus a la
HAREM SCAREM), “Better man” and
“Breathe”. Basically this band is a must if you
like RUBBER/HAREM SCAREM and that sort of modern melodic
poprock. More info at: http://www.smoothlikebuttah.com and e-mail them at: butterfinger@smoothlikebuttah.com
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
SPIKE
IVORY
‘TOUCH OF MADNESS’ (SPIKE IVORY MUSIC)
Out of New Jersey comes the band SPIKE IVORY, a band
formed around multi-instrumentalist Joe Galluzzi. They
play a sort of mixture of Rockabilly
Rock’n’roll and 80s aor/poprock, ending up
sounding like a mix between BEACH BOYS and BRYAN ADAMS.
It’s a pity there are so many Rockabilly kinda tunes
on their record, such as “Don’t talk to
me”, “Touch of madness” and “Sunday
driver”, because when SPIKE IVORY is starting to
rock it sounds so much better. For example the fantastic
song “Steal the night”, a true classy early 80s
guitar driven uptempo melodic poprock/aor/radiorocker
like you heard on the US radio back in the 80s, very much
like BRYAN ADAMS, STEEL BREEZE, STEALER, TOMMY TUTONE...
If there were only 10 more songs on the record that
sounded in the same style as “Steal the night”,
then this would have been a very interesting record.
Poprockers like “Julie” and “Looking for
lvoe” are nice and reminding one of DANNY
WILDE/REMBRANDTS, but there’s one song that stood
out on this CD and that’s “Steal the
night”. Maybe next time more rock? In the meantime,
check out their site at: http://www.spikeivory.com and e-mail at: spikeivory@aol.com
(Points:
6.0 out of 10)
PETE
WAY ‘ALIVE
IN CLEVELAND’ (MAJESTIC ROCK RECORDS)
It’s nice to see PETE WAY releasing a CD, but I
think people are actually more interested in a new UFO
record. Musically Pete’s solo material is slightly
different than UFO, because it sounds like a cross
between MOTORHEAD, LA GUNS and AC/DC. This live recording
is taking us back to a concert Pete gave in October 2002
in Ohio, USA. The CD has a playing length of almost 80
minutes, so you definitely get value for your money.
Songs like “Fooled again”, the UFO song
“Too hot to handle”, “You and me” and
“I need her bad” are good rockers, although I
really need to add here that PHIL MOGG of UFO is singing
much better than the raw singing PETE WAY, who actually
sounds like he’s been drinking too much whiskey
lately! Nevertheless, for UFO fans this is an interesting
release.
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
REAPER
‘ELEMENTS’
(INDEPENDENT)
REAPER are coming out of Germany and they play raw pure
Heavy Metal like only the Germans are able to make,
because this sounds like GRIM REAPER, RUNNING WILD and
also MANOWAR. The vocals are very raw and rough, nothing
melodic in here, but instrumental this is high quality
Metal. I’ll bet these guys would be very popular
among the True Metal Warriors who don’t want
anything melodic in their Metal! Actually songs like
“The raven” and “Fields of joy” sound
very good, pure uptempo Heavy Metal. The KATE BUSH cover
“Wuthering heights” wasn’t necessary to
include, as this version just basically kills the
original or WITHIN TEMPTATION’s version, although
while hearing it you almost start to laugh. Nevertheless,
their own songs are much better and I can recommend this
band to fans of raw Heavy Metal. Sometimes it reminds me
a lot of MANILLA ROAD, so then you know what this sounds
like. More info at: http://www.reaper.de and e-mail them at: band@reaper.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
 SEVEN TEN ‘LOVE AND WAR’
(METAL MAYHEM MUSIC)
Out of Chicago, Illinois, USA comes SEVEN TEN, and their
CD ‘Love and war’ has just been released on
METAL MAYHEM MUSIC. Finally this is an American band
playing classy punchy good old fashioned Melodic Party
Hardrock in the best American tradition. This CD really
kicks ass, as it contains 11 strong catchy rockers that
combine the best of the late 80s sounds of DOKKEN, CRUE,
SLAUGHTER, FIREHOUSE, WHITE LION and RATT. The vocals are
good, the guitarsound is excellent, the production is big
and so are the included songs. This is a highly
recommended CD, and once you played it you can’t get
enough! The sing-a-long choruses of each song stick in
your head after hearing it once and therefore this is the
perfect CD to put on when you’re having a fun party,
in other words, this is the classy 80s orientated CD to
purchase if you miss the days of ‘Hair Metal’
being the most popular music. Anyway, most of the songs
are in the same style, but my favourite tracks are
uptempo melodic party rockers such as “Chosen
one”, “Tied up in love”, “Seven
ten”, “As we say goodbye” and “Give
it to me straight”. Concluded, a must for fans of
classy late 80s American Melodic Party Hardrock a la
SLAUGHTER, CRUE, DOKKEN, JOHNNY LIMA, SHY TIGER,
ANATOMIC, WHITE LION... More info can be found at: http://www.sevententheband.com and e-mail them at: stallen710@hotmail.com
(Points: 8.5 out of 10)
 BROKEN HEART ‘OJO X OJO’
(OX RECORDS)
Attention please! BROKENHEART is a band from Argentina,
and last year they released an awesome CD titled
‘Ojo X Ojo’, which musically contains HIGH
CLASS AOR/Melodic Rock in the style of CODA, ALIANZA, LA
FASE, TERCER ACTO, ALIADOS, RATA BLANCA and you name it
further! Anyone who likes Latin/Spanish AOR/Melodic Rock
should get a copy of this CD a.s.a.p. Their CD contains
14 tracks and has a playing time of 60 minutes.
BROKENHEART consists of vocalist Marcelo Arenas and
guitarist/keyboardplayer Gonzalo Ledesma, and their CD
sounds really HUGE! From start to finish this is fun 80s
inspired AOR/Melodic Rock with catchy choruses and very
impressive guitarwork (DOKKEN meets MALMSTEEN). I really
enjoyed this album from the moment I put it on until the
last seconds. Most of the songs are uptempo and a
pleasure to listen to. Highlights are such uptempo
melodic rockers like “Destrozando un corazon”,
“Loco”, “No se que decir” (VERY
CATCHY, PURE 80S), “Sola”, “Nadie te
vio” and “No es un chamuyo mas” and the
midtempo AOR song “Angel alado” which reminds
me of THE STORM meets BAD ENGLISH. Although the lyrics
are in Spanish, that doesn’t mean you should avoid
this awesome record, because this BROKENHEART record is a
must for fans of classy 80s AOR/Melodic Rock a la
AVIATOR, 1st DANGER DANGER, TYKETTO, CODA... There’s
only one place where you can buy this superb CD, which is
TARGET RECORDS at: http://www.targetrecords.de Hopefully soon more
info on this new sensational band from Argentina!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
 AXENSTAR ‘FAR FROM
HEAVEN’
(ARISE RECORDS/BERTUS)
The Swedish Power Metal sensation AXENSTAR returns with
the release of their 2nd CD ‘Far from heaven’.
Although I really loved their debut, this new CD sounds
much better, actually much bigger! The production and
sound quality is much better than on their debut. The
sound is really huge, it blows you away and almost sounds
as big as STRATOVARIUS and SONATA ARCTICA. The music is
also very close to those Finish bands, so this is not
really an original album, but nevertheless it sounds
awesome! 10 songs are included, and right from the start
you know what you’re listening to here, because this
is full-blown European Power Metal at it’s very
best. Opener “Infernal angel” is fast uptempo
Melodic Power Metal, very much like SONATA ARCTICA, and
this song is definitely one of the highlights on this
disc. Other highlights are uptempo Melodic (Power) Metal
pieces like “Don’t hide your eyes”,
“Far from heaven” (yeah, it is as good as
SONATA ARCTICA!), “Children forlorn” and
“Blackout”. This CD is a MUST if you’re
keen on bands like SONATA ARCTICA, TWILIGHTNING,
STRATOVARIUS, NOCTURNAL RITES, DREAMTALE...
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
 PRIDE OF LIONS ‘SOUND OF HOME
CD-SINGLE’ (FRONTIERS RECORDS/BERTUS)
The official release date of the debut CD of PRIDE OF
LIONS is early November, but just before it’s
release there is a CD-single released. The CD-single
contains 3 tracks, of which opener and titletrack
“Sound of home” is also included on the
full-length CD, but this CD-single has more to offer.
There are also 2 unreleased songs which will not be on
the full-length CD. These are the AOR ballad “Stand
by you” (a 6-minutes counting track written by Toby
and Jim, and although the song starts slow it gets better
when it develops after a few minutes) and the epic
midtempo rocker “So deadly” (which is actually
the least interesting song of PRIDE OF LIONS so far).
Another extra can be found in the shape of a very cool
videoclip of the song “Sound of home”, the
uptempo AOR rocker that sounds so much like SURVIVOR
during their heydays. Anyway, this CD-single is nice to
have, but the first thing you need to do know is BUY THE
FULL-LENGTH CD of PRIDE OF LIONS, because that’s the
best CD of the new decade!
(Points: 8.5 out of 10)
 SEVENTH SEAL ‘THE BLACK
DRAGON’S EYES’ (STEELHEART RECORDS/BERTUS)
We’re in Italy once again and then it’s not so
hard to inform you about yet another new band playing
typical Euro Power Metal, because SEVENTH SEAL is playing
in the style of LABYRINTH, WONDERLAND, RHAPSODY,
STRATOVARIUS, SONATA ARCTICA, so this is a very cliche
record! BUT it’s a very good typical Euro Power
Metal record, because the vocals (by a female singer
called Chiara Luci) are quite good, and the included 10
songs are quite impressive, with a crystal clear
production by FRANK ANDIVER (LABYRINTH, SHADOWS OF STEEL)
and instrumental it’s of a very high level. 8
original tracks and 2 covers are included on the debut-CD
of SEVENTH SEAL, and with bands like these it’s like
you either love or hate them, because if you enjoyed the
first song, you know what to expect from the rest of the
album and this is also the case with SEVENTH SEAL. Opener
“The ways of the world” is typical
STRATOVARIUS/ HELLOWEEN orientated Power Metal, a great
start and besides that first song, other highlights are
“The black dragon’s eyes” (best song),
“Riding the waves”, “Only a dream”
and “Midnight train”. Although it’s a very
standard Euro Power Metal album, I can nevertheless
highly recommend it to fans of STRATOVARIUS, LABYRINTH,
CONCERTO MOON, SONATA ARCTICA...
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 VARIOUS ARTISTS ‘BLACKMORE’S
CASTLE ‘A TRIBUTE TO DEEP PURPLE AND RAINBOW’ (LION MUSIC/BERTUS)
RITCHIE BLACKMORE is the legendary guitarist who was very
important for the development of Hard Rock and Heavy
Metal. He played in 2 very successfull bands, RAINBOW and
DEEP PURPLE. LION MUSIC is proud to present one of the
first tributes to this fantastic guitarist, because the
CD ‘Blackmore’s castle’ contains 13 covers
of RAINBOW and DEEP PURPLE originals where Ritchie
Blackmore played guitar on. Most of the featured acts are
also signed to LION MUSIC, such as ARABESQUE, IRON MASK,
WINTERLONG, REIGN OF TERROR etc. This is definitely a
high quality tribute CD, which will please all
PURPLE/RAINBOW fans. Most notable covers are done by
REIGN OF TERROR (“Sixteenth century
greenslaves”), TRANSCENDENCE (“Perfect
strangers”), IRON MASK (“Gates of
Babylon”), HEADLINE (“Battle rages on”)
and WINTERLONG (“Highway star”).
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 ANAND ‘JOY 4 EVER’
(LION MUSIC/BERTUS)
Out of Holland (although born in Surinam) comes the
talented guitarist ANAND, who has just released his 2nd
CD ‘Joy 4 ever’ on LION MUSIC. Without a doubt,
this guy is able to play the guitar the way it should be
played. He even was able to let DEREK SHERINIAN of DREAM
THEATER play the keyboards on his new record. The result
is quite stunning, as ANAND’s CD ‘Joy 4
ever’ is a high quality Progressive Metal album with
of course fantastic guitarwork by ANAND. Songs like
“A dirty mind is a...”, “Joy 4 ever”,
“Get out”, “Onatopp” and “The
one” are a must for fans of quality instrumental
Progressive Metal. Without a doubt, ANAND is as good as
other star guitarists like STEVE VAI, JOE SATRIANI or
TONY MACALPINE!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 DOGPOUND ‘THE ALBUM’
(LION MUSIC/BERTUS)
Sometime ago I reviewed a demo of the band DOGPOUND, and
just recently the Swedish band signed to LION MUSIC and
the result is their first CD ‘The album’.
Without a doubt, this is a very strong Melodic
Hardrockalbum, reminding me of HAREM SCAREM circa
‘Mood swings’, so slightly modern but very
powerful catchy Melodic Hardrock. The vocals are very
strong, the guitarwork is heavy and the choruses of all
songs are deadly catchy! The production is also quite
big, and right from the start you’re hooked. Opener
“End of our days” is a fantastic very catchy
uptempo melodic rocker, but happily the CD continues in
this style, so we can enjoy this album the whole 45
minutes of it’s playing length. Besides the first
track, other highlights are “Going down in
flames” (uptempo melodic rocker), “Way up
high” (semi-ballad), “Ready to believe”,
“Silent scream” (semi melodic rocker) and
“...For my sins” (very catchy upbeat melodic
rocker). This album fits somewhere between the new albums
of bands like SHAKRA and CRYSTAL BALL and the HAREM
SCAREM classic ‘Mood swings’. Without a doubt,
one of the strongest releases when it comes down to pure
Melodic Hardrock!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
KTD
‘TERRITORY’
(HYDRANT RECORDS)
KTD is a hot new band from the Boston area and instead of
bringing us the horrible Nu-Metalsound, this band grabs
back to classic 70s/80s when ‘real’ Hardrock
was the style all over the USA. The band features former
members of AXMINSTER, a band linked to famous 80s Melodic
Rockbands like NEW ENGLAND and 8084. Now we are in the
year 2003 and there is a new band called KTD, and their
debut CD ‘Territory’ has just been released.
The first 3 songs on the CD are a bit slow in tempo, with
“Room to breathe” on a positive note and
“The bed I made” on a negative note. From track
4 on this CD starts
rocking with the ALICE COOPER orientated “Here and
now”. Although I must inform you that KTD’s CD
is not sensational, it still is a decent record with good
quality groovy Hardrock in it’s original approach,
so very 70s and 80s based. Better check it out for
yourself at: http://www.ktdrocks.com and e-mail them at: michaellamm@rcn.com
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
JORGE
SALAN ‘THE
UTOPIAN SEA OF CLOUDS’ (FONO MUSIC)
JORGE SALAN is a guitarist from Madrid, Spain and he
kindly sent me his debut CD ‘The Utopian sea of
clouds’. The album is filled with both vocal and
instrumental songs. 9 songs in total are included, with 3
of them featuring vocals, while the other 5 are
instrumental. The sound’production is of a very high
level and the start is very promising. Opener “Sea
of clouds” is a very good uptempo classy melodic
rocker with good vocals (by Pau Sastre) and excellent
guitarwork by Jorge. Next track “Driving through the
tunnel” is instrumental, but a fantastic uptempo
melodic rocker with great guitar and keyboardwork, a bit
like an instrumental version of Öut in the fields”
(Gary Moore/Phil Lynott). And so the CD continues in this
style, so both vocal and instrumental it is classy 80s
Melodic (Hard) Rock. Other highlights are “One
way” (midtempo melodic rocker with vocals a la JADED
HEART), “Green fields” (midtempo instrumental
melodic rocker) and “Running free” (uptempo
instrumental melodic rocker). Concluded, a guitarfreak,
but also melodic rockfans can easily check out JORGE
SALAN at: http://www.jorgesalan.com
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
 RICHARD ANDERSSON’S
SPACE ODYSSEY
‘EMBRACE THE GALAXY’
(REGAIN RECORDS/SUBURBAN)
Keyboardplayer RICHARD ANDERSSON released some great
albums with TIME REQUIEM and MAJESTIC in the past, so it
was a surprise to see a new project under his own name,
RICHARD ANDERSSON’s SPACE ODYSSEY. The CD
‘Embrace the galaxy’ created under this name
has been released through REGAIN RECORDS and without a
doubt, this is yet another high quality Swedish
Neo-Classical Melodic Metal release that combines the
sounds of KAMELOT, MALMSTEEN, AT VANCE, MAJESTIC, ROYAL
HUNT and DIO/RAINBOW. The DIO/RAINBOW influence can be
heard in the vocal department, because lead singer on
this CD is a guy called Patrick Johansson. He sounds like
a little brother of RONNIE JAMES DIO, something which can
also be heard on the recently released excellent debut CD
of ASTRAL DOORS. Anyway, the 9 songs on ‘Embrace the
galaxy’ are outstanding superb Neo-Classical Melodic
Metal masterpieces that easily blows away everything
MALMSTEEN has done the past 10 years! The CD starts with
a fast uptempo Neo-Classical Melodic Metal song called
“Despair and pain” and basically the CD
continues in this sensational CD with lovely
Neo-Classical keyboardwork a la ROYAL HUNT, a fast
drum/bass rhythm sound, solid MALMSTEENish guitarwork and
of course the superb strong lead vocals a la DIO. This
mixture makes this CD a masterpiece from the very start
until the end, with as absolute highlights “Embrace
the galaxy”, “Emposium”, “Entering
the dome”, “Seduction of life” (bloody
superb, the Japanese are gonna love this!) and
“Grand opening”. Concluded, a HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED album from Sweden once again, and without a
doubt, THE album MALMSTEEN didn’t release after
‘Odyssey’.
(Points:
9.5 out of 10)
 POVERTY’S NO CRIME ‘THE CHEMICAL
CHAOS’
(INSIDE OUT MUSIC/SUBURBAN)
The German band POVERTY’S NO CRIME has been with us
since the early 1990s and on and off they released some
great Melodic Metalalbums, but never seem to make an
album that could be called a masterpiece. Well, I can
inform you that ‘The chemical chaos’, their 5th
album so far, is without a doubt the band’s
strongest album. The new CD is a lovely high quality
Melodic Progressive Metal record that can be compared to
VANDENPLAS, EVERGREY, THRESHOLD and ZERO HOUR. The
included 10 songs make up an hour of high quality Prog.
Metal with many highlights, such as the wonderful first 3
songs (“Walk into nowhere”, “Every kind of
life” and the FANTASTIC “All Minds in
one”). But actually the whole CD is classic stuff,
with as other absolute highlights “Terminal
trip” (instrumental piece, by far a fantastic
masterpiece with all elements a Progrocksong needs to
have, RUSH meets DREAM THEATER!), “Left to
chance” and “Moving target”. So, we can
safely say this is a highly recommended album to all
Prog. Metalfans, especially if THRESHOLD and VANDENPLAS
are your favourite bands!
(Points:
9.0 out of 10)
MICHAEL
HARRIS ‘WORDS
COLLIDE’ (LION MUSIC/BERTUS)
Guitarist (and vocalist) Michael Harris played in several
bands in the past, such as ARCH RIVAL, TYRANT and
SURGEON, with whom he released quite a few succesfull
CDs, but also solo he released 4 instrumental albums. Now
he has signed to LION MUSIC, and this label released a
new solo-CD of Michael that features him singing and
playing the guitar. Musically it is pure Progressive
Metal and although it sounds nice, it never reaches the
high level of most of the other bands in this genre.
Nevertheless, songs like “Wash my soul away”,
“Incarcerated” and “Battle fatigue”
are quite nice Prog. Metalsongs, but some of the rest is
also a bit weaker and even experimental, moving into a
KING’S X style, so this is not as good as the stuff
Michael put out with ARCH RIVAL, which was a very
sensational Melodic Metalbands in the early 90s. If
you’re keen on slightly experimental ProgMetal you
can check this out, but I think there are better releases
in the genre at the moment.
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
GEORGE
BELLAS ‘VENOMOUS
FINGERS’ (LION MUSIC/BERTUS)
Multi-instrumentalist GEORGE BELLAS played on quite a few
records in the past, such as on MOGG/WAY, JOHN WEST and
RING OF FIRE, but is also well-known for his incredible
guitar technique which is showcased on his solo-CDs and
on a 12 CD Rom package from a few years ago. Now
he’s back with a new CD release titled
‘Venomous fingers’ and this one is a must for
all fans of instrumental Neo-Classical Melodic Metal like
MALMSTEEN, MACALPINE meets BACH, BEETHOVEN etc. Without a
doubt, this is a high quality release that features
fantastic instrumental music. George is a genius and he
is proving that on his new CD, which is basically a
brilliant piece of instrumental Neo-Classical Metal with
lots and lots of guitar versus keyboard duals. 15 songs
are included and if you’re a fan of this style, then
there’s nothing standing in your way in buying this
excellent release!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
CANDLEMASS
‘DOCUMENTS
OF DOOM’
(GMR/ESCAPI/ROCK INC./BERTUS)
The legendary Swedish Doom Metalband CANDLEMASS has
released this awesome double DVD sometime ago and without
a doubt, this DVD is a must if you’re a fan of the
band. Not only does it contain an excellent live
performance of the band from a concert they gave at a
place called Fryshuset back in 1990, but it also contains
a sort of documentary of the new masters of Doom Metal.
This documentary features some very rare footage from the
early stages of the band until their recent comeback last
year. Included are live performances and tours throughout
the years, a whole lot of fun happens backstage, although
at stage these guys are doing the stuff BLACK SABBATH did
some 30 years ago. Anyway, the 2 DVDs take up to about 3
hours, so there’s lots to see and enjoy here for the
Doom fan!
(Points:
8.5 out of 10)
JAN
JOHANSEN
‘X MY HEART’ (M&L RECORDS)
Swedish Singer JAN JOHANSEN recently released a great
Melodic Hardrockalbum with his band IGNITION, and
therefore I looked forward to his first solo-CD ‘X
my heart’. Unfortunately it has nothing to do with
Rock at all, as this is a pure Eurovision sort of
Popthing with only the odd Poprock/aor touch here and
there. The start is not bad with the poprockers “Bad
is good for you” and “When it comes to
love” that are very radiofriendly and sound like a
mix between DAN LUCAS, JOHN
WAITE, BON JOVI and JOHN PARR, with a modern approach.
But the rest of the CD is not even Westcoast/Pop, but
actually sounding like a Boyband (!!!) on songs like
“From this moment”, “Let’s not fade
away”, “Just a memory” and “Until the
end of time”. I am sorry but I have to pass on this
CD, as it has nothing to do with AOR/Melodic Rock, and
therefore I need to add here that if you enjoy IGNITION
you must keep your hands off this release, as it has
nothing to do with Rockmusic. If you’re keen on
Popmusic, then you can buy this CD at: http://www.targetrecords.de
(Points:
6.0 out of 10)
YUKON
‘RICH
BECOMES POOR’ (ATS RECORDS)
Out of Austria comes YUKON, and they released this CD 10
years ago (!), but it’s never too late to do a
review, especially since it is quite easy to get copies
of the CD, as it is widely available through TARGET
RECORDS these days. The band was playing your typical
rough-in-your-face-but-still- melodic Hardrock a la
GOTTHARD and KROKUS, and there are some nice songs on
their CD ‘Rich becomes poor’, such as the
melodic rockers “Believe it or not” and
“Life is just a takin’”. It’s not a
bad CD at all, but also not something you must own, just
the typical Melodic Hardrockalbum you buy when
you’re a huge collector of hardrockalbums. You can
buy this CD at: http://www.targetrecords.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
CATWALK ‘TO THE
BACKBONE’ (ATS RECORDS)
There have not been that many Austrian bands in the
Hardrockscene, but CATWALK was an exception. Their CD
‘To the backbone’ from 10 years ago contains 18
tracks (!) of which many are fillers, but in between we
can also hear some quality Melodic Rock such as on great
songs like “It’s not easy”, “Five
smart boys”, “Tonight” (cliche as hell,
but still a great melodic rocker with catchy chorus),
“Give me the power” and “I want you to
know” (very good midtempo melodic rocker). Sadly,
the band also throws in a lot of unwanted short nobodys
like “Good golly miss molly”,
“Mecky”, “Jenny Jenny”, “TSA
Going”, “Rivers of babylon”, “Whole
lotta shakin’ going on” and “La
paloma”. If they had just put out a record with 6 or
7 of the melodic rocksongs, then it would have been a
good recommended album, now there’s too much junk on
this CD to make it a wanted item, but die-hard melodic
rockfans can check this out as it contains some
interesting material for them. You can buy this CD at: http://www.targetrecords.de
(Points:
7.5 out of 10)
(All
reviews by Gabor Kleinbloesem, except where noted)
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